Mike Mastovich
mmastovich@tribdem.com
JOHNSTOWN —
Andres Taylor will fight in his hometown again on Saturday, but this time the venue will be different.
Taylor will box Paul Jennette at Point Stadium as part of the River Valley Brawl. The outdoor card includes both boxing and Cold Steel Mixed Martial Arts bouts.
Johnstown’s Taylor, the World Boxing Foundation All Americas cruiserweight champion, has won eight consecutive fights and is 16-1-1 with seven knockouts. The NABA cruiserweight belt will be at stake.
He will face Jennette, a 42-year-old native of Greensboro, N.C., with an 11-3-0 record and eight knockouts. Jennette originally was scheduled to meet Taylor in June at the Pasquerilla Conference Center but the fight never materialized.
“Finally,” Taylor said. “I was supposed to fight him on June 10, but he hurt his hand and had to pull out.”
Jennette’s last fight was a loss by unanimous decision to undefeated Ryan Coyne on March 6.
After winning his first nine pro fights, Jennette is 2-3 in his past five outings.
“I know he’s a southpaw. He’s a good fighter,” Taylor said. “He beat (Zack) Mwekassa (by split decision on Oct. 10, 2009), and Mwekassa was the Intercontinental WBF champion. Jennette is good, and he’s coming to fight.
“Plus, this is for the NABA belt, which is huge because with that belt you get ranked in the top 15 in the world. It’s all or nothing. Everything is on the line. The winner takes the next step. You’ll be in line for a WBA world title.”
This will be Taylor’s sixth fight since Jan. 22.
The 31-year-old has had a busy and successful year.
“At this level, you’re fighting, and you’re building your record,” Taylor said. “You’re trying to get into the rankings of a major sanctioning body. That’s my goal, to bring it home, to be ranked in the top 15 in the world in the WBA.
“If you do that, you go from making peanuts to making decent money. All the work you put in pays off when you get to that level.”
This also will be his sixth career appearance in Johnstown and at the third different venue. He previously had competed at Cambria County War Memorial Arena and the Pasquerilla Center. Taylor has won all five of his previous bouts in his hometown.
United graduate Eli Garshnick of Armagh is the headliner on the MMA card. He will fight Joe Kirwan for the Valley Fight League title at 185 pounds.
“Garshnick has a tough fight,” said Jake Moore, owner of Cold Steel MMA in Johnstown and an event organizer. “They’re both the same style. They both have wrestling backgrounds and decent standups.”
Moore said the evening’s card of 10 MMA fights and four boxing matches will be both competitive and entertaining.
“It’s top-notch, from the MMA to the boxing,” Moore said. “It’s the most competitive that we’ve had so far in Johnstown or Altoona.”
Holding the event at Point Stadium also is special, according to both Taylor and Moore. Taylor previously had fought outdoors in York.
“At the Point, that’s something new,” Taylor said. “It’s the first outdoor fight at the new Point, plus it has a twist with mixed martial arts and boxing. It’s going to be a good show. The weather, right now, is supposed to be nice, 80 degrees. There is something about the outdoor shows, I don’t know why, but people love them. Everywhere I’ve fought outdoors people come in masses.”
Moore is counting on Johnstown’s boxing and MMA fans to flock to the Point.
“People are nervous because of the weather factor, but an outside venue is awesome,” Moore said. “I’ve heard they haven’t had outside boxing at the Point since the early 1950s.”
Two bands will perform at the Point from 2 to 5 p.m. in conjunction with the card.
Fights are set to begin at 7 p.m.
