Goodwin Boxing put on their end of season show on Saturday 16th July and it promised to be a fitting finale to a year that has seen the promotional outfit capture their first English title holder. The show has four titles on the line with plenty of talent on show promising fans a quality day and night of action.
BOUT 1: Noureddine Meddoun vs Kamil Sokolowski (4×3 – Heavyweight)
The two big heavyweights stand across the ring, Meddoun not looking in the best of shapes. The man who has called out all heavyweights in the country has his chance to show what he has to offer.
The fight is raw. Meddoun tries the occasional jab but Sokolowski parries well. It means Meddoub reverts back to using his big right hand at every opportunity, but Sokolowski is too slick and experienced to stand and take it.
Neither fighter was able to establish themselves in the fight, but the cleaner works comes from Sokolowski as Meddoun continually looks for a single shot knockout. No doubt if it lands then the fight would be over, but through the fight Sokolowski is too smart and utilised his better work rate wjile Meddoun looked less than impressive in defeat.
The referee scored the fight 40-37 to Sokolowski.
BOUT 2: Justin Menzie vs Josef Takacs (4×3 – Super Welterweight)
Menzie is making his return after two years out of the ring, a fight with Bradley Pryce is lined up so this is a chance to blow off some rust.
Menzie is quick to do so, he pounces out of his guard to close the distance throughout the first round. Powerful lead lefts from a southpaw stance jolt Takacs through the start of the round before he succumbs to a flurry of punches and takes to the canvas. He beats the count but shows little ambition for the rest of the round.
In the second Menzie continues to dominate, again coming in from a squat position to unleash powerful left hands. Takacs starts to show more ambition of his own but is caught each time with sharp counter lefts that put him off of approaching too often. Again he is dropped as Menzie shows his dominance. The referee allows it to continue, but Takacs doesn’t look like a man who wants to be in the ring now.
By the third Menzie has his eyes firmly on his damaged prey. He pins Takacs to the ropes and unloads with composure. Takacs seems to have a foot caught on the rope but Menzie shows little sympathy and continues the assault. Takacs is floored but gets to his feet on a seven count – the referee looks in his eyes and decides his night is over. Menzie looked impressive and now goes on to take on former Commonwealth champion Pryce in only his fourth fight.
BOUT 3: Neil Parry vs Dwayne Sheldon (4×3 – Welterweight)
Unbeaten Parry from Canterbury looks to make it four wins as a pro against Sheldon, who is coming off the back of his first professional win.
Sheldon starts at a frenetic tempo, keeping Parry working his defence at all times. Parry seems reluctant to let his hands go through the round, each time he does he is met by a counter from the active Sheldon. The second round follows suit, again Sheldon is the busiest and stops Parry from making his own attacks – when he does he is again tied up by Sheldon. It is in the third when Parry starts to show more ambition, no doubt with a tick in his ear from his corner. He comes forward and becomes the busier of the two, although Sheldon undoubtedly lands the harder.
By the fourth you suspect that Parry needs to get a stoppage here. It doesn’t look likely to happen as again Sheldon shows good ring smarts to keep his man tied up on the inside. Parry just can’t find a way to work around the awkward opponent as the fourth round comes to a close. Parry will be disappointed with his showing here, never giving the fans a chance to see what he is capable of.
The referee scores the fight 40-37.
BOUT 4: Sam Stokes vs Daniel Borisov (4×3 – Middleweight)
Stokes is looking to extend his undefeated career as the fight is delayed due to a glove issue for Borisov. Stokes shows nice head movement to start the fight, showing a marked improvement under his new trainers at RJ’s Gym. He works Borisov to the ropes often, looking the stronger of the two in the ring. He displays a nice a nice tight defence around the head as Borisov comes forwards. There is a break as Borisov protests to the referee that he has been bitten, showing everyone ringside the marks that will look. Referee Ian John-Lewis talks to Stokes in the corner, where bizarrely it looks as if he has asked to be disqualified. Not granting the wishes, the referee calls the two together and they box in, but Stokes comes into the exchange and lands a headbutt straight to Borisov.
Ian John Lewis jumps straight in between them and waves the fight off. The winner by disqualification, Borisov in poor scenes for the sport.
BOUT 5: Christos Ioannou vs Craig Derbyshire (4×3 – Featherweight)
Ioannou comes out to loud applause as he makes his debut tonight. With a promising amateur background hopes are high for him.
The two blend nicely in the first round. Ioannou shows nice footwork to make angles through the start, not overcome by the occasion. He does take a big right hand from Derbyshire, but he continues to walk forward and show an ability to put sharp combinations together. In round two the southpaw Ioannou shows nice defensive skills, head movement making Derbyshire miss with some wild shots. Good balance and composure are working in his favour, although he doesn’t capitalise on the counter opportunities. His loud crowd cheer him on as Derbyshire taps his chest to beckon him in. Ioannou doesn’t take the bait, showing good composure again for a debutant. Derbyshire’s own work is done at range as he looks for swinging right hands that rarely find alone. Although Ioannou has the cleaner and better work, his shots lack the power to make a real impact and Derbyshire is happy to keep trading when he gets the chance.
Ioannout start s the third with a nice counter to the now familiar Derbyshire right hand. The round follow a similar pattern as Ioannou comes forward to try and keep the distance short while Robinson looks to let his right hand go whenever possible.
In the fourth Ioannou steps up the workrate to start, now varying with body shots. The two get into some nice trades which seems to suit the style of Robinson better. Ioannou then lengthens the action again, working his jab well and displaying his slicker skills both offensively and on the retreat when Derbyshire launches forward. Derbyshire ends the fight well, a good flurry as the final bell rings. It isn’t enough, but gives Ioannou a taste of what it will be like as he moves through the levels. He claims a comfortable points win and will be pleased the debut is complete without hiccups.
BOUT 6: Matthew Chanda vs Luke Flash (6×3 – Super Bantamweight)
Southern Area champion Chanda is out for a tick over fight, the belt not on the line here.
Chanda is busy from the off, his familiar squat style as he works forward and manipulates Flash around the ring. Chanda is always in his face, relentless punching. He rarely loads up with power but must be a nightmare to have constantly pressuring. The round passes without drama as Flash is closed down from doing any work by the relentlessness of Chanda.
In the second Chanda again comes forward but Flash stands his ground more now. The two stand and trade centre ring as they both display tight guards and choose to exchange punches. Chanda creates problems for Flash through workrate, while Flash looks to keep the guard tight and occasionally fire back the heavier shots of the two.
The fight passes without either fighting troubling the other any great deal. Chanda is a workhorse, he shows the same engine that helped him win the Southern Area title against Jamie Speight. He seems to lack the power to do damage though with the opportunities that he creates. Time will tell if he can build on it over time.
The referee scores the fight 60-55 in favour of Chanda.
BOUT 7: Linus Udofia vs Yailton Neves (4×3 – Middleweight)
Udofia from Luton is out for his second pro bout and looking to build on the click skills he displayed on his debut. Southpaw Neves came out with a jerky style from a southpaw stance as Udofia was happy to take his time and feel out his opponent. A good double jab followed by the right from Udofia was the highlight of the first round action, whenever Neves did throw the lengthy jab Udofia worked his balance to be out of range and show why he is renowned as both a stylish and awkward operator.
Udofia started the second quickly, closing range of Neves who managed to pivot out and land his own right hand to end the exchange. Whenever Neves came forward Udofia was out of range or ducking the shots. The two nearly ended up going over the top rope as a tangle found its way to the edge of the ring. Neves complained to the referee but the two carried on. Udofia shows nice composure in the ring, plenty of feints keeping Neves unsure when and where the attacks would be coming from. Sharp counters kept landing on the Neves chin but nothing of significant power to out him off coming forwards on occasion.
Round three saw Neves take a tumble as his foot caught the rope. No knockdown was ruled and Udofia started to go forwards more on the attack. The round started to get scrappy, Neves looking to hold when the distance was shortened and Udofia struggling to pin him down. Neves showed good ring cratfmanship to evade an attack in the corner. As Udofia took his seat at the end of the round he was on top but struggling to get to grips with the awkward southpaw.
In the last round Neves circled the ring, clearly under instruction from his corner not to engage where possible. Udofia caught up with him, landing a nice left, right combination before Neves made his way out again. Udofia went back to his patient approach, side on and evading shots throughout. His hardest task here has been finding Neves through the four rounds as the man from Manchester made it as awkward as possible. Udofia can be happy with his work, he would clearly be more suited to an opponent with more ambition who wants to fight and not run. He showed little of his ability to counter shots and instead spent four rounds on his heels chasing Neves down.
The referee scored the fight 40-36 to Udofia.
BOUT 8: Adrian Martin vs Hajinder Gill (4×3 – Super Welterweight)
Martin is looking to continue his unbeaten career to date against the tough Gill. Martin worked well in the first round, ducking well under the Gill left hook and landing a clean right hook in return. Martin has a nice style, head always off of centre line and making Gill wasre energy on shots. A sharp counter right lands on the Gill chin as the crowd show their appreciation.Gill lands a nice left hook to start the second round off. Gill’s smaller stature and shorter reach meant he had to keep coming forwards and at times was finding success with the left hand. Gill continued to come in with his head low and was finally caught by a straight right from Martin to the jaw which dropped Gill to his knees. The referee counted to five as he stood, Martin didn’t’t have the time to finish the fight as the bell rang.
Martin couldn’t find the success in the third round, Gill going more defensive. It didn’t take him long though to find his man as he caught him in the neutral corner with a big straight right. It jolted the legs of Gill – Martin saw his man was hurt and took advantage as he got straight on top of him, unloading lefts and rights as the referee stalked closely. It didn’t take him long to decide that Gill had shipped enough punishment and he jumped in, giving Martin an impressive stoppage victory.
BOUT 9: Brad Pauls vs Teodor Lozanov (4×3 – Middleweight)
The young lad who is making a name for himself as a wrecking ball in the division looks to continue his KO streak, making his way to the ring in now customary Gladiator headpiece to the approval of his many fans in attendance. A lovely lead right from Pauls opens the round and Lozanov looks stunned from the start. He recomposes as the two circle. A nice left jab pushes back the head of Lozanov before a strong left hook to the body from Pauls causes his opponent to tie up. Pauls continues to work from centre of the ring, stalking Lozanov around the outside. Lozanov ends the round throwing a rare combination but he is unable to put off the man from Cornwall as the bell rings.
Round two is again Pauls coming quickly out of the blocks, but this time does get a chin check with a left counter that he stands well to. Pauls then catches Lozanov in the home corner with a punishing right body shot that turns his opponent who grimaces. Pauls throws unanswered straight lefts as the referee decides he has seen enough and calls a stop to the fight. Another impressive win for Pauls who looked strong and stylish again.
BOUT 10: Adi Burden vs Tamas Danko (4×3 – Super Middleweight)
The debut of Burden, who looked tall at the weight over his far smaller opponent. Burden found success with the right uppercut on occasions. A nice right hook to the body from Burden started the second but his shots to the head were met by the right guard of Danko. Burden teed off right hands on Tanko and was able to bully him around the ring, Tanko having nothing in return. Burden was happy to drop the gloves and try to lure Danko in, still finding success with the body shots as Danko seemingly had lost the will to throw punches back.
Burden was too happy to close the space in the opening of the third round. His punches were finding a home still but the leverage was not there. The gloves came down and he he stalked Danko – returning to the body he landed a beautiful left body hook that dropped Danko to the floor immediately. The referee started a count but soon saw that Danko was in no position to continue and his arms signalled the end of the bout, Burden winning an impressive debut bout in the third round.
BOUT 11: Sam Smith vs David Sipos (4×3 – Light Heavyweight)
Looking for the third win at the start of his career, Smith came to the ring adourned in fetching black hat and robe with trainer Paddy Fitzpatrick. Smith towered over Sipos and used that height and reach to utilise a stiff jab that kept Sipos at length. The times he followed it up with the right hand Smith looked like he could cause problems for Sipos. For his part, Sipos threw the rare right hand but seemed relucant to commit as Smith proved his class at the end of the round landing a flush right that buckled the legs of Sipos on the bell.
Round two saw Smith show off some nice footwork, stepping out of range of Sipos with ease when the shots were coming back. Sipos by now was keeping his gloves tight to his ears, unwilling to let Smith use his superior size and strength. Smith could have looked to target the body more, Sipos keeping that high guard in place. The round ended without much action but again Smith was comfortable in there.
Sipos showed a solid chin at the start of the third round as Smith pinned him to the ropes and landed flush with a left and straight right but he wasn’t being moved. Smith had a cut developing on the bridge of his nose but it wasn’t affecting his solid work rate as he kept Sipos walking around the peripheral of the ring. A break was called by the referee as an accidental low blow was called by the referee but you started to get the impression it may be more Sipos looking for a way out. He did land his own overhand right as the round was ending, but again he was on the wrong end of a beating.
In the fourth Lipos took a hard body shot that caused him to stumble back, Smith took advantage and landed to the head as the referee jumped in for a count. It didn’t take the referee long to see there was little left in the Sipos tank and he called the fight off, giving Smith a fourth round stoppage victory.
BOUT 12: Lucas Robinson vs Atilla Tibor Nagy (4×3 – Super Middleweight)
Robinson was looking to build on his impressive debut that ended early. A huge ovation from his travelling fans met Robinson’s introduction. Nagy started showing some good ambition, a big looping right overhand coming Robinson’s way but he was too savvy to be caught. Robinson used his stiff jab well, waiting patiently for openings against the shorter Nagy. When they came Robinson was quick and sharp, landing some nice uppercuts on the inside and countering the looping right shots. Nagy though waited in the corner and lured Robinson in – and quick as a flash threw a huge right hand off the chin of Robinson. Robinson dropped immediately and was out cold, the shot landing on the proverbial button. After receiving oxygen Robinson got to a stool but the damage was done and the crowd recovered from a huge shock. Winner by first round KO, Nagy.
BOUT 13: Chris Davies vs Richard Harrison (4×3 – Light Heavyweight)
The two blended well from the off, trading nicely mid ring. Harrison showed a good defence to the jab , calmly taking it off shoulder and glove. He had a nice movement of his upper body, keeping Davies guessing where he would be. Davies was looking to get in close and do his work in flurries, Harrison smart enough to tie up when required. A nice lead right from Davies landed on the chin of Harrison to end the second round. A nice left hook from Davies lit up the third round as Harrison laughed it off and pretended his legs were gone. In the fourth there was more playing by Harrison, trying to lure Davies in for a shot by he didn’t take the bait. Davies continues to do the better work as Harrison encouraged him in, the crowd made their voices hear in his support but he couldn’t seem to put a dent in Harrison despite the better work.
The referee scored the fight 40-36 to Chris Davies.
BOUT 14: INTERNATIONAL CHALLENGE BELT, Josh Kennedy vs Krzysztof Rogowski (8×3 – Super Bantamweight)
Kennedy looked to continue the undefeated start to his career and claim his first title here. He opened as a hive of activity, throwing quick hands as Rogowski was struggling to deal with his pace. It carried on through the first round, the two battled well as they looked to unload on each other early on. Rogowski was happy to tie Kennedy up when possible and look to possibly frustrate a man who has shown he can be frustrated before. However Kennedy was composed and worked his way out of clinches well.
Through the second round again Kennedy had the better of the action, showing fast hands to flummox his opponent. Rogowski did have success, but he was unable to sustain it as Kennedy proved too fast.
Kennedy landed a flush right hand on Rogowski on the ropes in the third round, following up with some clean shots but Rogowski amazingly stopped and smiled at his opponent. He continued to do so as Kennedy unloaded, showing a hugely solid chin in the process. Kennedy worked his way back out and again caught Rogowski who laughed it off. As Kennedy went to duck a Rogowski hook, Rogowski caught his head. Upon instruction from the referee to release he refused and tightened the grip. The referee immediately jumped in to call the fight off, unhappy with the action of Rogowski. Kennedy won by disqualification in round three.
BOUT 15: SOUTHERN AREA TITLE, Jack Morris vs Kelvin Young (10×3 – Light Heavyweight)
Morris and Young battle for the vacant belt. Morris has a huge following with him, making themselves heard in the hall. From the off Young establishes a strong jab that Morris struggled to work inside of. Young head the better workrate through the opening rounds as he keep that jab pumping out. Morris was starting each round well but unable to keep the pace up.
Through the fourth and fifth round Morris was finding a home more for the big right, but wasn’t able to follow up with combinations as Young made the most of better footwork to evade the danger.
The pace started to get. To Morris more in the middle rounds, my now more and more reliant on the right as Young still worked his jab. Young would occasionally step in behind the jab with a right but despite the workrate of Young and obvious power of Morris, neither was putting a dent in the other.
The pattern continued into the later rounds. A cut opened over the hairline of Morris but didn’t affect the vision, Young still worked from behind the jab as the heat clearly took its toll on both men.
In the final round Young was caught with a flush right that buckled his legs and sent him to the canvas. He got up before the count, but Morris clearly knew his opponent was struggling on the ropes and stepped in to put it on his man. A number of huge punches landed unanswered from Morris and the referee had seen enough to stop the action.
Morris won over a gruelling ten rounds and you couldn’t help but feel sorry for Young who had battled both skilfully and courageously throughout the fight. A great effort by both men in incredibly hot conditions.
BOUT 16: SOUTHERN AREA TITLE, Wadi Camacho vs Danny Couzens (10×3 – Cruiserweight)
Camacho defends his Southern Area belt won against Dan Woodgate earlier in 2016. Couzens came out showing plenty of promise, avoiding the Camacho jab through the first round as the heat increased under the heightened atmosphere at York Hall. Couzens perhaps had the better of the first round, but in the second Camacho started to get his rhythm and claim centre ring. Couzens was having success with a big right hand that was taking the southpaw Camacho by surprise when thrown. Big bombs were exchanged by each man as the broad lapped up the action.
A clean double lead uppercut from Camacho went through the Couzens guard, followed by a nice right hand and a third uppercut but Morris took the shots well and fired back with a hard overhand right.
In the fifth Camacho landed a shot that Couzens claimed was low as Camacho looked to up the pace of the fight. At times he pinned Couzens to the corner and dropped his guard, ready to pounce as Couzens loaded up on the right hand to evade. The sixth started similarly as Camacho was starting to pull away with the slicker boxing skills. Blood seeped from his nose as Camacho again had his man cornered. He landed a clean jab but Camacho walked forward, showing a nice rhythm and style. Couzens’ approach was still to fire off the big right but it wasn’t finding a home any longer, Camacho evading with a slick style. Camacho was able to tee off on Couzens as he bent in the corner. The Couzens corner actually looked to throw the towel in before their man started to show some more ambition of his own to impressively see the round out under sustained pressure. That was it though for Couzens, at the end of the round his corner had seen enough and called an end to proceedings as Camacho paraded the ring.
It looked a comfortable nights work for Camacho, never troubled and too savvy for Couzens who was more reliant on looking to load up on shots to win the belt.
BOUT 17: BRITISH CHALLENGE BELT, John McCallum vs Dalton Miller (8×3 – Super Middleweight)
In a fight with a spicy buildup, Scotsman McCallum was met by a huge roar at York Hall.
The action started in the centre of the ring as the two men made good on their promise to stand and trade. There were plenty of shots thrown as the two looked to establish control, Miller, landing a good right cross to the Scotsman’s chin but McCallumtook it well and Miller couldn’t follow up. The second started with again both men looking to hold centre ring. A phone box could have been used for this fight so far as neither man took a backwards step. McCallum flurried on Miller, landing a nice left uppercut and following up with left and rights that couldn’t break the Londoner’s guard. Miller was struggling to find range as McCallum had the better of the exchangers but Miller was going nowhere as he stayed to trade with his man,
The McCallum left hook was proving a good weapon, Miller taking a number of them and surviving well. Miller has a fluid style, dropping his shoulders as he looks to close distance. There were a number of solid exchanges through the opening rounds that typically McCallum came out on top of. Miller would do the tidier work at distance but struggle to control McCallum when inside.
A cut had opened over the right eye of McCallum by the sixth round, Miller was making it a messy affair as he lead in with his head each time and causing the referee to tell Miller as the round started to keep his head up. A nice left hook by McCallum in the sixth was the highlight as the two fought in spurts before tangling again. It seemed that neither man was able to land shots hard enough to deter the other from coming forwards before the work got spoiled. McCallum’s eye was marked up heavily by now, the good streaming above the left eye and the eye closing. Miller was focussing his attention on making it worse and the fight got scrapper as it progressed. A rare moment of clean work sat McCallum land a flush left uppercut and straight right to Miller. The eye got patched up and out they both came for the final round. Again the work was spoiler by either side. The fight really sparked to life by the end of the round as they stood and traded shots. The referee asked for the eye to be tidied up for the round to finish, by this side himself covered in the blood of McCallum down his white shirt. Neither could unload tidy shots as the round came to a close.
The referee scored the fight 78-74 in favour of John McCallum to the approval of the Scottish fans in attendance.
BOUT 18: Luke Watkins vs Dmitrij Kalonovskij (6×3 – Cruiserweight)
Watkins looked to build on his undefeated career to date and started this with a solid jab, claiming centre ring and moving his man around the ring at ease behind his lengthy reach. Neither seemed to wish to engage to often, then in the second round Watkins picked two clean right hooks to the body. Kalonovski covered, allowing Watkins to take advantage of the space created and landed a nice straight right to the jaw.
In the third a solid right hand from Watkins pierced the Kalonovski high guard, rocking back his opponent in the corner but he shook his head, prompting Watkins to step in and land another, causing the Kalonovski gum shield to become displaced. Watkins came out strongly again in the fourth round, landing stinging punches that pushed Kalonovski back to the ropes. He was tough, a stream of blood came from his nose as he absorbed more punishment from the strong Watkins. It was one way traffic as Watkins could land at ease without return.
The fight had lost its competitive edge by the fifth, Watkins clearly levels above his outclassed opponent. A right hook to the body early in the fifth sounded stinging, but Kalonovski stuck in there. Watkins was showing some nice skills, bobbing and weaving into range but in truth it felt more a training exercise than a necessity. Watkins was showing good composure, not looking to step in too quickly and finish the job but he could perhaps have put his foot down more to force a stoppage against little resistance.
sA they came out for the final stanza and touched gloves Watkins started well again with his opponent in the corner and able to fire off at will. A nice straight right rocked back Kalonovski’s head, but the lad was seemingly determined to make sure he earned his pay tonight. Watkins ended the fight as he had been throughout, thoroughly dominant and out of the league of Kalonovski. Tougher tests will come his way.
The referee scored the bout 60-54 to Watkins.
A night of high drama. Disqualifications, upsets, knockouts. It didn’t lack any. The crowd have been treated to a great day and night of action from York Hall as the season comes to a close for Goodwin Boxing.
Read more from Martin at New Age Boxing here: New Age Boxing
