The Animal dominates, calls his next shot
By Tyler Lowey, Times Reporter
Tyler Lowey Photo
“It’s something that’s been in the back of my mind for a while now and we have both talked about fighting one day,” said Schmit.
When you are on a roll like Schmit is, you can hand-pick your opponents.
Schmit entered the ring May 26 at the Grey Eagle Casino with a 1-3 record. His bout against Brad Wilson wasn’t a make-or-break moment for his career, but it was a fork-in-the-road moment.
The local product Schmit packed on 20 pounds — now 201— since his last fight with Dekada to jump up to the heavyweight division to take on the 43-year-old Wilson, who tipped the scales at 214.
After tapping gloves at the centre of the ring, Schmit’s game plan was quite evident: blitz Wilson onto the ropes.
Imposing his will, Schmit came out and labelled Wilson with a couple heavy rights – his weapon of choice on the evening.
Backpedaling, Wilson got tangled in the ropes which acted like tentacles, keeping him from escaping to the middle of the ring.
When the 32-year-old Schmit had Wilson where he wanted him, he used his right hand like a battering ram and cracked Wilson (1-3-1) repeatedly in the head and in the stomach.
“I knew that Brad was a super experienced fighter and that he has been around long enough and knows that if he got any opportunity to hurt me, he’s going to take full advantage,” said Schmit. “I think I did a good job limiting those chances tonight.”
This fight was supposed to happen in April, but the event got dropped. Schmit hadn’t fought since Jan. 27, when he picked up his first Dekada win after taking a split decision over Zach Manywounds. The extra time in between fights allowed him to concentrate on his strategy against the Drumheller native.
“Brad is a short guy. I think I had great angles on my punches early and I felt like they got better as the fight went on,” said Schmit. “I’m not sure if I was moving around better or if he was running out of gas, but I was definitely landing more as the night went on.”
Wilson was able to land a couple uppercuts on Schmit in the second round once he got off the ropes, but an inadvertent head-butt split Wilson open just under his left eye and the blood streamed down his face for the duration of the evening.
Fifty-nine seconds into the third round, Schmit directed Wilson onto the ropes again, when another booming right hook landed on Wilson’s left cheek, dropping him to the second rope.
Wilson sat there for a few moments before the referee jumped in and declared the fight over, giving Wilson his first technical knockout of his Dekada career.
“It feels great to get a win like that,” said Schmit. “The more wins you get, the better your pocket book feels and the more high-profile fights you can line up.”
Watching the fight from the roped off section was Wedderburn, who was loudly backing Wilson in the fight.
After Schmit disposed of Wilson, he called Wedderburn into the ring in front of a smaller Grey Eagle crowd to begin to lay the groundwork for their next fight.
“Markhaile, I’ve looked up to you and I think you’re a great striker,” said Schmit. “If it’s okay with Mr. Hermann and Mr. Short, I think we should put this show on sometime in September because it would be a great fight.”
Wedderburn, who is 2-2 with Dekada, wasted no time in coming to a decision.
“Showtime never says no to anyone on the planet. I respect you, let’s have a good fight and let’s do this,” said Wedderburn. “But obviously I’m gonna whoop your (butt).”
Schmit has never crossed paths with Wedderburn in the ring, but the two know each other away from the sport. Wedderburn picked up his first win with Dekada last June when he also picked up the TKO victory over Wilson.
Since then, Wedderburn is 1-2, but he feels like he is ready for Schmit, who is hot right now.
“I’m really going to have to get my (stuff) together for Showtime. He’s a great fighter, but I am going to train my (butt) off for it and I think this is the right time for this fight,” said Schmit. “It should be a great fight for everyone involved.”