SPORTS WRAP
BY WILLIAM HATHAWAY, JR.
COVER PHOTO BY WILLIAM HATHAWAY, JR.
GALLERY PHOTOS BY FELICIA LAGUERRE OWENS
This past weekend, Top Rank Boxing returned to the Prudential Center in Newark with an 11 match card.
The main event saw Roseland native Vito Mielnicki, Jr. defeat 23-year-old Kamil Gardielik, Jr. from Poland in a 10 round unanimous decision. Mielnicki is 21-1-1 with 12 knockouts. After the fight he said he was happy with his victory in the big bout, with an excellent display of his fighting skills against a tough opponent.
One special moment saw Newark native Muadh Abdus-Salaam take on Roberto Cantos. Salaam was the winner in his professional debut, and was one of the crowd favorites in his hometown. Also, Jahi Tucker beat Lorenzo Simpson.
Other fights that ended in unanimous decision wins were Kahshad Elliott beating Titus Ashe and Brandun Lee defeating Elias Araujo. Meanwhile, Norman Neely defeated James Willis in a first round knockout while Dwyke Flemmings, Jr. defeated Demian Fernandez by TKO in the first round. The ladies also took to the squared circle, as the junior featherweight division saw Passaic native Lisandra Contreras take a unanimous decision over Montana Weems.
Finally, the last game of the National Basketball Association’s 2024-2025 season saw the Oklahoma City Thunder defeat the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the NBA Finals 103-91. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander capped off an MVP season with a Bill Russell Finals MVP trophy. The game might have been a little overshadowed by multi-time All Star Kevin Durant getting traded from the Phoenix Suns to the Houston Rockets.
