Thurman stops Melson in second

By JOHN C. COTEY, Times Staff Writer
Published August 22, 2007

Tuesday afternoon in Houston, Keith Thurman may have arrived at Beijing's door.

Continuing to clear his path to the 2008 Olympic Games by stopping Army champion Boyd Melson in the second round at the boxing trials, Thurman will now meet favorite Demetrius Andrade in the 152-pound winner's bracket final today.

The winner fights Saturday for a spot on the U.S. Boxing Olympic team against whoever emerges from the loser's bracket.

While Andrade was stopping No.1 ranked Charles Hatley in the third round, the 18-year-old from Clearwater was making Melson quit after two.

After taking a 3-1 lead after one round, Thurman ripped Melson to the ribs with shot after shot and ran his lead to 10-2.

Melson's corner threw in the towel, not wanting to risk further injury or a knockout to their fighter, which would require a 30-day medical suspension and prevent him from fighting another day in the loser's bracket.

"He was really hurt," said trainer Ben Getty. "It was more of the same from Keith today. This time, though, it was the body shots."

Thurman will meet Andrade in the noon session. Getty joked that the fight will be pay-per-view.

"Everybody knows this is the fight; this is one that everyone wanted to see," Getty said. "It's so hard to come out of the loser's bracket. I think this might be for the whole thing."

John C. Cotey can be reached at 813-909-4612 or johncotey@gmail.com.

[Last modified August 21, 2007, 18:16:16]