Hyland Rebounds With Knockout Win

By: Michael Gerard Seiler

DiBella Entertainment's "Broadway Boxing" series returned to the renowned BB King Blues Club and Grill Wednesday evening in midtown Manhattan, offering fight fans a sizzling night of action on a tremendously hot and humid night. 

The sweltering conditions outside had no effect on Patrick Hyland's sound performance inside the ring, as the aggressor from Dublin, Ireland stopped Noel Echevarria at :54 of round four in the main event.

Hyland, 30, lost his previous fight via twelve-round unanimous decision to rising featherweight star Javier Fortuna. After taking all of 2013 off, a revved-up Hyland delivered a much needed victory in front of his supporters.

In the first round, Hyland imposed his will subtly on Echevarria, landing with both fists during their exchanges.

Clearly possessing the edge in power, Hyland hurt Echevarria, 23, with an onslaught of punches in round three, especially a rock-solid left hook to the body in the closing seconds.

After ripping off a series of thunderous punches and connecting, Hyland forced Echevarria to turn away when he struck him with a final flush left hook to the head, causing the bout to be halted immediately.

Hyland improved his professional record to 28-1, 13 KO's, while Echevarria dropped to 11-4, 6 KO's. Echevarria is winless in his last four contests.


21-year-old Patrick Day (8-0-1, 5 KO's) scored his third consecutive knockout, stopping Brad Jackson (15-10-1, 7 KO's) at :15 of the second round. Day floored Jackson in the first round with a swift overhand right. Moments later, Jackson landed a grazing left hook that left an off-balanced Day touching the canvas with his glove, resulting in an official knockdown being called.

As soon as he heard the bell to start round two, Day rushed to the center of the ring and unleashed a furious left hook-right cross combination, instantly dropping Jackson and ending the contest.


Sergey Derevyanchenko (1-0, 1 KO) won his professional debut, making Cromwell Gordon (4-11, 4 KO's) quit after just two rounds of a super middleweight bout. The 28-year-old Ukrainian relentlessly pressured Gordon, hurting him with a right uppercut in the second round that penetrated through his high defensive guard.

Derevyanchenko won a bronze medal at middleweight in the 2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships.


In other action, 28-year-old heavyweight "Prince" Charles Martin won a lackluster contest, stopping Kerston Manswell, 37, at 2:33 of round three to retain his WBO NABO title. Martin, a southpaw, has won his last eight fights by knockout, and owns a 18-0-1, 16 KO's record. Manswell's record fell to 24-9, 14 KO's.


Welterweight Danny Gonzalez (6-0-1, 3 KO's) remained unbeaten, capturing a six-round unanimous decision over Brooklyn's Ray Velez (3-5-1, 1 KO). Official scores were 58-56 and 59-55 twice. In the early rounds, both fighters utilized lots of lateral movement, but threw few combinations. Velez came on strong in the third and fourth rounds. In the fifth and sixth rounds, the bout was highly competitive in close quarters.


Super middleweight Avtandil Khurtsidze (28-2-2, 17 KO's) needed just 1:23 to dispose of Allen Conyers (12-10, 9 KO's). Khurtsidze pulverized Conyers with a myriad of devastating left hooks en route to victory.


Joe Smith, Jr. upped his record to (16-1, 13 KO's) by defeating Tyrell Hendrix (11-5-1, 4 KO's) via technical knockout in round three of a light heavyweight affair. Smith, Jr., 24, stunned Hendrix with a hard overhand right in round two. Seconds later, Smith, Jr. sent Hendrix quickly to the canvas when he connected with a crisp right uppercut. A series of right uppercuts and left hooks pushed the fight to be stopped in the third round.