FOUR STILL STANDING
The race for the Golden Contract intensifies inside the York Hall
MTK GLOBAL launched the quarterfinals of their super-lightweight Golden Contract tournament at York Hall, with two early finishes and two distance bouts.
Frenchman Mohamed Mimoune floored and halted Northern Area champion Darren Surtees in the fifth, while Hackney’s Ohara Davies forced Hawaiian Logan Yoon to retire after seven rounds.
Southpaw Mimoune, who beat Sam Eggington for the European welterweight title in Manchester in October 2017, showed a tight defence and was hard to tag, though Surtees (Thornley) landed a decent right to the head in the first, and dropped his man in the second with the same shot. It was a fair start from Surtees – 12-0 going in – but the knockdown seemed to galvanise Mimoune, and the Frenchman took control from the third.
Mimoune was pressing forward, landing with both hands, and though Surtees tried to stand off and counter in the fourth he could not stop Mimoune getting to him. Mimoune opened up to have Surtees ducking on the ropes, trying to fire back. Surtees kept hitting back in the fifth. Mimoune was warned for using the elbow, but was now really picking his punches – and finally a right to the head put Surtees down. He made it up, but referee Kieran Mccann completed the eight-count and waved it off after 2-21.
Southpaw Yoon was also unbeaten going in (16-0), but couldn’t handle Davies’ non-stop pressure. Davies started getting through with rights to the head in the third, and Yoon was cut on the bridge of the nose. Yoon tried to attack in the fourth, but a left-right to the head had him staggering back. By the fifth Davies was beating him to the punch, and though Yoon tried to take the initiative in the sixth he was getting caught as he came in.
By the start of the seventh Yoon’s face was looking lumpy, and though he tried he was being outworked. Davies landed with both hands, and the round ended with Yoon taking stick on the ropes. He sank wearily onto his stool, and his corner told referee Ian John-lewis they were retiring him.
The other two quarter-finals went the full 10 rounds, with Belfast’s Tyrone Mckenna clearly outscoring Romford’s Mikey Sakyi. Marcus Mcdonnell and Lee Every both had it 100-90, while Mr Mccann scored it 99-91. Mr John-lewis refereed. Southpaw Mckenna won as clearly as the scores suggested, making full use of his reach advantage, but Sakyi hit back when he could and was always trying to make a fight of it. Sakyi bled from the nose and was marked on the right cheek.
Tottenham’s Jeff Ofori
and Kieran Gething
(Abergavenny) battled to a 10-round draw, scores being 96-95 for Gething (John-lewis), 96-94 Ofori (Mcdonnell), and 95-95 (Every). Under tournament rules, referee Mccann had also been scoring – and, although his score wasn’t given, it was announced that he had Ofori in front and so the Londoner progresses to the semi-finals.
I thought Ofori had done enough. He pressed forward constantly, and although Gething looked to counter I felt Ofori was generally outworking him. Gething was warned for headwork in the seventh and ninth, and in the ninth again for use of the elbow.
An all-overseas curtain-raiser saw
BY THE START OF THE SEVENTH YOON’S FACE WAS LOOKING LUMPY
Argentina’s Mauro Maximiliano Godoy drop Ghana’s Tackie Annan twice and score a fifth-round stoppage. It was scheduled for six. Annan pressed forward but was caught as he came in. Godoy seemed to go up a gear in the fourth, and in the fifth a left hook to the body sent Tackie down for eight. Godoy went back on the attack – he was warned for a low left, and Tackie was given time to recover, but Godoy poured it on with both hands and finally a left hook put Annan down by the ropes.
He was up at eight but referee Every waved it off after 2-37.
Two southpaws scored 40-36 wins in bouts handled by Mr Every.
Martin Mcdonagh
(Sheerness) outscored the bullish Josh Thorne
(Bexleyheath). Mcdonagh kept on the move and landed as Thorne came in. Meanwhile, Londoner Elliot Whale
made a winning pro start, dominating Spain-based Nicaraguan Eligio Palacios
from the outset. Palacios bled from the nose and had a swelling below the right eye.
THE VERDICT Two cracking semifinals are in store for the Golden Contract super-lightweights.