Tweet
By Arne K. Lang
Camille Estephan, the driving force behind Eye of the Tiger Management, the leading promotional group in French-speaking Canada, took three of his most valuable properties to Mexico for some stay-busy fights and all three – super middleweights David Lemieux and Erik Bazinyan and heavyweight Simon Kean -- won inside the distance over their “B-side” opponents who were better characterized as D-minus. The fights took place last night, June 4, at a Holiday Inn hotel in Cuernavaca, Mexico, and were live-streamed on FITE TV.
There’s a back story there. Estephan had an April 17 show in Quebec City fall out when Covid restrictions kept the Spanish and Russian opponents for David Lemieux and Erik Bazinyan, respectively, from entering the country. New opponents were found and the resourceful Estephan moved the show to Mexico where current travel restrictions are among the loosest in the world and the sport’s regulators are far less meddlesome.
David Lemieux (43-4, 36 KOs) was matched against a Peruvian, David Zegarra. A pro since 2005, the 36-year-old Zegarra brought a 34-4 record but wasn’t a good traveler; all four of his defeats had come on the road. Lemieux bombed him out in the second round, scoring three knockdowns before the match was stopped.
Lemieux, who had a short reign as the IBF world middleweight champion, was making his third start at 168. For the last several years, he has been chasing Canelo Alvarez, and should they ever meet, he has a puncher’s chance. His portfolio includes several highlight reel knockouts and at age 32 he still seemingly has a lot of miles left on his odometer.
Erik Bazinyan (26-0, 20 KOs) was matched against Scott Sigmon (35-15-1), a 34-year-old Virginia trial horse best remembered for going 10 rounds with ancient Roy Jones Jr in February of 2018.
This fight was likewise terminated in the second round. Sigmon was on his feet, but Bazinyan was dealing out a lot of punishment.
The 26-year-old Bazinyan, a Quebec resident who migrated to Canada with his parents at age 16 from Armenia, was purportedly a 108-1 as an amateur, a record that, needless to say, ought to be taken with a grain of salt. He is ranked #6 by the WBO and is an interesting prospect but, as prominent boxing writer Scott Christ notes, he needs to ramp up his level of competition to be considered a serious contender.
Simon Kean improved to 20-1 (19 KOs) at the expense of 38-year-old Don Haynesworth (16-6-1), a blubbery New Yorker. Haynesworth’s corner stopped the fight after four one-sided rounds.
Kean, who avenged his lone professional defeat, participated in the 2012 London Olympics where he defeated Tony Yoka. This was his first fight in 16 months, his career having been stalled by a hand injury.
Check out more boxing news on video at the Boxing Channel