A pair of Surrey boxers won their fights Friday during the “Turmoil on 200th 2” event at Langley Events Centre.
Surrey’s Aman Aujla defeated Tacoma’s Nick Coughram in a pro bout, while Manraj Dhanoa beat fellow Surreyite Cody Robertson in an amateur fight that night (Nov. 23).
Meantime, it was a “no decision” result for Surrey’s Julian “JY” Kim in his match against Ontario’s Jay Kelly.
In the main event, Langley’s Alisah McPhee defeated Winnipeg’s Judy “The Pitbull” Pereira.
Other amateur bouts had Vancouver’s Lev Jackson winning over Jacob George of North Van, and Maple Ridge’s Riley Grey defeating Austin Henry-Maiale of Duncan.
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With the crowd clearly on her side, McPhee was able to ride that support as she won a unanimous decision to capture the Canadian Super Flyweight Championship title.
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McPhee won 77-75, 78-74, 78-74 to win by unanimous decision over Pereira.
“It feels pretty good to go in, have a goal in mind and be able to achieve it. The hard work has paid off,” she said in a media release.
“To hear people chant ‘Team McPhee’ when you are out there, it really does boost you,” McPhee added.
With Pereira coming from Winnipeg and the Stingers Boxing Academy, McPhee, who boxes out of Langley City Boxing, had the fans behind her.
McPhee, 37, had at least 90 people in the stands, including some who came from where she grew up in Williams Lake, and others from Nanaimo. There were also several of her colleagues from Abbotsford’s Eugene Reimer Middle School, as well as some of her students.
For most of her colleagues, this was the first time they had seen McPhee fight.
“They see me getting smaller and smaller and looking a little tired and knowing that I get up at 5:30 and go to the gym and then after school, I go for a run and then I go sparring. For them to just see what I do (to prepare for a fight), now their eyes are really open,” McPhee said.
The eight-round fight was even for the first half, but McPhee seemed to take control in the final three rounds. The only thing she knew about her 38-year-old opponent was that she tended to come out aggressive at the start of the rounds.
“She would come into the round pretty forceful and then lose her energy. I thought I had the better fitness,” McPhee said. “And in the latter rounds, I was able to find my punches off her.”
McPhee also headlined the inaugural Turmoil on 200th event at Langley Events Centre back in May, losing that bout.
“You can always take stuff back and learn,” she said about what that fight taught her, which was that she needed more quality sparring in her preparation.
That is easier said than done but McPhee was helped by Sarah Pucek, who had quite the decorated amateur and professional boxing career but is now retired from the ring and working as a judge.
The fight was the final of six on the “Turmoil on 200th 2” card.
Congrats to our new BC Provincial champ from @BislaMartialArt #turmoilon200th2 #fightnight #WhereBOXINGPASSIONLives pic.twitter.com/XYlEEgmze3
— Langley Events Centre (@LangleyEvents) November 24, 2018
In the other two pro fights, both ended in the first round by referee’s decision.
Surrey’s Kim, with Port Kells Boxing Club, faced Kelly in a middleweight bout.
Both landed a flurry of punches in the first round, but after Kim knocked Kelly down, he hit him in the back of the head. The referee stopped the match, calling in an unintentional no contest.
“I stung him to the body pretty good and as he went down, I was just throwing and I clipped him in the back of the head by accident,” said Kim, 29, adding he was upset he couldn’t give his fans the show he wanted as there was a large contingent of Kim supporters in the crowd.
“I am just super disappointed I didn’t’ get the ‘W’ today.”
In the cruiserweight division, Surrey’s Aujla won by technical knockout at 2:07, after he sent Tacoma’s Nick Coughran to the ground.
Aujla, 26, representing Bisla Martial Arts, also won by first-round technical knockout at the first “Turmoil on 200th” card.
“I put a lot of hard work in the gym and you get back what you put in,” he said.
Coughran was a late addition to the card after Aujla’s first two opponents both wound up dropping out.
But he didn’t let that deter his training as up until the morning of the fight, he thought he was fighting someone else.
“It is part of the game, these kinds of things happen, so you just have to be ready for anything,” Aujla said.
He said he was just focused on his jab and staying relaxed, and then capitalizing on his opportunity, which came in the final minute of the first round after he landed a flurry of body shots, prompting the referee to stop the fight.
On the amateur card, in a battle for the B.C. championship, Dhanoa (also with Bisla Martial Arts) beat Robertson (Ibarra Combative Arts) by unanimous decision.
Gray (Carlson Gracie MMA) won by majority decision over Henry-Maiale (Black Box Boxing) in the 154-pound weight class, while Jackson won by unanimous decision over George in the 135-pound weight class. Both were fighting as independents.
