UNCASVILLE, CT – Ten years ago, Arkansas heavyweight Dominick Guinn sprung onto the boxing scene by blasting the highly regarded Michael Grant with his potent left hook, stopping him in round seven after four knockdowns. The sensational victory was part of the 24-bout winning streak that started Guinn’s career and made him a suddenly hot prospect among the big men.
At the time, heavyweight was a crowded division full of hungry fighters, and Guinn never quite made it to the top of his class. But he never stopped believing in his talents. He had good size, solid boxing skills and that crushing power that earned him the nickname “The Southern Disaster”. Guinn kept fighting, and remained in the gym, waiting for his chance to breakthrough once again.
So when Guinn received the surprise call to fight Tomasz Adamek, 48-2, 29 KOs, on the next edition of NBC Sports Network’s live boxing series, Fight Night, it felt like destiny to the self-described gym rat.
Originally Adamek was scheduled to face Tony Grano on August 3rd. However a back injury forced Grano to pull out of the bout, opening the door for Guinn to stage another return to significant heavyweight action. The Houston-based heavyweight will again try to take the division by storm with another surprise win.
The 10-rounder between Guinn and Adamek is one third of the big “Three to See” triple header at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, CT. The broadcast begins at 10:30 PM ET, and also includes middleweight Curtis Stevens (24-3, 17 KOs) against Saul Roman (37-9, 31 KOs), and cruiserweight Eddie Chambers (36-3, 18 KOs) versus Thabiso Mchunu (12-1, 9 KOs*), in separate 10-rounders.
Although Adamek is still in hot pursuit of another shot at the heavyweight title, Guinn, 34-9-1, 23 KOs, believes he’s recently seen a few cracks in his popular opponent’s armor, and is convinced that the time is ripe for his left hook to again make him a player among heavyweights.
In addition to this, Guinn has never been stopped in his 13-year boxing career, and he figures his granite chin could be the antidote to Adamek’s heavy hands. If Guinn can pull the upset, his career will get the sudden jolt he’s been waiting for.
Hungry to again make his mark and finally reach his potential in the ring, the always-ready Dominick Guinn may prove to be a dangerous substitute against Adamek.
*Guinn and Mchunu records per Fight Fax