DeGrandis Suffers 1st Loss Against Boxer Making Professional Debut

LAS VEGAS — Joey DeGrandis, a two-time New England Golden Gloves champion, headed west earlier this year and found the Ten Goose Boxing Club in Van Nuys. Saturday afternoon, he found something else: a fighter he could not beat.

DeGrandis, in just his third pro fight, ran into John McLain of Las Vegas, a crisp and accurate puncher who was making his pro debut. And McLain made his first pro fight a good one, scoring a unanimous, four-round decision over DeGrandis at Bally’s Casino Resort.

DeGrandis slipped to 2-1.

The 21-year-old super middleweight, trained by Joe Goossen, was the aggressor throughout the fight, but more often than not McLain, 167, deflected, smothered or moved away from his punches.

In the fourth round, a frustrated DeGrandis, 166, began grabbing McLain during close-in combat. After several warnings, he was penalized a point for excessive holding. It did not, however, affect the outcome of the bout.

Judges Paul Smith and Lou Tabot scored the bout 39-36 and judge Bill Graham scored it 38-37.

DeGrandis, who captured the New England Golden Gloves title as a middleweight in 1988 and again in 1989 as a light heavyweight, easily defeated his first two pro opponents in bouts at the Country Club in Reseda with his aggressive manner. But against McLain, the same brawling style was ineffective.

Neither fighter was hurt or cut and there were no knockdowns. After the bout, McLain complained of pain in his right hand and his trainer said X-rays would be taken to determine the extent of the damage, if any.

“I thought I was the aggressor all the way,” DeGrandis said, “but his style and speed and jab bothered me. It was a really close fight.

“But now, I have a lot of work to do.”

The action in each round was nearly identical, with DeGrandis charging McLain, forcing him back against the ropes and then hammering away with heavy punches. But few of the blows landed cleanly as McLain covered up effectively and then connected with short punches to DeGrandis’ head and body.

Before coming to California and signing a contract with Ten Goose, DeGrandis trained briefly in Brockton, Mass., at the gym owned and operated by Pat and Goody Petronelli and made famous by former middleweight champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler.