ROBERTSON TAKES TITLE IN MAHNOMEN
Photos and Report By Jesse Kelley

Antwan Robertson (5-1-1) won the vacant Minnesota bantamweight title Saturday October 23rd in Mahnomen, MN as he defeated in-state rival Brad Patraw (6-1). The two fighters met last March in a bout that saw Patraw sweep the scorecards and win a lopsided unanimous decision. Patraw was the same gutsy pressure fighter as he was in the first meeting this time out and Robertson fought much more aggressively and confident, resulting in a thrilling MN fight of the year candidate.
Robertson began the fight jabbing and using what would be his best and most frequently used weapon in the fight, a hard right hand to the head as Patraw's left was held low. Robertson did well by confussing Patraw with movement and hard punches through the first two rounds.
Patraw seized the momentum in rounds three and four as Robertson stopped letting his hands go like he had in the previous rounds. Patraw began to bully his way inside and force Robertson to the ropes as the fight began to resemble the first bout between the two.
The fifth and sixth saw Patraw win the first half of the rounds with aggressive combination punching while Robertson took the second half with stinging rights to the head and spirited pressure boxing of his own. A seemingly even fight was changed however in the closing moments of the sixth as a booming combo to the head put Patraw on his seat. Buzzed, Patraw regained his footing and finished the round.
The final two rounds saw intense back and forth action that had the crowd on their feet. The two fighters went all out in an exchange in the center of the ring in round eight. Punches were landed and Patraw again ended up on the floor where referee Mark Nelson began his count. Patraw could be seen shaking his head saying he tripped but the second knockdown scored by Robertson was enough to secure the Mn state title for "lil Superman". Scores read 76-75, 76-74, and 76-74.

In other action, Mike Davis stopped Jesse Barbot in round six. Davis and Barbot let loose on each other from start to finish. Both fighters landed big shots but Davis seemed to take the punches better. Davis dropped Barbot on more then one occassion on his way to putting an end to the bout with a vicious head combination in the sixth round. Barbot was taken out of the ring on a stretcher although conssious. Barbot ended up having surgery the following day to remove a blood clot but was said to be in good condition afterwards. Barbot confirms that he is recovering.

Nick Whiting stopped Travis McCullough in round two. McCullough had success early but was unable to make it to his feet after a hard left-right to the body put him down to all fours.

Derek Winston won his long awaited professional debut by taking a four round unanimous decision over David Laque. Winston gave up a big size advantage while Laque came in the much less experience of the two. The bout was full of action as Winston boxed with sharp combinations and Laque constantly switched stances as he pressed forward. Winston was able to land head shots throughout but they seemed to unface

Brittany Tenbears and Concha Ross fought to a four round majority draw. Both girls put on a decent performance, showing skill and conditioning despite being relatively green in the ring.

Lawrence Goodman stopped Chance Western in round one. Goodman simply overwhelmed the tough mma fighter Western from start to finish.