Kurt Scoby is demonstrating why he is a legit prospect at 140 pounds.

Scoby overcame a slow start and Narciso Carmona’s pedigree to win by knockout in round six Friday night at the Overtime Elite Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Scoby improved to 13-0, 11 knockouts.

The 27-year-old worked from the center of the ring, attempting to walk Carmona down. The southpaw Carmona utilized as much space as he could to box from distance, finding some success as he was able to connect with hooks or crosses at the end of two- or three-punch combinations to the head of Scoby.

As the fight progressed, Scoby began to connect with more consistency. He landed the more effective punches, forcing Carmona to engage more in exchanges.

KURT SCOBY STILL UNDEFEATED 💥#OTX @overtime pic.twitter.com/j3Exwk9vLq

— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) August 19, 2023

Carmona did well during the first half of the fifth round, but Scoby seemed to stun Carmona against the ropes during the final 30 seconds of the round. Scoby unleashed several combinations that put Carmona on the defensive until the bell sounded to end the round.

Scoby picked up where he left off in the sixth round. Midway through the round, Carmona began to back up and cover up. Sensing Carmona was hurt, Scoby went on the attack, battering Carmona, even snapping back the head with hooks and crosses. A barrage of punches forced referee Malik Waleed to step in and stop the fight at 2:31.

Friday marked Scoby’s sixth fight within a year. In his previous fight on June 29, Scoby stopped former world title challenger Hank Lundy in the second round. Back on February 17, Scoby dropped previously unbeaten John Mannu multiple times before ending matters in the second round.

Scoby, who is originally from Duarte, California and now lives and trains in New York City, was a running back at Fresno State University and Azusa Pacific University. He is promoted by Lou DiBella.

Carmona, who resides in Sevilla, Spain, falls to 11-1-1, 6 KOs.

In the co-feature bout of the OTX Boxing series, super middleweight Shawn McCalman of Denver, Colorado defeated former amateur standout Money Powell IV by unanimous decision.

Scores were 78-74, 78-74, and 79-73 for McCalman, who improved to 14-0, 7 KOs.

McCalman was the more effective and consistent fighter between the two. Anytime Powell attempted to mount an offense, McCalman effectively countered Powell or was able to mix his offense well to the head and body.

The 29-year-old McCalman is managed by Jolene Mizzone.

Powell, who resides in Fort Mitchell, Alabama, drops to 13-2, 8 KOs.

Junior featherweight Lorenzo Parra of Machiques, Venezuela improved to 23-1, 17 KOs, winning a split-decision over Javon Woodard.

The fight was scheduled for eight rounds, but Woodard was able to rally during the second half of the fight after being outboxed and stunned during the third and fourth rounds.

After the end of the eighth round, one judge scored the bout 77-75 for Parra, while the other two judges scored the bout 76-76. Because of the new rules associated with Overtime Boxing, a ninth ‘overtime’ round took place to determine a winner. After the ninth round, Parra was announced the winner by scorecards of 86-85. Woodard won the fight by the same scorecard on the third judge’s scorecard.

Woodard, who resides in Raleigh, North Carolina, falls to 12-2, 10 KOs.

Junior bantamweight LeAnna Cruz of Allentown, Pennsylvania defeated Utah’s Maryguenn Vellinga (4-4-2, 2 KOs) by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the fight 60-54 in favor of Cruz, who goes to 6-0.

Bantamweight Asa Stevens of Waianae, Hawaii defeated Milwaukee’s D’Angelo Hopgood (2-2, 2 KOs) by split decision. One judge scored the bout 39-37 for Hopgood, while the other two judges scored the bout 40-36 and 39-37 for Stevens.

In the opening bout that streamed live on DAZN, Milwaukee’s Javier Zamarron dropped Puerto Rico’s Sebastian Santiago-Fernandez (0-2) once en route to a decision victory. All three judges scored the bout 40-35 in favor of Zamarron, who improved to 5-0, 3 KOs.

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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