Philadelphia, PA- Rogers Mtagwa brought his USBA Featherweight belt into his adopted hometown ring at the New Alhambra in South Philadelphia for a defense against Alvin Brown. Mtagwa wanted to look good in front of the ESPN2 cameras as a rumored bout with Jason Litzau would likely materialize with a successful defense. Mtagwa, originally from Tanzania, has thrilled the Philly fans in the past with comeback wins, but against Brown he took control from the opening bell on the Peltz Boxing and Joe Hand Promotions main event.
Mtagwa tossed a left hook to Brown’s jaw for the first of two knockdowns in the 2nd round. Rogers (124½ lbs) dominated the 3rd round and Brown (125¼ lbs; 26-9) looked ready to start packing for a trip home to Kansas City. Brown did have one last gasp in the 4th round, and it typical Mtagwa fashion, getting tagged ignited him. A fiery right hand toppled Brown near the end of the 4th stanza.
Brown sat on the canvas with glazed eyes looking through the ropes into the ring. Steve Smoger saw the eyes and recalled the events of the bout to this point and waved it off. The official time of the knockout is 3:06 of the 4th round. Because Brown could not be saved by the bell, but was given the opportunity to get up, all of this took the bout over the end of the round time limit.