Saundre “Dash” Simmons and Adrian Roach both showed their power with victories at The Shed, Dockyard, on Saturday night.

In the main bout of Epic Entertainment’s Fight Night Champion, Simmons stopped Ian “Impact” Darby, from Jamaica, in the penultimate round of their six-round contest. Roach conquered Canadian Brent Coxworthy in the first round of his professional debut.

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Simmons dominated the first four rounds and went for the kill in the fifth. A flurry of punches to his opponent forced referee Anthony Mouchette to call off the fight, with the Bermudian light-heavyweight extending his record to a flawless 8-0.

“It feels great to win and make it 8-0 with all those wins by knockout,” Simmons told The Royal Gazette.

“I’m happy I got to come out and put on a performance in front of my people. The fans got to see a small portion of what my team and I have been working on, a lot of improvements to make but it was a solid performance from me.

“I knew he didn’t think I would go past two or three rounds. I had it in my head that it could go past those rounds so we prepared for it, we were looking for victory either way.”

“If I had listened to my corner, the fight would have ended earlier. My coach told me to find my distance early, so I didn't come out swinging hard and it worked.

“I should have gone into his body a lot early but I was so focused on the jab, once I landed those jabs, I didn’t want to let go.

“I respect Darby for coming out to a different country and giving me a good fight. He came out here believing in himself and a lot of fighters don’t do that so hats off to my opponent.”

Roach made a grand entrance on his way to the ring, carrying his five-month-old son Judah, and he did not waste time in asserting his authority. He had Coxworthy on one knee 2min 30sec into the fight as the super-welterweight got his professional career off to a perfect start.

“First and foremost, all glory to God, thank you for helping me become victorious in my pro debut fight,” the 23-year-old said.

“Thank you to all my sponsors. I really appreciate them for making my job much easier, all I do is show up and fight.

“A big thank you to everyone who came out the second time to give us Bermudian boxers the support.

“All I had was expectations to win, but I didn’t know how the win was going to come. When it came in the first round, I was ecstatic and really proud of myself.

“It’s back to the drawing board. I can’t celebrate the small wins because there is a long journey ahead of us.”

Coming up against an opponent blessed with height and reach, Roach spoke of how he geared up for the challenge.

“He had more height and reach than me, but I had really good sparring partners to prepare me for the fight,” he said.

“I was waiting for my range and once I found it the rest was history. I started touching him and he didn’t like it, and he eventually got on his knees.”

In September 2023, Roach lost his grandfather Vic Ball, with the death affecting him greatly. Early this year, he and his girlfriend DeLea Somner welcomed their son, who has become the fighter’s source of inspiration.

“I carried my son into the ring because he’s my motivation,” the boxer said.

“He’s five months old and it’s been the best five months of my life. I’ve never felt the same amount of joy since my son was born and I just wanted to put that on display because he’s the reason why I get up every morning.”

Roach is targeting more fights this year as he continues his growth in the professional ranks.

“I’m looking to get into the ring at least two more times before the year’s out,” he said.

“We’ll definitely be in the ring before the year ends. Doors are opening up for me, Bermuda is an option for me to fight again, as well as overseas to build my overseas fanbase.

Fighting for the second time in Bermuda, Simmons once again felt the love from the local crowd.

“I appreciate all the support from the Bermudians,” the 28-year-old said.

“I know I ain’t got the accent no more. I’m sounding like a country boy, but my blood is Bermudian, I promise.”