SHOWS in the second city are as plentiful as they have ever been at the moment, with many others already scheduled, and barely a month passes without the Arena hosting an event. It was a quick fairly quick return then for the travelling army of Nathan Heaney supporters who, having sung loudly and often from early in the evening, were once more left celebrating after their hero secured another inside the distance victory. Top of the bill pitched classy Woodville super-middleweight Zach Parker in against Hattersley’s Marcus Morrison in another scheduled 10. Parker secured a fifth successive inside the distance victory, body shots proving the key and dropping Morrison three times before Watford referee Bob Williams decided enough was enough, nine seconds shy of the end of the fourth.
Twice in the second session, punishing rights to the body floored Marcus and while Zach eased off a little and had a look in the next. The end wasn’t far, another hammer of a right downstairs dropping Marcus once more and the follow-up onslaught was all the reason third man Williams needed to stop it.
Truth told, Morrison is really a middleweight so there may well be things to chase in that direction, for Zach though it seems there are plenty more big nights ahead at 168.
And so to Heaney, who was an inside the distance winner once more. His outgunned opponent Bosnian Sladan Janjanin succumbing after being sent to his knees by a right that almost cut him in half late in the seventh.
Janjanin, counted in the third after a right that he complained was to the back of the head, and with his nose bloodied, was way behind on the cards. He had some early success but, as the bout drew on, was increasingly up against it. He’d had enough, he shook his head at referee Michael Alexander early in the count and the Doncaster official waved it off with 12 seconds of the seventh still to go.
Battersea’s former British champion Denzel Bentley proved too much for come-backing West Bromwich operator Sam Evans and needed less than three rounds to bank a 15th career victory.
Mixing it up nicely behind the jab and working at a brisk pace Denzel quickly took the initiative. A spell of decent work from Evans towards the close of the second proving too little and too late to narrow the already widening gap and when, after dominating the early part of the third, Bentley followed in a right uppercut with a prolonged blitz, referee Kevin Parker was right to intervene with 29 seconds of the third remaining as Sam was sent sprawling.
Eight-round successes went the way of unbeaten pair Ryan Garner and Eithan James. Northampton’s James taking every round for Chris Dean in a bout against Devizes puncher Stu Greener who kept it competitive, while Southampton’s Garner was adjudged a 79-74 winner by Mr Parker over Angola-born Pedro Manuel Gomes, who having looked like he might just fold after picking up some damage to the left eye in the third, dug deep and made it through to the finish, giving Ryan a good few rounds in the process.
Dubliner William Hayden scored a 58-56 win over experienced Lee Connelly, who despite being outboxed and forced onto the back foot in the early stages rallied sufficiently enough down the straight to narrow the gap on Mr Dean’s card.
Telford pair Macauley Owen and Raheem Muhammad both picked-up 40-36 victories.
One-fight novice Owen defeated Britain-based Romanian Constantin Radoi without ever really having to go through the gears in a bout overseen by Solihull referee Dean. First-timer Muhammad bested Birmingham’s Reiss Taylor who, already not the tallest, crouches really low with a wide-legged stance, so proves somewhat elusive. That proved the case for the most part, the bout only really coming to life in the closing moments when having tagged Reiss off balance a little tear-up ensued.
Liverpudlian Andrew Cain, with victory in sight, didn’t have to box the sixth and final round of his contest against Mexican Uriel Lopez, who with his right eye damaged and increasingly swollen shut following an accidental elbow mid-way through the third, failed to pass the doctor’s inspection prior to the commencement of the last session. Time given was two seconds and as in the Muhammad–Taylor bout, the third man was Kevin Parker.
Dungarven’s Dylan Moran had got things underway in an all southpaw six-rounder at welterweight against Brierley Hill’s MJ Hall and the outcome was pretty much as expected. The Irishman, backing MJ up and bloodying his nose slightly along the way, taking every round for Mr Dean.
The Verdict Parker impresses again as he builds towards world class.