SCBC honours Bahdi’s viral KO
Fighting highly touted prospect Ashton Sylve July 20 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla., Lucas Bahdi appeared on his way to the first loss of his progressional boxing career.
The plus-225 underdog entering the fight had been dominated by Sylve, who had more than tripled the total number of punches landed by Bahdi.
“The fight wasn’t going great for me at the beginning but I stuck to my guns and I stayed patient and calm,” said the 30-year-old Niagara Falls native, who will be honoured Friday, Oct. 18 during the St. Catharines Boxing Club’s McGibbon Gloves 2024 Fight for the Kids at the Merritton Community Centre. “I knew in the second half of the fight that I was going to land big shots.”
It happened in the sixth round.
“The shot that my coach and I were planning on landing actually landed.”
Bahdi, now 17-0 with 15 knockouts, landed two quick shots and a perfect left hook to knock out Sylve. The Most Valuable Promotions boxer was down for quite awhile as medical staff tended to him.
“The first shot that stunned him was a straight right hand and he actually went to exchange and then I hit him two more times. By the second shot, he was already out and the third one destroyed him. It was perfect timing.”
As Sylve lay unconscious on the floor, Bahdi was beyond excited.
“I was celebrating. I wouldn’t say I was shocked because I knew it was going to happen but when it actually happens the way you planned it, it is still a shock.”
The knockout against the 2023 ESPN Prospect of the Year is now a candidate for Knockout of the Year and has gone viral with millions of views.
“I was trending on Twitter (X) right after the fight and it was everywhere. It was on Forbes magazine, ESPN, TSN and every major network.”
The owner of Olympia Motors in Niagara Falls never had any hesitation to take the fight on the Jake Paul versus Mike Perry undercard. Sylve came into fight with an 11-0 record with nine knockouts.
“I saw the opportunity and I knew if I beat this guy I would be on the map, I would be exactly where I needed to be and I would be talked about worldwide. That is exactly what happened.”
Since the fight, a lot of doors have open up.
“Now I have a lot of opportunities because all the major promoters know who I am. I am in negotiations with a lot of people right now and my next move is probably to sign with a major promoter and my fights will be on a much higher stage than what they were.”
He was confident this would eventually happen in his boxing career.
“Absolutely. I stayed patient and I actually thought it would come a lot sooner than it did. I thought last year or the year before would be my breakthrough year but this was the fight that did it.”
His breakthrough was delayed by COVID and having to recover from breaking both his hands.
“I was rehabbing them for quite a long time but I have had no issues since then. I am punching harder than ever,” he said, with a laugh.
Bahdi has never lost his motivation for the sport.
“I am hungry and I have been self-driven my whole life no matter what I do. This is something that I love to do and it’s not hard to wake up in the morning and go to the gym.”
He is always striving to get better.
“I need to be around the right people and the right gyms and get the proper sparring. That is one thing that we don’t have here a lot, that high, high level sparring.”
Bahdi headed to Las Vegas Thursday to get some of that high level sparring and will get even more when he flies to Florida at the end of September.
“I am going to be doing everything in my power to get the best sparring and preparation I can for the big fights.”
He expects his next fight will be staged in November or December.
“A year from now I should have three or four more fights which will put me at 21-0 and I will be contending for the world title, for sure, within the next year,” he said. “It is something that I always knew I was going to do. I knew it would take time and there would be a lot of hurdles. There were tons of hurdles, delays and you don’t get the right fights at the right time but now I am on the right path. I will have a major promoter backing me which makes a huge difference. I am going to be fighting on television and it is going to be much different now.”
He knows he can’t rest on his laurels.
“This is not the time to coast or lay back. This is the time to push even harder.”
Also being recognized at the Oct. 18 fight card is three-time Olympian Mike Strange, who was inducted into the Canadian Boxing Hall of Fame in 2024.
Locals fighting on the card include Dylan Maisonneuve, Alex Lindsay, Megan Reynolds, Pat Ryan, Aashir Raja, Alex Dako and Scott Phillpot.
Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the action starts at 7:30 p.m.
For information about tickets, sponsorships or purchasing VIP tables, call 905-988-1244 or email stcatharinesboxingclub@yahoo.ca.
