Dakota Linger pulled off a major upset win on Friday, stopping junior welterweight prospect Kurt Scoby in round six at the OTE (Overtime Elite) Arena in Atlanta, Ga. Linger, who resides in Buckhannon, W.V. improved to 14-6-3, 9 knockouts. 

During the opening two rounds, Scoby threw and landed a high volume of punches, easily winning those rounds. Linger matched Scoby’s punch output in round three, but connected punches with more consistency. 

Linger dominated the fourth round, putting Scoby on the defensive. There were a handful of occasions Linger stunned Scoby with straight right hands to the head during the round. Scoby was on the verge of falling to the canvas at least once, but was able to somehow make it through the round.

Scoby kept his distance from Linger during the fifth round, even utilizing lateral head movement, but Linger was able to get in punching range to better Scoby in round six. Sensing Scoby was in bad shape, Finger followed up, forcing Scoby with his back to the ropes, connecting with a barrage of punches. Referee Malik Waleed saw enough, stopping the fight at 2:22. 

The 29-year-old Linger last fought on June 24, losing to unbeaten Reshat Mati. In his previous fight in June 2022, Linger stopped fringe contender Josue Vargas in the second round. In October 2021, Linger fought to a draw against unbeaten prospect Matthew Gonzalez.  

Scoby, who is originally from Duarte, California and now lives and trains in New York City, falls to 13-1, 11 KOs. The former collegiate running back stopped Narciso Carmona in his previous fight, also at the OTE (Overtime Elite) Arena in Atlanta, on August 18. 

In the co-feature, junior middleweight Brandon Adams of Watts, California returned to the ring from a three-year hiatus, knocking out Ismael Villarreal in the third round, improving to 24-3, 16 knockouts.

Villareal was the aggressor from the opening round, initiating exchanges. Adams began letting his hands go with more frequency during the second round, connecting punches to the head and body. 

Towards the end of the third round, after Villarreal threw a combination, Adams unleashed a left hook to the body that dropped Villarreal to one knee. Villarreal did beat the count, but dropped again to the canvas, prompting referee Nate Mann to stop the fight at 2:59.

The 34-year-old Adams had not fought since scoring a knockout win over Serhii Bohachuk in March 2021. Adams was trailing on all judges’ scorecards at the time of the stoppage. Bohachuk now owns the WBC interim world junior middleweight title. 

Villarreal, who resides in The Bronx, New York, falls to 13-3, 9 KOs. The 26-year-old was coming off a close decision loss to Callum Walsh on November 9.

Junior middleweight Francisco Veron won a hard-fought unanimous decision over Angel Ruiz. Scores were 100-90, 99-91, and 96-94 for Veron, who improved to 14-0-1, 10 KOs. 

Veron was the aggressor from the opening bell, overwhelming Ruiz during the first two rounds. The southpaw Ruiz was able to effectively connect with his punches and combinations during round three. Ruiz landed his punch of the fight about a minute left in round three, connecting on a left cross that snapped back the head of Veron.

Undaunted, Veron swung momentum his way during the seventh round. A straight right hand split threw Ruiz’s guard, snapping his head back as well. Ruiz was able to garner offense, but Veron was the busier and more-effective fighter during the last couple of rounds.

The 25-year-old Veron, who is originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina and now resides in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, fought to a majority decision draw against Jahi Tucker in his previous fight on December 9. In recent fights, Veron defeated Leonardo Di Stefano and Timur Kerefov, both of whom were unbeaten entering their respective fights against Veron.

Ruiz, who is originally from Tijuana, Mexico and now lives and trains in Los Angeles, falls to 18-3-1, 13 KOs. In his previous fight on April 19 of last year, the 26-year-old knocked out former world titleholder Luis Collazo in the sixth round. 

Adams and Veron will square off in the semifinals of the inaugural The OTX Tournament. The other quarterfinal bouts will take place on May 31. That card will feature Andreas Katzourakis (12-0, 10 KOs) of Greece, now living in Los Angeles, squaring off against Uzbekistan’s Kudratillo Abdukakharov (20-2, 12 KOs) and Robert Terry (11-0-1, 4 KOs) of Jersey City, New Jersey facing Mexico’s Vladimir Hernandez (14-6, 6 KOs). 

In junior welterweight action, David Lopez of Oakland improved to 5-0, 4 KOs, knocking out Anthony Mora of the Dominican Republic in the opening round. A combination caused Mora to fall through the ropes and onto the outer portion of the ring. Mora (3-2-1, 1 KO) was able to beat the count, but referee Nate Mann stopped the fight at 2:38.

In the opening bout of the OTX Boxing card, amateur standout Nathan Lugo of nearby Marietta dropped Robert Lartique (1-2, 1 KO) of Pecos, Texas twice en route to a opening round knockout win at 1:33. Lugo was making his professional debut. 

Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at [email protected]

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