Liam Davies crowned IBO World super bantamweight champion in Birmingham
Liam Davies lifted the prestigious IBO World super bantamweight title after a second round stoppage win over former holder, Erik Robles Ayala, in Birmingham last night, March 16.
It was an aggressive start from the Brit, pinning the Mexican into corner within the first 30 seconds, throwing big right hands.
Robles looked to fire back with some swiping hooks, Davies tried to keep him at ling range, where he was more effective.
Robles continued to creep in close in round two, until a little step to his right and Davies was able to find the space to land a crunching right uppercut that knocked Ayala down heavily. Davies charged in to land a straight one-two down the pipe followed by a left hook around the side and that was enough for referee John Latham to call the contest to a halt at 1:42 of round two.
“Dangerous” Davies lived up to his moniker with the devastating performance and could well be in with a shot at challenging undisputed champion Naoya Inoue, if the Japanese “Monster” is able to get through Luis Nery next. Inoue has alluded to having one more fight at 122lbs before a potential move up to featherweight.
Nathan Heaney vs Brad Pauls
In the headline event, Heaney retained his British middleweight title despite being held to a split draw by Pauls in a thrilling encounter.
Heaney, who upset Denzel Bentley to take the title in Manchester last November, was making his first defence and clearly meant to enjoy every second.
Born in Stoke-on-Trent, Heaney was roared on by an army of fellow Stoke City fans and made his lengthy, strutting ring walk to the club’s song – Delilah by Tom Jones.
Pauls however was not daunted by the partisan atmosphere, landing some powerful punches in a competitive first half of the fight although Heaney, making the most of a three-inch height advantage, had his challenger under control.
The fight really sparked into life in round eight, as ‘The Newquay Bomb’ made and landed a brutal series of right punches, leaving Heaney desperately clinging on.
Both men fought each other to a near standstill, with the eleventh round a particular highlight – Paul unloading a series of huge shots on Heaney, who somehow remained on his feet to respond in kind.
After such a spectacular show, the result was something of a damp squib with one judge scoring it 116-113 to Heaney, another 115-114 to Pauls, and the third a 114-114 draw – leaving the belt around Heaney’s waist.
Joe Joyce vs Kash Ali
Joe Joyce laboured to a much-needed win over Kash Ali in the 2016 Olympic medallist’s first bout since being knocked out by Zhilei Zhang.
Joyce, who lost his unbeaten record in back-to-back losses to Zhang last year, was expected to overwhelm Ali in the undercard bout in Birmingham.
Joyce struggled to land a finisher on Ali, although he grew in confidence later on.
As Ali tired, Joyce eventually brawled to a 10th-round knockout.
With seven seconds remaining of the final round, a short right hand sent Ali to the canvas for the first time in the evening.
Although the 32-year-old tried to clamber back to his feet, he was marginally too slow as the referee’s count reached 10.
Ali had been clear underdog against Joyce, but resisted some hefty blows while landing a couple of his own, and did himself credit despite some chastising words from his corner between rounds.
Joyce, meanwhile, looked cumbersome, clearly still bearing the scars from the two hefty knockout losses he suffered to Zhang – although doubts about his jaw were dispelled as he shrugged off any blows Ali landed.
The 38-year-old had called this 10-round, non-title fight a “fork in the road” of his career, having gone from being next in line to challenge for Oleksandr Usyk’s WBO title to being on the undercard at Resorts World Arena in Birmingham as Nathan Heaney versus Brad Pauls headlined.
Joyce, who had spoken about “dark times” and being “slagged off on social media”, was expected to get back in the saddle against Ali.
Ali, though, is no patsy and attempted some big shots from the off including a giant overhand right in the third round, perhaps aware that he would struggle to outpoint the Rio 2016 silver medallist.
With a three-and-a-half stone weight advantage, Joyce’s punches should have hurt Ali more, but he brought very little energy and forward momentum for most of the fight.
The fight fell into a repetitive pattern, with Joyce doing just enough to win each round but never more than the bare minimum – and certainly not enough to dispel his doubters, despite the last-gasp knockout.
Dennis McCann vs Brad Strand
Maidstone’s Dennis McCann defended his Commonwealth super-bantamweight title and his unbeaten record with a dominant points victory over Brad Strand in Birmingham.
McCann knocked Strand down early in round two and dictated from then on.
The Maidstone-born fighter is now unbeaten in 16 professional bouts, winning 15, as this fight also earned him the vacant British super-bantamweight belt.
Strand struggled to land a blow as he lost for the first time in 12 fights.
McCann won by unanimous decision, with the judges’ scorecards reading 118-111, 116-111 and 116-112 in his favour at Resorts World Arena.
Champion McCann, who comes from a traveller family and cites Tyson Fury as an inspiration, does not lack confidence – claiming in the build-up that he has a bigger fanbase in Strand’s home city of Liverpool.
The unbeaten 23-year-old had suffered his first career blemish in his last fight, when his contest against Ionut Baluta ended in a majority draw after a clash of heads – and he came out to make amends at rocket pace.
McCann put Strand on his backside 20 seconds into the second round with a reverse one-two that broke straight through the Liverpudlian’s guard.
He followed this up with a long and powerful left that staggered Strand, who suffered swelling to his lips and left eye.
While Strand regained his footing, McCann was far sharper and landed the best blows – notably a short left hook that rocked his opponent’s head in round four.
Strand slowly grew into the fight, landing a couple of combinations in the eighth and going on the attack in the late rounds as he sought a knockout.
But though the fight went the distance, McCann was able to showboat with some flashy footwork at the end of round 12, knowing the win was secure.