'Cujo' wins by a unanimous decision

Scott “Cujo” Sigmon ushered in what could be a new era for boxing in Lynchburg with an eight-round unanimous decision over Toris “The Bull” Brewer in front of a packed crowd at the Lynchburg Armory on Saturday night.

In his first-ever eight-round professional bout, Sigmon, a Bedford native, battered Brewer in the first six rounds of the light heavyweight main event with an assortment of jabs and overhead punches before Brewer recovered in the final two rounds to make it very close.

One judge scored the fight 77-75 while the other two scored it 78-74.

“He didn’t have nothing for me, so he just waited around like a snake in the grass and tried to strike on me right in the final round,” Sigmon said. “It didn’t work. I’m too tough.”

Credit Brewer (14-3, six KOs), who had never fought outside of his home state of South Carolina, for making the trip to fight in front of Sigmon’s hometown fans. The crowd serenaded Sigmon (6-1, two KOs) with “Cujo” chants and barking noises throughout the fight.

It was a special sight for Sigmon, especially considering boxing hadn’t been contested at the Armory for at least 27 years.

The turnout was so encouraging that Sigmon, ranked 74th in the light heavyweight decision, is already talking about future fights in the Hill City. He mentioned a possible mid- to late-summer fight at the Armory.

“I love the fact that we brought boxing back to Lynchburg. We probably had 1,000 people. I look forward to getting back in late July or August,” Sigmon said.

He has other pressing matters before re-entering the ring. He plans to marry fiancée Casey Barnes in June.

Sigmon, 22, was so confident the fight was scored in his favor that as soon as the final bell rung, he moved to the center of the ring with both arms victoriously in the air.

After the decision was revealed, Brewer took to the microphone and asked Sigmon for a rematch.

Sigmon, who has won five straight bouts since his only professional loss, grabbed the mike and announced to the crowd, “He just had me, and he couldn’t do (nothing) about it.”

In interviews with reporters afterward, Sigmon conceded that a rematch with Brewer is a possibility.

“I will in the future. I need some time off. Three straight fights in like three months, even for me, that’s tough,” Sigmon said. “I was carved out of rock. I was born to fight.”

The 35-year old Brewer, ranked 84th before Saturday’s fight, would like to see another fight with Sigmon.

He said it doesn’t have to be in his hometown of Charleston, S.C.

Any fight these days is a good fight for Brewer, who survived a serious bout with testicular cancer eight years ago. He said his heart stopped during surgery to remove the tumor and he went through 39 radiation treatments.

“I almost died. … I just thank God I’m able to fight, even though I felt I got robbed,” Brewer said.

Brewer contended Sigmon was the beneficiary of local judges.

“I know if it was somewhere else, like Jersey or Vegas,” Brewer said, “I would have won that fight.”

Sigmon’s response?

“I’m sorry if he fought 14 guys with losing records (before me),” he said. “Sometimes you actually have to go out and fight somebody that can fight.”