EVEN-STEVEN!
Dillon and Khoumari battle to draw
THE English super-featherweight title stays vacant after Londoners Liam Dillon and Youssef Khoumari battled to a hard-fought draw at York Hall.
After 10 good-value rounds, judge Robert Williams had Khoumari ahead by 96-95; Ian John-lewis scored it 97-94 Dillon; and Mark Lyson’s 95-95 tally meant it finished all square. Victor Loughlin refereed.
I thought Dillon had done enough, but I was sitting next to Mr John-lewis (though I didn’t see any of his slips). This has always been the argument in favour of a scoring referee, rather than ringside judges – the former moves around the ring, seeing things from different angles, while the latter watches from one fixed position. Both Dillon and Khoumari preserve their unbeaten records (Dillon was 9-0 going in, Khoumari 10-1), and there surely must be a return.
Dillon made the early running, and in each of the first three rounds Khoumari was backed up against the ropes. He tried to counter but was being outworked.
From the seventh Khoumari started to get through more and he appeared to win the 10th clearly, repeatedly finding the target. Dillon finished with a swelling below the left eye, Khoumari swellings beneath both.
The second vacant English title bout on this Goodwin Promotions bill – Linus Udofia (Luton) v Tyler Denny (Rowley Regis) at middleweight – also saw the judges divided, Ian John-lewis’ 95-95 tally being overruled by Victor Loughlin and Robert Williams, who scored for Udofia by 97-94 and 96-94 respectively.
Again, I agreed with Mr John-lewis that it was very close. Styles clashed – Udofia orthodox, Denny southpaw, and there was a lot of tangling – especially in the early rounds. Denny provided an awkward target and looked to move and score.
Udofia looked to pressure and Denny was forced to cover up at times – but he countered when he could, and a left hook knocked Udofia’s head back in the seventh. Denny was backing off in the eighth, and under pressure on the ropes.
Udofia had a swelling under the right eye, Denny one below the left. It was Denny’s second loss in 16 outings, and the other also came in a vacant English middleweight title bid – an eighthround injury loss to Reece Cartwright in September last year.
Botswana-born Ekow Essuman
retained his English welterweight title, flooring and halting brave Curtis Felix Jnr (Milton Keynes) in the eighth of a scheduled 10.
Bleeding from the nose, Felix crashed down, face-first – apparently from an accumulation of blows, and sheer fatigue, rather than one conclusive shot. He was up at about ‘five’ but his seconds entered the ring and referee Williams signalled the end after 2-14.
The pattern was set in the first – Essuman (Nottingham) quickly found the range and took the fight to his challenger. Felix looked to counter but was forced to grab when Essuman opened up in the second.
Felix tried to keep his distance, and be elusive, but was shaken by a right in the seventh and held on. A right to the head floored Felix by the ropes, and the count continued after the bell – I noted: “F little left?” and that’s how it proved.
Felix hit back gamely in the eighth but Essuman came back – and finally Felix went down, completely spent.
Londoner Ryan “The Lion” Walker
won the vacant Southern Area superbantam title, outscoring Piotr Mirga
(Poland-born, based in Westcliff-onsea) over 10 rounds, referee John-lewis scoring 97-94.
Mirga made use of his height and reach advantages in the first two, moving and countering, but from the third Walker started coming inside and landing, sometimes leaping in with rights to the head. Now Mirga’s counters seemed to be falling short – and when he started coming forward in the eighth he was picked off.
Both worked hard in the last two, and Walker finished with a bump under the right eye. Both threw their arms up confidently at the bell, but Mirga can come again. It was his first loss after five wins, and he showed no signs of flagging in going beyond six for the first time.
For his part, Walker won this title at the second attempt – his sole loss coming against Michael Ramabeletsa here just over a year previously, for the vacant belt.
THE VERDICT Dillon and Khoumari combine to entertain the audience. It’s a fight that must go on again.