By: Sean Crose
Give Marquis Hawthorne this – the 8-14 vet came to Philadelphia to win on Friday night. The problem was that the 7-0 Steven Galeano was simply the sharper, more effective fighter of the two in their scheduled six round welterweight affair. What made the twenty-two year old Galeano’s performance impressive was the clinical precision of the New Yorker’s punches and footwork. This was a fight that was won on sharpness, and on controlling the tempo – it was essentially Galeano’s bout from beginning to end. Not that Hawthorne didn’t have his moments, or that he lacked drive. The man kept moving forward, firing and landing when he could.
Galeano, however, showed that he possessed a solid defense as well as a solid offense. Even when Hawthorne looked like he was landing, it seemed upon close inspection that he wasn’t, at least not effectively. On top of all that, Galeano looked very comfortable in the ring Friday night. His form was fluid and he picked his shots with confidence. He also showed patience, refusing to rush himself while waiting for opportunities to arise. Needless to say, the rising prospect walked out of the ring at the 2300 Arena with a UD win, via scores of 60-54, 60-54, and 59-55.