By Johnny Walker
Polish bad boy Artur Szpilka continued his winning ways in a bizarre but entertaining bout on the undercard of the Mariusz Wach – Jason Gavern fight last night at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. Szpilka (9-0-0) stopped American David Saulsberry (7-4) at 1:09 of the second round in a scheduled six round affair.
Szpilka immediately had to contend with the bigger man (Saulsberry was both taller and 40 pounds heavier than Szpilka) trying to bully him around the ring, and as a result, the Pole had some trouble with his footing, appearing to slip and going to one knee with the help of a forearm shove from Saulsberry. After the southpaw Szpilka landed a hard left hand to Saulsberry’s face, the American let loose with a wild flurry as he pushed Szpilka into the ropes, and then appeared to again shove his Polish foe, who lost his balance and went down. The referee for some reason ruled this one a knockdown.
Szpilka was undaunted and merely went back to work, utilizing his superior speed to land more hard left hands that rattled Saulsberry. In response, Saulsberry began to maul Szpilka and tried to put him in a semi-headlock, but then went to the mat himself. The referee refused to count and told Saulsberry to get up and continue fighting, and the American appeared totally winded and in the throes of some kind of physical problem as the round came to a close. Saulsberry appeared to be suffering from a lack of wind as he sat panting on his stool between rounds.
With the pro-Polish crowd chanting “Szpil-ka,” Artur went back to work in round two, bouncing a hard left off of Saulsberry’s chin. After more wrestling, Szpilka threw a right-left combination that appeared to only graze the American, but Saulsberry went to the mat and stayed there. Szpilka was incensed at this easy capitulation, and had to be restrained from going after Saulsberry after the fight had been called off.
There is little doubt that Artur Szpilka, 22, is one of the most exciting young heavyweights out there, and this wild bout did nothing to change that view. Wherever Szpilka goes, action is bound to follow. We at Boxing Insider eagerly anticipate his next outing.
