It was the fourth Contender night and there were two things on our minds – pulling and punching. As I’m not one for gossip, I’m not sure how successful the pulling was but take it from me the punching was perfection.

I had a hunch the Contenders were inspired by London Fashion Week, as the Contenders cut a sartorial swag strutting into the Ring like supermodels taking to the catwalk. Dave Gaunt brought a little show biz as he dazzled in his sequinned shorts, Jayo wore his lucky socks (read on to see how lucky they were), Dom resembled a cheeky cartoon character wearing his Samurai headband and George from Athens wore national costume – head to toe in blue and white. It was a full house and by unanimous consent, this was the best Contender night yet.

But this was not a night where fashion outshone the fights – every Contender was punch perfect. Here’s what happened…

Tucker vs. Anthony Nixon – Heavy Weight
This was not just the opening fight (and a controversial one at that) but the winner would fight again later for the heavy weight belt…so no pressure then boys!

These guys are very different fighters. Tucker’s a tank and uses this to his advantage with his defence. Anthony has a better range, combinations a plenty and a cross, which is probably the hardest in the Clinic – he’s not called “The Cannon” for nothing. And so to business; Tucker always proved dangerous when walking Anthony to the corner and then unleashing his attack which he did on a couple of occasions in round 1. But Anthony always had an answer, he may be big but he floats when he needs to and float around the ring he did countering whatever Tucker threw at him.

Round 2 started as Round 1 had finished with both fighters giving as good as they got but half way into the round Anthony’s lethal cross was regularly deployed reaching its target 90 per cent of the time and although Tucker was not knocked out or knocked down the ref thought enough was enough and stopped the fight at 1.40mins. This was a controversial decision by the ref as Tucker was keen to fight on but his corner had other ideas. You had to feel for Tucker but the ref’s there for a reason and we have to respect that. We would see Anthony later.

Paul Suett vs. Dominic Tsui – Light Middle Weight.

As expected, this bout was fast and furious. Both fighters stamped their personalities on the room as they entered the ring. Paul walked to his team, West Ham’s anthem; his support was so loud it resembled the terraces on a Saturday afternoon. Dom cloaked in red with a headband resembling that of a Samurai Warrior looked every inch the super action hero and the fight hadn’t even started.

From the first bell Dom looked the more composed and took the first round. He was impressive on the ropes, landed plenty of shots, was light on his feet and fast with his hands and upper body. But Paul was no by-stander and tried to counter but one felt that the experience had got to him and he needed to settle down in the second round.

Advice from Paul’s corner was to “breath and relax” and in the second round he began to hold his own against Dom and started landing some intelligent shots to counter Dom’s probing attacks. Dom’s toolkit of shots was impressive, if the first round was all about the cross this round was about body shots and uppercuts – Dom resembled the Energizer Bunny as Paul began to tire towards the end of the round.

Paul recovered well during the break and came out looking good – this fight was not over yet! I guess Dom must be short for dominant, as the time ticked on the clock Dom unleashed combo after combo, Paul never gave up but on the night Dom was the superior fighter and victory was his.

Terry vs. Troy – Middle Weight

This was the international bout of the night, Terry a native of South Africa while Troy hails from Jamaica.

Compared to the first two fights this was a more tentative start by the fighters, as they looked calm and composed. Terry displayed some beautiful combinations while Troy’s tight defence and good use of his jab meant he wasn’t going to be a push over – Terry was going to have to fight smart if he was going to win.

At the break, Terry received some sound advice from his corner…”body head, body head…” and this is what he opened the second with to good effect. But Troy countered well with more confidence and at one point had Terry on the ropes. But Terry finished the round impressively with a good cross and an excellent uppercut.

Round 3 was all about the power and Terry had it in spades but Troy’s defence was good although eventually worn down after a barrage of one-twos, uppercuts and power shots from Terry even when they were both flat footed in the final 30 seconds. A worthy victory for Terry but Troy never made it easy.

Stewart vs. James Wilkinson. Light Middle Weight Belt 3 x 3 min rounds

This was the first defence of Stewart’s belt and although he had put in the training I was interested to see if the arrival of a new baby and all that entails would have affected Stewart or not?

The first round saw a good display from both fighters, James was more attacking but Stewart was quick with a lightning jab and moved from head to body with ease. But James was well able for this and stayed on the balls of his feet throughout the fight using them to keep him out of trouble.

Round 2 started a bit like a football match, real end to end stuff although in this case it was corner to corner, they used every inch of the ring and it was good stuff to watch. James unleashed a left hook which was a stunner and used his bob and weave to avoid the relentless attacks from the current Champ but the crowd could smell blood, luckily Stewart was saved by the bell – round 2 to James.

In the opening seconds of the final round Stewart was knocked to the floor but bounced back up as if on a spring. This belt was still his and he wasn’t handing it over just yet. He managed the most timely of ducks which if the hook had landed he would have been back on the mat. James’ superior fitness really shone along with some all round fantastic fighting – he looked the complete package and won the belt. A worthy victory by our new light middleweight champ, James Wilkinson.

Ian O’Dogherty vs. Drew Beattie – Middleweight
If anyone was in any doubt about the origins of Ian O’Dogherty, the tri-coloured cape he wore to enter the ring would set you right.

From the bell these boys exhibited the most powerful of shots, Drew probed with his jab while Ian landed some good crosses, so good Drew looked stunned at one point in the opening round. Ian landed more punches and to my mind round 1 was his.

The second round was more even. Drew’s defence was solid with some good counter attacks but Ian was relentless. Drew had a tendency to keep his hands low but Ian failed to capitalise on this. It was a good round with both fighters showing some good skill.

Round 3 was another hard fought round with both fighters keeping their ends up. Drew came out well; he was proving a tough fighter who was starting to use his cross more. Ian bobbed and weaved and at one point avoided a left hook with a beautiful duck to land a textbook right hook. The final 30 seconds saw the boys starting to slug it out but they never lost their composure. Personally I thought Ian edged it but it was close, too close for the ref who declared it a draw.

Alistair vs. Jayo – Middle Weight

This was the first time in the ring, in front of a crowd for these two fighters but you would never have guessed it. They looked calm and composed right from the start, each had a game plan and it looked like they were sticking to it – good heads for fighters with such little experience. Alistair’s shots were straight down the middle a good choice as he had the longer reach. Jayo was up and down delivering good body shots; these fighters were nice to watch. Neither fighter looked at all hassled in the first round.

On the bell for the second, Jayo was late back and received a word from the ref. Alistair started strong and again aimed right down the middle but these fighters were trading punch for punch both landing good, hard punches. Jayo had a momentary lapse of concentration where he didn’t keep his chin down and was caught right where it hurts. Alistair edged ahead in this round.

The final round was ferocious, their hunger to win was palpable but Alistair’s right hand was starting to wear Jayo down, he was tired and suffering from a bloody nose but he didn’t give up. It was a marginal but well deserved victory to Alistair 30:27.

Tony Bennett vs. James Absoloman – Cruiser Weight.

Although from County Wexford in Ireland Tony had massive support in Vauxhall – was there anybody left at home? It was a bit of a messy start for both fighters, which wasn’t helped as the dry ice started to descend into the ring. The shots were big and hard but not a combination in sight.

During the break I could hear that the advice from both corners was to try some combinations and on the bell they did. Tony had the longer jab but James had an excellent right hook. Tony delivered some good body shots in this round and at one point looked to have winded James and although James appeared the more aggressive of the two, Tony landed more shots on target.

By round 3 the noise was deafening which clearly roused the fighters who came out all guns blazing. Tony used his reach to deliver long, hard shots and whilst James was on the ropes he countered with a good cross at lightning speed. Both fighter gave it their all until the final bell when the ref declared Tony the winner.

Dave Gaunt vs. Dan Hine – Title Fight for the Middleweight Belt 3 x 3 mins

This was the third defence that Dan has made of his middle weight title, for Dave Gaunt (a south paw) this was his first live fight but if his shorts were anything to go by he was ready to dazzle, completely un-phased by the occasion.

From the bell, this fight was taken to every corner of the ring – we had a scrap on our hands and a good one at that. An early stoppage for a low blow to Dan didn’t dampen Dave’s spirits as he was pumped with only success on his mind. But Dan is experienced and knows how to move to get out of trouble and that he did, unleashing his excellent left hook which met its target a couple of times.

Dave needed to settle in the second round as he would either burn out or prove himself to be superman. He was still relentless in his attack but Dan was composed, he’s done this before and knew his time would come; he just had to be patient. 90 seconds into the second round Dan’s moment had arrived, he unleashed a barrage of shots which drew blood with the ref stopping the fight at 1.46mins Dan was still the middle weight champ – he was taking the belt back home. Beating the current champ was a tall order for Dave but there is no question he rattled Dan in the first round and at the start of the second – it just wasn’t enough. Can anyone beat Dan Hine?

George Yiannelis vs. Anthony Nixon – Title Fight for the Heavy Weight Belt 3 x 3 mins
Commentators often say that you can win or lose a fight before you enter the ring. I took one look at George and before he’d even thrown a punch he had a look in his eyes that said, “there’s only one way I’m leaving this ring tonight and that’s with the heavy weight belt”. Although this was Anthony’s second fight of the night he looked relaxed and ready to rumble.

Round 1 was as you would expect, attacking, fast and full of drama. Anthony knocked George down (it was always on the cards) but he bounced back in a nano second. George used the ropes well, he looked more composed but Anthony was fighting like a warrior.

George is a seasoned athlete with good movement around the ring – he gets into his opponent and likes to fight close up – tonight was no different. Anthony has power and the meanest right hand, which he used to good effect. The Second started where the first had finished but then half way through the round, George unleashed a barrage of shots as Anthony balanced on the ropes. Anthony’s defence was good and he moved to get out of range but George just took him to the other side of the ring and had him back on the ropes pumping uppercut after uppercut into Anthony. If the ref hadn’t stopped the fight George would still be punching – he was a man under the influence – punch drunk with victory! George is now the heavy weight champion and we look forward to seeing him defend it next time round.

So, another fight night over with. By unanimous consent, the ring girls were a hit, already inspiring several comments on the forum. But light stuff aside, Contender night is the culmination of months of hard work and dedication by the fighters AND the coaches. On the night the Corner men are indispensable and in opposite corners we had opposite characters. In the black corner, was the calm and strategic Paul Hines supported by the able and feisty Ben Vickers and in the red was Ben Wood supported by Harry and Adam. Ben Wood always proves to be as entertaining as the fights, I swear one of these days we’ll have to drag him out of the ring so excited does he get with his fighters…it’s entertaining to say the least.

If you’re up for a challenge email info@theboxingclinic.com by October 2nd and start training for February where we’ll see you same time, same place.

by

S Finnegan

This entry was posted on Monday, September 28th, 2009 at 3:59 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.