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SATURDAY
Capital Explosion 2Spring Fever
Boxing promoters have a long tradition of making little cosmetic adjustments to fighters’ records: The locals look a little better than they really are; the out-of-towners look, well, a little less bad. There’s no saying whether the World’s Finest Promotions has used this formula on the fight card (Jimmy Lange is pictured) for its Capital Explosion 2-Spring Fever event at the D.C. Armory. Even so, certain attractions pop out here. There’s long-limbed, hard-slugging Emil Baku, né Israfilbekov, from Azerbaijan by way of Baltimore and listed at 21-1. At the other end of the scale, there’s Tony Ault, of Columbus, Ohio, carrying a 9-18-2 mark into the ring against undefeated Perry Ballard of Leesburg. But who knows what the real numbers are? The listed figures certify Ault as a particular and indispensable kind of boxer, the veteran who tests the up-and-comers by fighting wisely but not too well. Many nights, the Aults of the world get paid more than their unblemished opponents; you don’t survive 18 losing fights (or whatever the real tally is) without craft and ring savvy. In other apparent mismatches, keep an eye also on Curtis Wilkens, listed at 5-14, when he steps in with Arlington’s Jose Alamanzar (5-1-1). Wilkens hails from Philadelphia, and there’s no such thing as a harmless Philly fighter. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, May 10, at the D.C. Armory, 2001 East Capitol St. SE. $20-$110. (202) 432-7328. (Tom Scocca)