Kieran Gething breaks 22-month hiatus with points win
Photo Credit: Sashshots Photography
Welsh Area super-lightweight champion Kieran Gething (10-2-2, 2KOs) reached double figures in his win column with a fine four-round points win over Manchester’s Josh Cook (0-4) on September 25 at the Vale Sports Arena in Cardiff on a Warren Boxing Management and Priority Promotions event.
The 27-year-old from Abergavenny, now training with Tony Borg and Billy Reynolds in Newport, was back in the ring for the first time in over 22-months and comfortably defeated the six-foot-tall journeyman who has never been stopped.
Shaking off the ring rust, Gething was patient and accurate with his attacks and sunk in some vicious body shots in the last round that visibly hurt Cook. He won 40-37 on points to secure win no.10 and hasn't lost now for three years.
It was almost two years ago, in November 2019, when the MTK Global fighter last fought, live on Sky Sports, in the Golden Contract quarter-finals, when he reached a stalemate with Southern Area titlist Jeff Ofori in a brilliant battle of champions.
The global pandemic kept the Welshman away from the ring, then a recurring elbow injury that required corrective surgery last December meant that his hiatus almost totalled up to two full years away overall.
Thrilled to be back, victorious Gething said, “I was pleased to win at the weekend in my first fight back from injury. Thanks to everyone that bought a ticket and came out to support me.
“It was great to be back. I felt like I boxed well. I was patient, I took my time, and that was the idea, I wanted to take everything from training and sparring into the fight.
“My opponent was tall and slippery, and hard to pin down. When I threw my right hand, it landed well. My coach wanted me to throw more body shots towards the end, which I did, and my opponent told me afterwards that he almost went down from one of them. He also told me he thought I was very accurate with my punches, which was a nice compliment.”
Gething now aims to continue the momentum by fighting at least once before the end of the year, “I’ll be back in the gym on Tuesday to work towards the next fight date. My management team, MTK Global, are looking at putting on a show in Cardiff at the end of November, so the work starts now.”
Kieran previously stated that he has his eye on the Celtic super-lightweight title, which has been vacant since Craig MacIntyre and Henry Janes reached a stalemate back in June 2018 in Scotland. The first three titleholders were all from Wales, giving Gething added motivation to bring the belt home.
“I’ve got a big trophy cabinet in my living room, it’s nice seeing how full it is now, I’ve got ‘Fight of the Year’ awards, all my amateur accolades, my professional Welsh title, but there’s space there for another title; I just really need to fill that space, feels a bit like a void, that’s been the key motivation for me, it’s not about money at all or showing off to other people, it’s about self-satisfaction for me and getting that next title belt.”
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