As promised, the Feb. 18 Grand Friday Night Fights Card at Grand Casino Hinckley delivered an action-packed night of boxing to fight fans in Minnesota and throughout the Upper Midwest. In the main event, the atmosphere was electric as Al Sands of Duluth knocked out Marcus Oliveira to claim the ABF Cruiserweight title. We look forward to catching up with Al in a future episode. Other winners included Minnesota boxers Tony Woods, Colton Warner, Gavin Hendrickson, Joshua Clark and Danny Huffman. Rayshaun Thomas, of the One-Two Boxing LLC family of fighters, made short work of his fight with a TKO win over Lloyd McKinney. Thomas, who hails from sunny California, kept his record unblemished in his fifth pro fight. The show was presented by Rapacz Boxing and Grand Casino Hinckley.  

Intro music: “Ali Shuffle,” by the Toler/Townsend Band. Special thanks to Deb Toler. The full instrumental is available for purchase: music.apple.com/us/album/ali-shuffle/334927560?i=334927635

The Minnesota Fight Night podcast is answering the bell for its third season with its biggest and boldest episode yet. In the inaugural episode of 2022, Co-Hosts Brian Johnson and Sean Strauss catch up with Minnesota boxers Josh Clark, Gavin Hendrickson, Tim Taggart, Danny Huffman, Tony Woods and Colton Warner, all of whom are part of the big card this Friday night at Grand Casino Hinckley. MN Fight Night fans will learn about Clark’s feats of fitness (hint: he broke a world sit-ups record set by none other than Jack Lalanne), Warner’s connection to Nico Ali Walsh (grandson of The Greatest), Taggart’s worthy cause (here’s the link: https://mmiwusa.org), and much more. And of course, Strauss and Johnson preview the Hinckley card, which is headlined by a much-anticipated showdown between Al Sands (21-4-1) of Duluth and Marcus Oliveira (28-6-1) of Mayetta, Kansas, by way of Appleton, Wisconsin. On the line in that fight is the coveted American Boxing Federation USA Cruiser Title. 

Intro music: “Ali Shuffle,” by the Toler/Townsend Band. Special thanks to Deb Toler. The full instrumental is available for purchase: music.apple.com/us/album/ali-shuffle/334927560?i=334927635

In this episode, podcast hosts Brian Johnson and Sean Strauss recap the December 18 PBC card at the Minneapolis Armory. In the main event, David Morrell Jr., fighting out of Minneapolis, stole the show with an impressive fourth-round TKO win over Alantez Fox. Morrell retained his WBA super middleweight title and improved to 6-0 with five KOs. Fox fell to 28-3-1. Sean and Brian will discuss that fight later in the show. But first, we’ll start with brief comments from Fox and Minneapolis’ own Ve Shawn Owens. Owens dropped a 10-round decision to Alberto Puello on the undercard. Puello improved to 20-0 and Owens fell to 13-3. We’ll also hear from Austin Dulay, who came up short in a gutsy effort against Jose Valenzuela. The referee stopped the contest early in the fourth round. Valenzuela improved to 11-0 and Dulay fell to 14-3. 

Intro music: “Ali Shuffle,” by the Toler/Townsend Band. Special thanks to Deb Toler. The full instrumental is available for purchase: music.apple.com/us/album/ali-shuffle/334927560?i=334927635

“Bring your son in and I will make him a world champion.” A legendary boxing trainer, the late great Emanuel Steward, made that bold prediction years ago in a conversation with the father of Minnesota boxer Colton Warner. On October 22 in Hinckley, the younger Warner will try to move a step closer to world title contention as he takes on Blaine Perrigo in a heavyweight showdown. Warner is 2-0 heading into the fight. In the following interview, Warner talks about what it was like training and sparring with heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, and working with elite trainer SugarHill Steward, nephew of Emanuel. He also takes a deep dive into the current state of the heavyweight division, among other topics. Intro music: “Ali Shuffle,” by the Toler/Townsend Band. Special thanks to Deb Toler. The full instrumental is available for purchase: music.apple.com/us/album/ali-shuffle/334927560?i=334927635 BoxRec: Colton Warner

In this episode of the Minnesota Fight Night podcast, Minnesota boxer Tony Woods returns to talk about his big unanimous decision win over a very game opponent, Jarvis Williams of St. Louis, Missouri. Woods and Williams headlined the Dec. 4 Ignite Fights card at Canterbury Expo Center in Shakopee. Woods, who improved to 9-0, dug deep and overcame a nasty cut to get his hand raised. The native of Iowa, now living in Shoreview, also gives his take on some of big fights in recent weeks, including Vasiliy Lomachenko’s win over Richard Commey. Sean Strauss gets the ball rolling with that interview. But first, we'll hear from two other Minnesota boxers who scored wins on the Ignite Card. Josh Clark of Fridley improved to 3-0 with a decision nod over Ryan Attebery of Merced, California. And in an explosive pro debut, Robbie Loyde of Minneapolis stopped Thomas Allen of Saint Joseph, Missouri.

Intro music: “Ali Shuffle,” by the Toler/Townsend Band. Special thanks to Deb Toler. The full instrumental is available for purchase: music.apple.com/us/album/ali-shuffle/334927560?i=334927635  https://www.facebook.com/events/canterbury-park/ignite-presents-mecca-xvii/998295424344325/

In this episode of the Minnesota Fight Night podcast, Eric Hinderaker of One-Two Boxing LLC talks about the return of pro boxing to Canterbury Park in Shakopee and the challenges of matchmaking during the pandemic, among other topics. He also offers his take on the big fights of the past week, including the epic battle between Teofimo Lopez and George Kambosos Jr. IGNITE presents MECCA XVII at Canterbury Expo Center on Saturday, Dec. 4. 

Intro music: “Ali Shuffle,” by the Toler/Townsend Band. Special thanks to Deb Toler. The full instrumental is available for purchase: music.apple.com/us/album/ali-shuffle/334927560?i=334927635 

https://www.facebook.com/events/canterbury-park/ignite-presents-mecca-xvii/998295424344325/

Ten years after his last fight, Minnesota boxer Tim Taggart Jr. stepped back into the ring Oct. 22 at Grand Casino Hinckley -- and he returned in grand style, with a second-round knockout win over his previously unbeaten opponent, James Jackson. A fan favorite in his hometown of Hinckley, Taggart improved to 6-4-2 as a pro with three knockouts. After fighting most of his career at super middleweight, Taggart returned as a heavyweight, a byproduct of his power lifting and rigorous workout regimen. In the following interview, Taggart talks about his successful ring return, his loyal fan base in Hinckley, his work as a fitness coordinator at Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe and more. 

https://boxrec.com/en/proboxer/432981

Intro music: “Ali Shuffle,” by the Toler/Townsend Band. Special thanks to Deb Toler. The full instrumental is available for purchase: music.apple.com/us/album/ali-shuffle/334927560?i=334927635

In this episode of the Minnesota Fight Night podcast, Minneapolis welterweight Jamal "Shango" James discusses his Oct. 30 world title defense against unbeaten Radzhab Butaev of Russia. Fighting out of the Circle of Discipline, James lost his WBA welterweight title by ninth round TKO. Though the fight didn't go as planned, the Minneapolis boxer vows to come back stronger than ever. Also in the interview, James talks about the Circle of Discipline's new home at 801 SE Ninth St. in Minneapolis. The 4,500-square-foot training center is more than twice as large as the COD’s previous 2,100-square-foot home. Visitors will find two boxing rings, a wall of heavy bags, treadmills, free weights and elliptical equipment. In addition, the facility offers new classrooms and meeting rooms to host all COD programs. A safe haven in the Minneapolis community, the COD provides alternative programs and enrichment activities that address the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual needs of youth and young adults. At the COD’s after-school gathering center, mentorships are developed. Intro music: “Ali Shuffle,” by the Toler/Townsend Band. Special thanks to Deb Toler. The full instrumental is available for purchase: music.apple.com/us/album/ali-shuffle/334927560?i=334927635