To take the B.C. Silver Gloves Silverboy trophy, local underdog Marcus Hume had to beat Prince George's golden boy Jag Seehra.
Spruce Capital Boxing Club boxer Hume, 20, was coming off a year-long losing streak leading up to the Silver Gloves. Seehra, 21, of the Inner City Boxing Club, was named to Team Canada's B team in January and is headed to Cumana, Venezuela, on Wednesday to compete in the Pan American Games qualifier.
When the two were matched in the 64-kilogram elite preliminary bout of the Silver Gloves on Saturday, the smart money was on Seehra. But Hume had other ideas.
"I wanted to prove I'm up there with these guys. I wanted to show everyone that I'm serious about this," Hume said. "The fight has been in the making for two years. It was like a Prince George grudge match."
The two hometown fighters faced off in front of a crowd of nearly 500 people. Both had seen each other fight, and went in with a plan.
"It was a very close fight," Hume said. "We were both exhausted in the third round. I wasn't sure, when the bell rang, who won."
The match was named the best bout of the tournament. But it was Hume's glove which was raised at the end - winning the bout by decision.
Hume advanced to take on reigning B.C. 64kg champion Dylan Bishop of the Maple Ridge Boxing Club on Sunday.
Hume and Bishop are both fast, aggressive boxers and the two fought three hard rounds. Hume ducked and weaved, preventing Bishop from landing many power punches to the head and body. However, in the third round Bishop backed Hume against the ropes and landed three powerful hooks to the body.
Hume rallied and went on to win the match 5-0. The two bouts were enough to earn him the Silverboy trophy, presented to the best fighter of the tournament.
"To win the Silverboy of the tournament is a real honour. There is a lot of really good fighters here," Hume said. "I had a horrible year - I lost more fights than I won. I had a bad bout in the provincials. It feels really good to start winning again."
Hume's coach Wayne Sponagle said he was happy to see Hume take on two top-notch fighters and walk away with wins.
"Jag Seehra is an awesome little fighter. I can't take anything away from him," Sponagle said. "He and Marcus had one of the best amateur bouts I've seen in a long time. [Hume] fought the fight of his life against Jag."
Seehra's coach, Bob Pegues, had to agree.
"Jag went out with a game plan and it was sound. But he failed to adapt to the style Marcus was bringing. It was a very entertaining bout," Pegues said.
"We've had two good seasons, and were starting to think we couldn't lose. I think it's not a bad thing to eat some humble pie right now."
The match with Hume was a good reality check for Seehra, said Pegues, whose fighter is going to be paying his dues on the international circuit with the national B team.
"That first year or two on the B team are a learning experience," Pegues said. "He's going to take some whuppings, I'm sure. [But] we're all committed to 2016, the Olympics in Rio [de Janeiro]."
Another local boxer, Thomas Speirs of the Spruce Capital gym, won his Saturday title bout against Cougar Boxing Club slugger Ryan O'Connell in the 81kg category.
Meanwhile, Inner City boxer Kenny Lally showed well in his exhibition match.
