FOR late starter Lenworth McNaughton, it was a disaster.

At age 36 when many professional boxers would be on the brink of quitting boxing, McNaughton, a rangy six-footer, weighing 160lbs, was making his professional at the third staging of the Wray & Nephew Contender Series held at the Chinese Benevolent Association on Wednesday night.

The full house had scarcely settled for the enjoyment of the evening’s six-round middleweight boxing feature when it was all over.

Ramel ‘Sub Zero’ Lewis, a pugnacious swinger who was the runner-up in last year’s final to Donovan ‘Police’ Campbell had knocked the debutante McNaughton cold within a minute and 16 seconds of the opening round. It was one of his long, looping and deadly right crosses which glanced off McNaughton’s left shoulder before cannoning on to his jaw. McNaughton thought he saw it coming but probably was late or too nervous at the time to react positively and went down for the count flat on his face.

He then rolled over on his elbows to be counted out by referee Ransford Burton before he was assisted to his feet.

McNaughton took full blame for not giving a much better showing on his debut. “If I had followed my coach’s instructions and did what I was told to do the fight would have gone farther, but I came off instructions and what happened, happened,” he reflected ruefully.

Asked if he thought that he was ring rusty, McNaughton, fighting on the Yellow Team and representing Hard Knocks Gym, which is coached by Andrew Boland, replied reluctantly: “In a way, for it has been a year and five months since I’ve been in the ring.”

Lewis, fighting on the Green Team, coached by Carl Grant, who leads the Bruising Gym, was concerned the fight was over too soon. “I wanted the fight to go the distance, but I got one punch and threw back an overhead right and he fell.”

It was the second fight in the preliminary rounds of the third edition which ended early, with the first fight ending at two minutes and 30 seconds of the round two.

Sixteen fighters will contest the four stages to be crowned Jamaica’s Ultimate Middleweight Boxer and the Wray & Nephew Contender. The winner of these two titles will receive $1 million, with the runner-up pocketing $500,000; third-place finisher $250,000, and fourth $200,000.

The first stage will feature eight fights of six rounds each, with the eight winners remaining to contest Stage Two, where the process will continue with four fights of six rounds each, and the four winners contesting the semi-finals over eight rounds. The two top performers will then meet in a 10-round title fight for the title of Ultimate Middleweight champion of Jamaica.