Mathieu Germain Victorious - Summary of the Evening Presented by GYM

By William Dumoulin

Photo Credit: Groupe Yvon Michel

Groupe Yvon Michel celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, three boxing galas will be held at the Cabaret du Casino de Montréal. Here is a summary of the first gala in this series, headlined by Mathieu Germain this Thursday.

In the main event, IBF's number 10 contender, Mathieu Germain (24-2-1, 9 KOs), faced a last-minute replacement opponent, Slovakian Zsolt Osadan (26-2-1, 17 KOs). Despite the short notice, Osadan posed a significant challenge with his aggressive and unorthodox style. Germain, however, won the fight clearly, as reflected by the judges' scorecards (100-90, 99-91, and 98-92). Following his victory, Mathieu expressed his desire for a major fight abroad as soon as possible to represent Quebec internationally against the division's elite.

In the co-main event, Tokyo Olympian Caroline Veyre (7-0, 0 KOs) took on Agustina Rojas (8-7, 0 KOs). This women's bout was not very competitive, with Caroline dominating from start to finish and winning a unanimous decision (80-72 X 3). She expects to have a 10-round fight in her next outing and believes that within five fights, she will be ready to face the elite of her division.

One of Quebec's top boxing prospects, Derek Pomerleau (7-0, 5 KOs), returned after a five-month absence from the ring to face Milan Ganoska (5-3-3, 3 KOs). As usual, the Quebec southpaw put on an explosive performance, winning the fight by his opponent's abandonment in the first round. He expects to have an eight-round fight in his next bout, scheduled for April 4th.

After a defeat in the Canadian championship fight, Repentigny puncher Kevin Menoche (8-1, 5 KOs) sought to rebuild as he fought in a six-round bout against Kristian Dzurnak (4-6-2, 2 KOs). Sending his opponent to the canvas five times, Menoche eventually won by TKO in the 4th round.

In a four-round bout, Quebec prospect Theo Owusu (3-0, 2 KOs) faced Marek Poncik (1-1-1, 1 KO). Theo wasted no time, winning by TKO in the 1st round with an excellent body shot.

As previously mentioned, this gala was the first of a series of three to be held at the Casino de Montréal by Groupe Yvon Michel. The second will take place on April 4th, headlined by former WBC world champion Kim Clavel (17-2, 3 KOs). The third will be on May 16th, featuring Mazlum Akdeniz (19-0, 8 KOs) as the main attraction.