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Ray and Quincy set to rumble again   By DAHALIA SMITH ~ NG Sports Reporter ~ dahalia@nasguard.com: Over an eight-year period, former British Commonwealth Champion Ray Minus Jr. convincingly defeated Quincy 'Thrill-A-Minute' Pratt on three separate occasions, but Pratt expressed that it is redemption time. However, this time it will be for 'all the marbles', as both Minus (63-6-1) and Pratt (27-12) agreed to exploit their rivalry with a best-of-seven sparring series, starting this Saturday at 7:00 p.m. at the Boxing Square on Wulff Road. A Fox Hill venue will be the site of the second show. The entrance fee is $10 and funds generated from the exhibition shows will go toward Minus and Pratt's respective junior boxing programs. Minus heads the Champion Amateur Boxing Club located at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex Boxing Center while Pratt's junior program is the Eastside Amateur Boxing Club located at the Urban Renewal Office in Fox Hill. According to organizers, head protection gear will be used and the fights will last four rounds with the fans deciding the victor. Since his retirement in the early 2000's, Minus who defended his Commonwealth title six times, said he can still pack a punch. "My punches will be so much on target that if Quincy blinks he will be on the canvas," warned Minus. "I already have a plan and I am not afraid to share it. Basically, you can't hit what you can't see and I can appear and disappear at will. With those skills combined, it makes for an automatic victory for me," he said. Suffice to say those three losses to Minus in the not too distant past remains in the thoughts of Pratt. Fast forward to present day, Pratt says age difference will be used to his advantage. "He (Ray) needs to be careful. I am six years younger than him and in better condition. As far as those losses are concerned, everyone who is familiar with our fights know that in all three of those fights, I won the early rounds, so the public should expect for me to be all over him," said Pratt who promises a thrill in a minute. Pratt added that he is encouraged by the public's positive response to the series and looks forward to returning to the ring after recently being denied many times by the Bahamas Boxing Commission (BBC). "I don't know why the BBC wants to sabotage a fund-raising effort for the junior boxing programs in New Providence. I think this stems from a personal vendetta that the BBC boss Patrick Strachan has against me starting from the 1990's. This is a great way for us to raise funds," said Pratt. "When I first started my club I had 10 boxers, now I have over 100. I will use the funds to build a boxing ring in the back of the clubhouse and a platform to hang the bags. As the summer break approaches, more children will be entering my program in the Fox Hill area. I don't want them on the park where they are around a drug-infested environment. I went to the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture and they told me they could not help the program," added Pratt. According to Minus, usually the government gives annual subsidies to the Amateur Boxing Federation of The Bahamas (ABFB - local governing body for amateur boxing), which is responsible for financially assisting junior amateur boxing programs. "The ABFB assist us as far as sanctioning fights but we have not been helped monetarily," said Minus. In related news, the BBC's Chairman Pat Strachan, on Tuesday, issued a strong statement to the professional boxing community. It reads as follows: "It has come to the attention of the Bahamas Boxing Commission that an announcement of a series of exhibition boxing matches between Ray Minus Jr. and Quincy Pratt has been made. It is in direct conflict with the rules and regulations of the commission for anyone to make such announcements without first obtaining official sanction. The commission is mandated by the government of The Bahamas to control and monitor professional boxing. "We are responsible for the safety and the integrity of the sport whether via exhibition bouts or standard matches. We forbid this kind of activity and officially state that the proposed exhibitions have not been sanctioned and will not be sanctioned. Whether exhibitions or not, it is imperative that all boxers meet the required standards, medical and otherwise. Any member of the local pro boxing fraternity who ignores the authority of the commission runs the high risk of suspension." To this end, First Class Promotions Chief Executive Officer Michelle Minus said: "The fight between Ray Minus and Quincy Pratt has no affiliation with First Class Promotion."