[caption id="attachment_79909" align="alignnone" width="300"] Mullingar, Co. Westmeath 2/1/2015 John Joe Nevin Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Morgan Treacy
John Joe Nevin.
INPHO/MORGAN TREACY[/caption]
By Jay Mwamba
John Joe Nevin ended a ten-month layoff with a third round stoppage of Mexican Victor Capaceta at the MCU Park on Coney Island on Tuesday night. The bout, Nevin’s fourth in the pro ranks, marked his New York debut.
Although co-manager Tom Moran talked up Nevin’s ring rust after almost a year out of action, it was nary a factor in the nine minutes of super featherweight action.
The two-time Olympian dealt with the fast starting Capaceta, a cagey southpaw, competently, using an accurate left hook and rapid shots to pacify his man.
Nevin also displayed quick reflexes and movement to avoid most of Capaceta’s punches. He started landing straight rights in the second stanza, adding another dimension to his dominance.
Feeling the heat after two and a half punishing rounds, Capaceta went down midway in the third, claiming a rabbit punch to the back of the head. From ringside, it looked like a perfectly legal shot.
“I caught him with a cracking punch to the temple, even the ref said it,” Nevin said later.
At any rate, referee Steve Willis, gave the Tijuana native the benefit of the doubt and nearly a minute to recover. But after taking more punches in the remainder of the round, Capaceta capitulated on his stool after the bell, handing Nevin his fourth win and third TKO as a prizefighter. “My first fight back since ten months, just what I needed to get the rounds in the bag,” said Nevin, who’s co-managed by Philly Irish-American Tom Moran and Cameron Dunkin. “Hopefully, I’ll be kept busy by this new management team.”
His States-side trainer Bozy Ennis hailed his charge’s performance after barely two weeks in the gym.
“I think he did real good for the little time he had coming here [the United States],” said the Philadelphia-based coach. “He sparred about eight or nine rounds for this fight. He came off the plane and went right to the gym.”
Moran said Nevin was likely to fight again in October. “The idea is to get him as many fights as possible by the end of the year.”
