At the First Direct Arena, Yorkshire, UK, Josh Warrington bettered Japanese visitor Hisashi Amagasa in an action-packed Featherweight 12-rounder. Final scorecards came in at 117-120, 118-110 and (are you freakin’ serious?) 120-107. Going in, many boxing scribes viewed this as a risky encounter for Warrington, and the Leeds warrior passed the acid test with flying colors. Here at BB we called it 117-111.
Warrington vs Amagasa wasn’t a lopsided meeting, but this was Warrington’s night for sure. The unbeaten rising contender, who stood three inches shorter than 5′ 10″ skyscraper Amagasa, put his zipping handspeed and mobility to very good use. Warrington came flying out the gate as usual, and was keen to bully the taller, more powerful man. Amagasa didn’t make much of a dent on BB’s scorecard for the first 5 stanzas, but occasional clubbing shots did seem to have earned Warrington’s respect by the 6th round.
The action became a lot more competitive during the next three rounds, with Amagasa settling in and planting himself back in the fight, enjoying a good 7th in particular. Warrington cranked up the pressure in the 10th and 11th rounds, managing to stun Amagasa with several lightning hooks. Amagasa road out the storm and finished strong in a relentless back-and-forth 12th, however, which made Warrington’s breakout-fight all the more memorable.
Josh Warrington now moves on to bigger fights and platforms – perhaps a domestic blockbuster with rival IBF champ and No.4-Ranked Lee Selby – improving to 23 wins, no defeats, 4 knockouts. Hisashi Amagasa now makes his way back to Japan with 30 wins, 6 defeats, 2 draws, 20 knockouts.
Warrington vs Amagasa Undercard
Stuart Hall vs Rodrigo Guerrero
Warrington vs Amagasa had a rather tasty appetizer in the relentless back-and-forth war that was Hall vs Guerrero. The verdict may divide opinion in some quarters, but this solid Bantamweight 12-rounder shouldn’t be considered controversial. Stuart Hall emerged victorious via Unanimous Decision on scores of 117-111 thrice, which mirrored Boxing Base’s own 117-111 tally.
Rodrigo Guerrero was an extremely tough customer tonight, never stopped plugging away, and enjoyed much success to the body. The Mexican visitor was busy. But, in this writer’s humble opinion, Hall deservedly got the nod. The 36-year-old connected with the cleaner, sharper blows, did the more damage, and managed to look in control while under fire thanks to a tight, compact defense. With this IBF Bantamweight Title Eliminator in the bag, Hall now moves into position to reclaim his old strap.
Hall now rises to 20 wins, 4 defeats, 2 draws, 7 knockouts, while Guerrero falls to 24 wins, 6 defeats, 1 draw, 16 knockouts.
Martin J Ward vs Ruddy Encarnacion
Unbeaten upstart Martin J Ward bagged a shutout win (on Boxing Base’s card, anyway) over a well-travelled Ruddy Encarnacion. Ward dominated the Junior Lightweight 10-rounder as expected, with his youth, speed and superior toolset trumping everything Encarnacion had to offer. Final scorecards came in at 99-91, 100-91 and 98-92. Here at BB we had no problems tallying the lopsided action at 100-90.
Ward now improves to 14 wins, no defeats, 2 draws, 7 knockouts, while Encarnacion drops to 36 wins, 25 defeats, 4 draws, 18 knockouts.
Give us your take on Warrington vs Amagasa in the comments, plus the rest of the Matchroom Boxing card.
