Conwell Caps Off ShoBox’ Explosive Return With KO9 of Toussaint

Undefeated Super Welterweight Charles Conwell handled Wendy Toussaint over a scheduled 10-rounder before an abrupt stoppage in the ninth round

Young Undefeated fighters Brandun Lee and Janelson Figueroa Bocachica won by brutal first round KOs in a pair of Welterweight bouts in first ShoBox since mid-March

Uncasville, CONN. (October 7, 2020) — The number of world champions who cut their teeth on ShoBox: The New Generation currently sits at over 80 fighters. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic put the brakes on boxing after the last installment of the series back in mid-March.

Super Welterweight Charles Conwell and Lightweight Brandun Lee, the winner of ShoBox’ last main event, kicked off the return telecast of the important developmental series. Both are undefeated, exciting, and gradually working their way into the discussion in their respective divisions. They’re both in one of boxing’s most compelling divisions.

Conwell (13-0, 10 KOs), a U.S. representative at the Rio 2016, fought New York’s undefeated Wendy Toussaint in a 10-round bout. Toussaint (12-1, 5 KOs) picked up a wide decision win versus Detroit, Mich.’s Isiah Jones back in late-August. Conwell stopped Ramses Agaton in Hammond, Ind. after Agaton retired after the fourth round.

Toussaint earned his recent win in a crowd-free environment inside the MGM Grand Conference Center, but similarly to the Long Islander’s height the experience wasn’t an advantage against the 22-year old Olympian. Conwell pressured Toussaint, pumping his jab off of his tight guard and finished most of his combinations with some body work. He immediately tested his opponent’s guard with an uppercut as the taller Haiti native leaned forward.

Toussaint stood in the pocket, threw a fair amount of jabs and looked to land shots over the top of Conwell’s punches. His power never truly dissuaded Conwell from working his way inside. Conwell, a Cleveland, Ohio native, experienced a problem with his right hand after throwing a punch in round seven. The issue altered his attack in the subsequent round.

Toussaint appeared to be aware of a likely hand problem in the eighth round. His output didn’t pick up noticeably, but he taunted the Olympian, and motioned for him to fight him. Conwell threw some lighter shots with his right and relied on his jab for the round.

A round later Conwell’s work-rate returned. With Toussaint now coming forward, the Ohioan grew willing to throw his right hand with greater conviction. At 2:42 Conwell connected with a right uppercut that split Toussaint’s guard and broke his nose. The taller 28-year old backed out, signaling he was experiencing an issue and dropped down to a knee. He remained knelt down as referee John Callas reach the count of 10.

The performance didn’t accelerate the young fighter into a title fight with either of the division’s two champions – unified champ Jermell Charlo or WBO titlist Patrick Teixeira. Conwell acknowledged as much in his post-fight comments, but his remarks kept his pre-fight timeline intact.

“I think this was a good fight for my first fight back, getting the ring rust off, but at the end of the day we got the job done,” said Conwell, a 2016 U.S. Olympian. “The game plan going in was to break him down round by round, go to the body until we got him to where we wanted him. I give my performance a C-plus, there were a lot of things I could have done better. I’m going to get back in the gym and continue to work hard to become the champion I know I can be. I’ll fight anybody next, but I really want an ex-world champion or ex-title challenger so I can get the championship rounds under my belt. Then it’s on to a world title.

Brandun Lee vs Jimmy Williams 

Brandun Lee, an undefeated 21-year old prospect from La Quinta, Calif., absolutely embarrassed 34-year old Jimmy Williams. The two fought above the 140-pound max limit of the Super Lightweight division, but Lee maintained his visibility among a group of promising young prospects.

Lee opened the fight with his jab, quickly recognized Williams’ lack of urgency, and immediately stepped up his aggression with a barrage of power punches. He first dropped Williams with a punishing lead left hook. Williams (16-3-2, 5 KOs) was down again after a left hook-right hook combination.

Nobody would’ve faulted referee Danny Schiavone for stopping the fight at this point. However, the bout continued and Lee moved in on the unsteady Williams quickly, at 1:34, to knock the New Haven, Conn. native completely out with a slapping left hook-right hook combination. The upper portion of Williams’ body laid across the bottom rope with his legs stiffened. Standing center-ring, Lee celebrated his devastating performance in a controlled fashion as his opponent was evaluated.

Lee improved his record to 20-0 behind his 18th KO. The stellar KO should keep Lee in the running with, or on the heels of, names like Malik Hawkins, Shohjahon Ergashev, and Elvis Rodriguez to name a few.

“I’m blessed with the natural power and that’s what the fans saw from me tonight – I’m here to entertain the fans and seek and destroy,” said the 21-year-old Lee.”

“The game plan was to go in there and do what I do best, which is to destruct anything that is in my way. When I fought last fall on SHOWTIME for the first time in Texas I felt like we rushed it too much. And back in March on SHOWTIME I felt like we waited too long. So I think this fight was perfect. We hit it right on the money, not too fast and not too slow.

Janelson Figueroa Bocachica vs Niklaus Flaz

Janelson Figueroa Bocachica, an undefeated 21-year old Welterweight from Detroit, Mich., was poised in the opening moments of his debut fight on ShoBox. Puerto Rico’s Niklaus Flaz must’ve been motivated by Lee’s white-hot performance in the opener of the telecast.

Flaz (9-2, 7 KOs) forced the issue. Bocachica obliged him in engaging in the early fireworks. Unfortunately, Flaz attempted to outgun a bigger a puncher, and do so without any cover whatsoever. After an early exchange of powerful shots, Bocachica landed a flush left hook that deposited Flaz on the canvas.

Learning very little after being dropped, Flaz quickly went marching back towards Bocachica (16-0, 11 KOs). Flaz got into another bad spot before the 1:00 mark from a series of big right hands from Bocachica. He was down again by :45 after another big flurry from the Motor City puncher.

Flaz remained defiant, looking to punch with an opponent who had just dropped him twice. He was down for the third time around :20, and Johnny Callas stopped the fight.

The confident Welterweight alluded to the fact that Flaz escalated the action ahead of what the Detroit native planned to do.

“The game plan was to showcase my boxing. I didn’t get to do that but I’m happy either way. I’m not shy calling out guys, but I’m trying to be respectful to the best in my division. I’m here, so bring them on. One-hundred forty-seven [pounds] is mine. It was easier than I thought, I’m not going to lie. But I didn’t think it was going to be hard.”

All photos by Amanda Westcott/Showtime Boxing