By Jack Sumner
Punch-perfect Frankie Gavin stops Jason Welborn
Britain’s standalone World Amateur Champion continued his ascent through the pro ranks in Walsall on Friday night, as Frankie Gavin delivered a punch-perfect performance to stop local rival Jason Welborn in the seventh round of his first British welterweight title defence.
Welborn was barely able to land a glove on the elusive southpaw who’s display epitomised the hit-and-not-be-hit mantra of the game. The challenger was coming forward throughout the fight and was looking to impose his size and strength on Gavin as naturally the much bigger man, but the undefeated champion countered continually whilst backing up, spinning offWelborn when pressured and controlling the fight on the outside with his jab.
Going upstairs and downstairs Gavin was in complete control, drawing blood from the nose of Welborn in the fourth round and hurting him with energy-sapping body shots. Welbornwould feel Gavin’s power when the Birmingham native hit him with a hard left in the sixth session. And the following round it was all over, after another well-placed body shot dropped the challenger from nearby Tividale to his knees. Welborn tentatively rose to his feet though clearly in distress and when a barrage of punches from Gavin pinned him helplessly against the ropes, referee Ian John Lewis stepped in to end the bout.
The 27-year-old Gavin moves to 15-0 with 11 wins inside the distance and has looked much more impressive in his last two outings, this coming off the back of his scrappy but convincing title win over former WBC 140lb champion Junior Witter. Personal problems and a questionable lifestyle had impacted on Gavin’s form prior to his British title shot, but on this evidence he is now ready for a step up in class. In his post-fight interview, Gavin outlined a bout with Commonwealth titleholder Denton Vassell as a possibility. Vassell (20-0, 10 KOs) is very strong at the weight and should provide a clearer picture of how realistic Gavin’s world title aspirations are.
Gethin overwhelms Murphy to win domestic lightweight strap
Earlier on the Gavin v Welborn card, Walsall man Martin Gethin continued his hot streak in front of his home fans with a ninth-round stoppage of tough Ben Murphy to lift the vacant British lightweight title.
As expected, the always game Murphy started well and looked to unsettle the boxer in Gethin, bullying on the inside and landing with a number of flush lefts. But as the fight progressed Gethin’s superior boxing took over and Murphy visibly tired, surprisingly backing off as his opponent took the initiative.
From finding gaps with straight punches, Gethin began to unload with impressive combinations and even hurt the smaller man with shots to the body. After looking like stopping Murphy in the eighth, Gethin came out intent on finishing the job in the ninth and did so as nothing was coming back against his onslaught.
Gethin (24-3-1, 11KOs) has now won his last nine fights since losing three on the spin and has stopped his last four opponents. Next up may be a battle with the winner of Anthony Crolla and Derry Mathews, who rematch for the Commonwealth lightweight title in March.
Yafai retires Garcia in four
Former amateur standout Kal Yafai probably did enough to maintain his status as the most exciting prospect in British boxing, with another victory inside the distance in Wolverhampton on Saturday night. This time he was pushed a little harder than usual however, before Gonzalo Garcia quit on his stool citing exhaustion after the fourth round.
Yafai was the boss throughout, but struggled to get through the Mexican’s guard in the early stages with Garcia looking as if he was merely intent on surviving for as long as he could. Grabbing and holding, it appeared as though he might be able to take the young bantamweight into the later rounds, when Yafai began to land power shots that were having little effect.
Garcia seemed to be absorbing the punches well, but he must have been practicising his poker face. At the end of the fourth round in which Yafai had begun to land with those power punches a little more, the Mexican didn’t look too troubled upon returning to his corner, though a brief discussion with his trainer resulted in him being pulled out of the fight.
Yafai clearly needs tougher competition. but is proving difficult to match. Now 7-0 with 6 KOs, are any British bantamweights willing to fight him?
Glen gets his Foot in the door with Prizefighter
Eight welterweights took to the ring at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall on Saturday hoping to become the latest Betfair ‘Prizefighter’ Champion, but it was the unbeaten Glen Foot who came out on top at the end of a thrilling competition. Foot scooped £32,000 in prize money as well as landing one £2,000 knockout bonus, but most importantly he gained a platform to build on to bigger opportunities, improving his professional record to 10-0 with 5 KOs on the Sky Sports televised bill.
The Prizefighter tournament format of 3-minute bouts seemed to suit the aggressive pressure fighter from the North-East, who overpowered Steven Pearce en-route to a second round stoppage in his quarter-final match-up. In the semi’s, Foot came through a thrilling war with the slick Chad Gaynor to get a decision and advance to the final. There he would meet Dale Evans, who in the other semi had upset the pre-tournament favourite Mark Thompson, the most experienced of the group.
After a tight opening round to the final, Foot showed another dimension to his game, outboxing Evans in the second round. Evans looked to be showing signs of fatigue from his earlier bouts – which had both been draining affairs, particularly his last-eight encounter with Sam Eggington – but switched his emphasis into swinging single power shots. In the third and final round, Evans landed a huge left-hook to the body that bent Foot in two, but the 25-year-old didn’t touch down and regained his composure to see the final bell despite being hurt, with Evans dominating the closing stages, looking for the knockout.
No-one at ringside was sure which young warrior would be having his hand raised, as a both men returned to the centre of the ring for the verdict a split-decision was announced. It was Foot who got the nod though and deservedly so on the balance of events. Both competitors will have raised their stock after the competition, but Foot remains undefeated.
