Brothers Peter and Joe McGrail sizzle with second-round stoppages
Talented siblings Peter and Joe McGrail both appeared on the Conor Benn vs Chris Algieri undercard on Saturday night at the M&S Bank Arena in their home city of Liverpool.
It was Joe's professional debut and older brother Peter's second contest as a pro. Both brothers rose to the occasion, matching each other's results, with second-round stoppage victories. Joe forced his foe to retire and Peter pummeled his opponent to the canvas to score a TKO victory.
Product of the talent-laden Everton Red Triangle Gym in Liverpool, debutant Joe McGrail kicked off the show against Spaniard Francisco Rodriguez.
The 32-year-old Andalucían hadn't won any of his three contests but he was straight out the corner aggressively trying to get to the debutant.
Joe jabbed from range and his lateral movement was perfect to be able to spin away from any attacks. Just 19-years-old, his quick hands, clever feints and impeccable footwork was all on display.
It got a bit scrappy midway through the round, Joe needed to get back behind his neat jab but it was all good learning for him. He managed to create some space for himself and landed an incredible overhand right to knock Rodriguez down instantly. The away fighter tried to close the gap but McGrail landed the same overhand right twice more and the Spaniard had to hold on. Referee Bob Williams was having a good look but the bell saved Rodriguez from being stopped.
Trained by Paul Stevenson, Joe was a standout amateur alongside his brother Peter, experiencing over 50 bouts and winning a European Junior silver medal as well as becoming a National ABA champion in 2018. He looks like he could carry that success into the paid ranks with that stunning performance.
He trains alongside unbeaten pro's Nick Ball (14-0, 7KOs); Andrew Cain (8-0, 7KOs); Bradley Strand (6-0, 3KOs), who have described their teammate and sparring partner as 'a killer'.
Decorated amateur, Peter McGrail, landed a strong backhand seconds into the contest, pushing Gomez back instantly. His southpaw jab was landing consistently and the big right came into play often. The Nicaraguan could only go for the body with the head proving too difficult a moving target to hit. McGrail landed plenty in that opener. Trainer Paul Stevenson was calm and collected in the corner instructing his talented charge to keep doing what he's doing but also warning him to stay patient early on with this man and not get carried away.
In the second, the 25-year-old Liverpudlian was dipping in and out of range landing lovely one-twos. He did as instructed and boxed patiently behind his jab. In the second half of the round, he started to work to the body. Within one minute to go, he stunned Engel with a big left backhand to the head, he followed up with a strong right jab, then he feinted another jab to land another powerful backhand to knock the Central American down. Referee Bob Williams instantly tended to the fallen fighter after he had stopped the contest, dismissing any count.
Post-fight, the elated McGrail said, "To make things even better, my brother opened the show and got a second-round stoppage as well. Just want to keep the ball rolling and set myself up for a big 2022. It's going well, so I'll be pushing the rounds up next year."
Trainer Paul Stevenson added, "He's ready for a step-up in class, that fella in there was no mug, but definitely ready for the step-up, yeah."
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