Austin Williams W10 Wendy Toussaint ... Southpaw Austin “Ammo” Williams, 159.6 lbs., of Palm Beach Gardens, FL, was scheduled to challenge WBC middleweight world champion Carlos Adames tonight at Madison Square Garden, but plans changed when Adames was forced to withdraw on the morning of the weigh-in. Reportedly, he was suffering from dehydration. Local junior middleweight Wendy “Haitian Fire” Toussaint, of Huntington, Long Island, NY, stepped in on short notice to keep Williams on the undercard. Toussaint weighed in at 167.2 lbs. The southpaw Williams, trained by Kevin Cunningham, applied pressure but had trouble landing cleanly in the first few rounds. Toussaint’s best weapon was his counter straight right. By round four, Williams made adjustments and began to target the body with hooks. Near the end of that frame, a right uppercut to the chin deposited Toussaint on the canvas. From that point on, Williams was in control, landing the more effective blows, though Toussaint remained game. Following 10 rounds, scorecards read 99-90 (twice), and 98-91, all for Williams via unanimous decision. Earning his fourth straight victory, Williams improved to 20-1 (13 KOs). Toussaint is now 17-4 (7 KOs).

 

Kevin Castillo W8 Ziyad Almaayouf... At the weigh-in, Ecuadorian junior welterweight Kevin Castillo, 140.75 lbs., of Miami, FL, said, “How am I going [pull off the upset]? By taking him to war, a war that’s fitting for a venue like Madison Square Garden. After tomorrow, you’re going to know my name. I’ll leave my mark.” In the opening bout of the event, Castillo did just that, defeating Los Angeles-based Ziyad Almaayouf, 141.25 lbs., who is of Saudi Arabian descent, by unanimous decision following an entertaining eight-rounder. Scorecards read 78-73, and 77-74 (twice), all for Castillo, now 6-2-1. Suffering his first defeat, Almaayouf left Madison Square Garden at 7-1-1 (1 KO).