Anthony David Benavidez vs. Anthony Dwayne Duncan Yarde & Brian Norman Jr. vs. Devin Haney RBR.

Ref was only going to enforce rules to support Haney.

 

That version of Yarde was half the version that fought Beterbiev. Yarde was not throwing his right, even though he was getting tagged. Makes no sense unless he is shot.

 

Opetaia's jaw was broken in the first fight so he was hanging on near the end. Second fight, Opetaia dominated and then gassed. In both fights he dominated most of the first half of the fight or more. As I said, Breidis is elite, so regardless of how he won, they are good wins.

He will destroy Zurdo, which is why this duck, stopping unification, is so blatant.

 

I agree Zurdo is ducking but Opateia is not some mega killer that people think he is.

If he faced someone like Itauma for instance, I think he would get humbled REAL quick.

 

Benavidez will do better vs Beterbiev than Yarde did.

 

It makes sense if you understand boxing more than a casual level. He was hesitating for the same reason Gvozdyk and Morrell were. Scared of what was going to come back at them. David is very good at countering and once he starts to punch you might face an avalanche of them, which is why Yarde was hesitating.

Beterbiev is a beast but he is more straightforward than Benavidez plus does not have his range and hand speed, so it's easier to get off against him.

 

I enjoyed all four main card fights. They lived up to the predictions, but there was a lot of good boxing. Mason - Noakes was really entertaining, and I hope there's a rematch.

 

Exactly why it's on norman to do something about it. He just gave the title to haney.

 

This content is protected

 

Loved the night, all favourites did win but in different fashions, some fights as expected, others with unexpected one sided performance. My special mention will go to the Mason vs Noakes fight, I had really hoped Noakes would come through a sharp start by Mason and really show what he is capable of, and provide the test I always felt he could to the young contender. Thankfully he did that, it was an excellent gritty display by both fighters, with swings of momentum but ultimately Mason's quality was able to keep in control for the majority. This was an absolutely perfect fight for Mason at this stage though, I'd also say for Noakes, and I really hope the latter is rewarded with further opportunities, he is more than capable to compete at the highest level, the champions are elite so it would need the right path to get beyond that final step. Build his confidence again, his name will be growing, so recognisable opponents, fights at home to increase his audience at home and i'd like to think at the latest at the end of next year he is in a big fight again.

I'll add for Mason, in reference to the rest of the division. It was a beautifully matched fight for the vacant belt, but now Mason is a champion and deservedly so, it's likely to be all top contenders from here on out. There were real tough patches that Mason come through in that fight which shows his metal, a few body shots that caught his attention and he was certainly capable of being hit by Noakes despite his speed, to his credit Mason perhaps had the edge on body shots and power that really froze Noakes at times, it goes without saying how well he did to come through and not hit the canvas at least. Ultimately I'm just mindful at this stage that it doesn't quite feel the right time for Mason to rush to unifications with some of the seasoned champions, and big punchers, notably Tank if he does make a return. I'd like to see a couple of 70/30 defences for him, before also looking at the end of the year for a more even match up, I'm not sure that will be the case with the current climate. The main thing for me is activity at this young age, both deserve a rest though, there's also no argument for me in seeing this fight re ran down the line, both can improve and we'll see if the gap is still as close or perhaps Mason has further advanced.

Scorecard below:

Round 1 - 10-9 Mason
Round 2 - 10-9 Mason
Round 3 - 10-9 Mason
Round 4 - 10-9 Noakes
Round 5 - 10-9 Noakes
Round 6 - 10-9 Mason
Round 7 - 10-9 Noakes
Round 8 - 10-9 Mason
Round 9 - 10-9 Mason
Round 10 - 10-9 Mason
Round 11 - 10-9 Noakes
Round 12 - 10-9 Mason

116-112 Mason

 

Thought I would split up more thoughts on the remainder of the card, despite also catching my attention they just had too much to do to take the shine off the opener of the 4 main fights.

Bam - Absolutely beautiful to watch, going in this was one I didn't get a look at the opponent and could only gauge off the record. I Expected based off that for Martinez to provide a test for Bam, this was not the case, and although the rounds got very repetitive, I was enjoying the Bull/Matador aspect with a bit more spite from Bam and to then seal it with the beautiful finish really showed that high level he is at and that star quality. I do worry that size will be the factor that beats this magic fighter, for now I'm enjoying this surge through the division.

Benavidez vs Yarde - If I would have wrote a prediction for this fight it would have been Benavidez between 6-9, this was everything I expected, alike Bam, he is one of my favourites to watch in boxing for different reasons, I'm a little bit disappointed in the move to Cruiserweight but I get it, and I'll be backing him against Ramirez.

Haney vs Norman - I'm pleased for Haney, perhaps he was the favourite but this was one where enough people were saying that Norman could really take advantage of that PTSD, Haney stepped up, put Norman in his place earlier, had him cautious after the knockdown, i expected a lot more from Norman. There were a couple of times Haney loaded up with a bit of an awkward looking left hook which I thought could be dangerous for him, as the fight progressed, a more safety first aspect was put forward and he got smart, he held, he moved, but he looked comfortable pretty much all the way through. I won't go by the basis that the entire fight he was fighting scared, the knockdown helped, but he did go for the finish and he neutralised a big puncher and made him look very ordinary. You can't deny it's been an impressive career, and out of the new age 'Four Kings' he has made the most moves and has the more impressive career on paper, there is still work and big fights to come. Credit to him. Scorecard below:

Round 1 - 10-9 Norman
Round 2 - 10-8 Haney
Round 3 - 10-9 Haney
Round 4 - 10-9 Haney
Round 5 - 10-9 Haney
Round 6 - 10-9 Haney
Round 7 - 10-9 Haney
Round 8 - 10-9 Norman
Round 9 - 10-9 Norman
Round 10 - 10-9 Haney
Round 11 - 10-9 Haney
Round 12 - 10-9 Haney

117-110 Haney