Results from the Magnificent Seven card.
Judges scorecards were deemed unnecessary on packed card of boxing tonight at the LG Arena, in Birmingham, as all seven featured fights on Frank Warren’s ambitious Magnificent Seven show all finished inside the scheduled distance.
The standout performances came from Nathan Cleverly, Derek Chisora ? both of whom overcame strong, ambitious adversaries -, and James DeGale. Among the remaining victors on the night were Matthew Macklin, Kell Brook, Lukas Konecny, and an upset win for Alexander Frenkel.
The opening fight of the evening pitted James DeGale against the tough, solid, durable contender, Carl Dilks, in what was billed as a British title eliminator at super-middleweight.
The build-up to this encounter was dominated by DeGale’s difficulty in making the 168lb limit at Friday’s weigh-in, alas any hope harboured by Dilks’ camp as a result of the Beijing Olympic gold medallist’s weight issues were dashed in less than 3 minutes.
After a minute or so of sizing each other up, DeGale went to work, bemusing his more seasoned opponent with 3/4/5-punch combinations, coming from a variety of angles, to body and head. With a matter of seconds remaining in the first round, Dilks was visibly hurt by a straight left, and sagged back on the ropes, inviting DeGale to unleash a blur of punches, forcing the referee to call a halt to the contest. On first viewing, the official seemed to be a little hasty in calling the stoppage, but the lack of complaint from Dilks (now 14-3, 5 KO) illustrated that he had made the correct decision.
Frank Warren called out George Groves to face DeGale (8-0, 6 KO) in the post-fight interview, which would re-ignite their amateur rivalry.
In what was the most competitive, and entertaining bout on the bill, Nathan Cleverly defended his European light-heavyweight strap by taking the difficult route in stopping previously unbeaten Karo Murat, after 9 absorbing rounds.
Cleverly took the fight to the German right from the opening bell, starting at a ferocious pace, taking advantage of Murat’s high guard with left and right hooks to the body, combined with the occasional upper cut through the middle. By comparison, Murat looked like the proverbial rabbit in headlights for the first couple of rounds, plodding forward into range, and allowing Cleverly to put his punches together nicely, while his own hand speed resembled that of Homer Simpson’s attempt at hitting Drederick Tatum.
Despite some worried looks at his corner, Murat survived the initial onslaught, and started to get back into the contest during rounds 3, 4, and 5. As the Welshman’s work rate predictably started to drop, Murat started to have more moments in the fight. Although Cleverly probably won two of those three rounds, his tendency to stay in range, with a lower punch output, meant that Murat was able to test the champ’s chin on several occasions, prompting worried looks from promoter Frank Warren, and strong words from his corner.
The advice from Cleverly’s corner also contained a liberal drop of wisdom, as the Cefn Forest boy finally started to make his height and reach advantage count by working behind the jab, and being more selective with his shots by moving in and out of punching range. The tactic paid immediate dividends, as Murat appeared to be on unsteady legs at least twice in round six, once more towards the end of the seventh, and sustained a cut on the bridge of his nose early on in the eighth. Cleverly would revert back to toe-to-toe warfare when he had his man hurt, but it encouraging to see him choose his moments to apply the pressure.
A visit from the referee and the doctor to Murat’s corner at the end of round eight signified the desperation of the German’s situation, leading him to attempt hopelessly telegraphed haymakers that were easily avoided. Cleverly continued to outclass and break down his foe throughout round nine, at the conclusion of which, the referee consulted with the ringside doctor – who had checked on Murat’s condition once again – and ended the contest before round ten could get underway.
This performance may position Cleverly (20-0, 10 KO) into a WBO title shoe, while Murat (22-1, 13 KO) will need to rebuild after this setback.
The other outstanding battle was a British and Commonwealth unification tussle between heavyweights, Derek Chisora and Sam Sexton.
This was another contest that commenced at a furious pace, with Sexton looking to establish his jab and earn the Londoner’s respect, but Chisora displayed swift head and upper body movement to get past the Norwich native’s range-finder, to land some meaty-looking shots of his own. The fascinating give-and-take nature of the opening five rounds, made the fight difficult to score.
However by round six, Sexton was starting to feel the pace of the earlier rounds, and seemed more content to hold, and tie up Chisora, rather than attempt to keep the British champ at arms length. This played into Chisora’s hands, as he was able to wing in the body shots, hooks to the head, and short upper cuts on the inside. Now knowing that Sexton was as near as gassed, Chisora was dominating on the outside as well, doing his own version of floating like a butterfly and?well you know the rest.
This trend continued through rounds seven and eight, as Sexton looked to slow down the action as much as possible. By the end of round nine, Sexton’s legs were stiffened by a Chisora combination. Immediately sensing his opponent was in trouble, Chisora jumped on the opportunity, pouring out the punches, as Sexton’s defences disintegrated, leaving the referee no option but to stop the bout.
Chisora maintains his unblemished slate (14-0, 9 KO), while Sexton could not avenge his only previous defeat and drops to 13-2 (6 KO).
Hometown favourite Matthew Macklin (27-2, 18KO) was on a different level to Shalva Jomardashvili (27-3-1, 19 KO) to retain the vacant European middleweight title after the Georgian refused to come out for the sixth round. After which the Brummie stated he’s ready and willing to face anyone in the 160lb division.
Exciting welterweight, Kell Brook (22-0, 15 KO) stopped former world title challenger Michael Jennings (36-3, 17 KO) on cuts in the fifth round, in what was warming up to be an intriguing bout. A rotund Naseem Hamed claimed that his fellow Sheffield native is ready to knock out Manny Pacquiao right now, before he stepped in the ring to face Jennings!
The most stunning knockout of the night belongs to cruiserweight Alexander Frenkel, who remains unbeaten (23-0, 18 KO), and now European champion after depositing former WBO champ Enzo Maccarinelli (32-5, 25 KO) in the seventh round. The Welshman was ahead on the judge’s cards after weathering an early storm from Frenkel. But just as Maccarinelli started to get into a rhythm, and dictate terms, the German launched a left hook that landed right on the button, sending the Swansea slugger on his back. Having risen to his feet, still appearing punch-drunk, the referee administered the eight-count, and astoundingly allowed Maccarinelli to continue, to stagger into two or three more heavy shots, before hitting the canvas in a heap once again. Mercifully that’s where he stayed for enough time for the ringside medics to provide assistance. To Frenkel’s credit, he showed his class in showing concern for his opponent, and muted his celebrations in the ring.
The remaining result saw more disappointment for the British fans, as Matthew Hall (23-3, 16 KO) came up short in his last-minute opportunity to win the vacant European light-middleweight title against the experienced Czech, Lukas Konecny, who improves to 45-3 (22 KO) after stopping the Manchester brawler inside six rounds.
