Ricky Burns vs Josh King
At the Echo Arena, Liverpool, Burns vs King never really caught fire. But Ricky Burns nonetheless continued his comeback with another victory. Josh King was oversized and overmatched, but did come to fight at least. The Australian had his moments, but eventually began to wilt under Burn’s body assaults down the stretch.
Burns now builds to 39 wins, 5 defeats, 1 draw, with 13 knockouts, while King returns home with 20 wins, 4 defeats and 9 knockouts.
From the opening bell, the action was fairly scrappy, fought mostly at close range. Both men lost points in the Lightweight 12-rounder, one from King in the 4th after illegal head use, and Burns in the 10th for the same infringement.
Can Burns recapture world title glory at 135 pounds? It would seem unlikely following a performance like this. As always, I’m happy to be proved wrong, Rickster.
Scott Cardle vs Sean Dodd
In a gripping opener to Sky Sports’ coverage, Scott Cardle came from behind on the cards to stop Sean Dodd in the 12th round. With the win, Cardle becomes the new British Lightweight champion, more importantly keeping his unbeaten resume intact. Cardle improves to 19 wins, 6 knockouts, while Dodd falls to 10 wins, 2 defeat, 2 knockouts.
Whether the fight was stopped prematurely will divide opinion. But one thing the majority of boxing fans can agree on is that Dodd was ahead on the cards when the referee stepped in. Boxing Base had Dodd well ahead at 108-101. Some rounds were close, and Cardle was always in the fight, but it was Dodd’s educated work and accurate shots down the pipe that shone through.
Considering Dodd almost pulled off the upset here, the ’13 fight novice’ deserves a lot of credit. Cardle pulled it out the bag with a minute to go, but he seriously needs to go back to the drawing board. His near non-existent defense cost him dearly tonight, and against a harder-hitter, he may not be so lucky. I’ve a feeling we’ll see this pair in a rematch in early 2016.
Give us your take on the Smith vs Fielding undercard in the comments.
