Home News Cleverly, DeGale, Brook, Bellew and Macklin All Win from Liverpool on Warren’s...

Cleverly, DeGale, Brook, Bellew and Macklin All Win from Liverpool on Warren’s Big Card

DeGale Steps up In Class and Wins Big

James ‘Chunky’ DeGale impressed with a cool, confident, and clinical performance, stopping Paul Smith and winning the Scouser’s British super middleweight title in front of a packed Liverpool Echo Arena. Liverpool born Smith certainly had the 11,000 strong crowd behind him, but this did little to distract the confident DeGale. In only his ninth pro fight he proved, despite the lack of experience, he is ready to back up his loud and confident proclamations with exciting performances. The Olympic gold medalist was supposed to struggle in this, by far his toughest challenge as a pro, but was in cruise control for much of the fight.

Credit: AP

The first round saw both fighters land big shots and a real domestic dust up was on the cards. DeGale however was a class above Smith and by round three had found his range. The third did however allow DeGale to see what happens when you get overconfident against decent opposition, as ‘Chunky’ was caught with a cracking combination to the head just seconds after backing Smith up against the ropes. Smith, however, seemed more intent on stopping DeGale from getting into his stride then he he was on imposing his own will on the fight.

While Smith was concentrating on smothering and holding, DeGale was slipping in, firing home combinations and outworking the champion. A clash of heads in the fourth opened up a cut to Smith’s right eye which seemed to wake the Liverpool lad up. He was suddenly chasing DeGale and looking to dictate the action. However, ‘Chunky’s’ skill was apparent as he outmaneuvered Smith time and again.  Rounds seven and eight were dominated by the Olympic champion who caught Smith with some terrific shots. Another unanswered barrage in the ninth was all referee Howard Foster needed to see and he halted proceedings awarding DeGale the fight by TKO. Without a doubt DeGale proved all of his doubters wrong and showed the boxing world where all his confidence and charisma comes from.

Nathan Cleverly Disappoints but gets a Title Shot

Nathan Cleverly was disappointing, yet managed to force through a frustrating fight and earned a hard fought, unanimous points decision, against Frenchman, Nadjib Mohammedi. The victory means Cleverly is now the WBO’s light heavyweight mandatory challenger and will almost certainly meet the winner of January’s unification bout between Jurgen Braehmer and Beibut Shumenov.

Mohammadi was a late replacement for Romanian, Alejandro Laktos, and after training hard to face the static, aging, Laktos, Cleverly seemed stunned against the awkward and rather mobile Mohammadi. Despite taking the opening rounds, mainly through landing his jab, Cleverly was failing to impose himself and getting obviously angry and annoyed. Showing quite a worrying immature attitude, Cleverly’s footwork and positioning both left him as he failed to pin down the elusive Mohammadi.

For his part, Mohammadi stayed out of range and came with an obvious game plan to frustrate the Welshman. The fifth round really came alive after Cleverly missed with a wild left and Mohammadi counterpunched perfectly. Fearing he was losing the bout Cleverly came out for the sixth and completely abandoned his usual style, opting to trade leather with the Frenchman.

This unsophisticated style didn’t suite Cleverly and allowed Mohammadi into the fight. Cleverly’s gum shield went flying as he was caught with a strong left hook followed by a mean combination. The seventh round was Mohammadi’s best as he rocked Cleverly, backing him up against the ropes. An angry Cleverly was also deducted a point for excessive use of the head as well as holding. A hard body shot in the eighth finally took the wind from Mohammadi’s sails and he never again regained the momentum of the sixth and seventh rounds. He did steam forward towards the end, feeling Cleverly was tiring, but lacked the impetus needed.

Possibly too much is expected of Cleverly, at just twenty-three he is already talked of as world class and needs more time to mature. He seemed to lack the skill and timing to get in close and must improve if he is to dominate the division as predicted. Cleverly certainly has time on his hands and following this fight will know exactly what and where he needs to improve.

Macklin Moves Close to Title

Matthew Macklin successfully defended his European middleweight title against Spaniard, Ruben Varon, but like Cleverly made hard work out of what should have been a straightforward bout. Rumors of a world title fight in the New Year are rife but Macklin fans must be worried. At times he looked slow and predictable and couldn’t stop Varon’s charge. He also really struggled with the Spaniard’s defense and seemed to lack both the brain and brawn to scythe him down.

The first few rounds went to the Birmingham man who, although not perfect, looked decent, and was slowly taking charge. But still Varon wouldn’t stop coming forward and Macklin couldn’t deal with the pressure.  A point deducted from Varon for low blows in the fifth was a much needed relief for Macklin as he finally began landing decent shots of his own. The last round, however, was hard to watch as Varon worked his way in range and let fly a series of hard hits. At the final bell Macklin was cut and bruised around the eyes and had obviously been in a tough fight. Varon has raised serious doubts over Macklin’s skill and desire and he needs to improve fast, if he is to thrive at the top end of a talented middleweight division. Following this showing, the likes of Sergio Martinez, Sebastian Sylvester, Felix Sturm and Dmitriy Pirog will all be confident of exploiting Macklin’s weaknesses should they find themselves up against him in the New Year.

Brook Dominates and is Looking to Big Names

Kell Brook was simply sensational as he steamrolled through the hapless Ghanaian, Phillip Kotey, stretching his unbeaten run to twenty three. Brook took two strong body shots before exploding with a clean and crisp combination which had Kotey struggling against the ropes. A short right hand hurt the Ghanaian, and not giving his man a second to recover, Brook leaped forward with a left which put Kotey down for the count of eight. He rose and survived the round, but only just. Breathing heavily Kotey was slow in getting off his stool for the second while an eager Brook went straight back to work. A big right hand sent the Ghanaian stumbling backwards as he relied on the ropes to stay on his feet. The damage, however, had already been done and just a few seconds later, after a couple of sharp jabs landed, Kotey again fell against the ropes and this time Spanish referee, Manuel Palomo, had seen enough and stepped in.

Ranked number one by the WBO means Brook should be in line for a crack at the belt held by none other than Manny Pacquiao, but recently rumors seem more centered around unbeaten prospect Mike Jones than ‘Pac-Man’. Whichever route taken, Brook does look sharp, but needs more and better fights to prepare himself. His defense still looks ungainly and against top class operators such as Pacquiao and Jones he would surely be exposed.

Bellew Survives Two Knockdowns to Score a Stoppage Win

Possibly the best fight of the night came as Liverpool’s Tony Bellew defended his Commonwealth light heavyweight strap against Ovil ‘The Upsetter’ McKenzie. The rawness of Bellew was again highlighted as McKenzie twice sent the tough Scouser to the canvass. Yet Bellew rallied and stopped McKenzie with a series of sizzling shots in the ninth.

The bout began with a bang as ‘The Upsetter’ lived up to his nickname. A booming right not only knocked Bellew down but obviously hurt him. In the second, just as it seemed Bellew had recovered, another big right hand connected and the Commonwealth champion was again down. Bellew was really struggling and if McKenzie had just a little more speed and skill, a new champion would have been crowned. Sensing a big upset the crowd raised the roof for their Liverpool hero and he reacted, charging forward landing hurtful power punches at every opportunity. A clash of heads in the fifth left Bellew bleeding but this again seemed to fire him up.

Finally in the eighth, Bellew threw a left with real venom. McKenzie went down and despite rising, looked visibly shaken. Experienced referee Phil Edwards was happy to allow the contest to continue and Bellew wasted no time in again steaming forward, instantly landing a right which was followed by a clash of heads, bouncing McKenzie back against the ropes. Fearing the worst, Edwards instantly jumped in to end the bout to the anger of McKenzie and his corner. Although exciting, Bellew will himself know he was rather average and against better opposition may well have lost. There are signs of improvement however, and it was especially pleasing to see the cool and calm way he handled being hurt in the opening rounds, and cleared his head before coming back fighting.

Ringside was Liverpool light heavyweight legend John Conteh, who was the WBC champion between 1974 and 1978. Comparisons have been made between him and Bellew, but the Commonwealth champion must keep working hard and acknowledging his weaknesses if he is to follow in his heroes footsteps.