HONOURS EVEN

Andy Whittle watches Baker forced to settle for a share in bloody fight

TRUTH told, Birmingham doesn’t do too badly when it comes to its venues hosting pro shows but this was the first time the smart Eastside Rooms had played host to the fight game. Errol Johnson’s BCB Promotions staged a seven-fight show that resulted in half a dozen victories and a single draw for the home boxers.

The draw came in a six overseen by Newark’s Kevin Parker who at the end of a gritty contest between local favourite Kane Baker and tough as old boots Spaniard Diego Valtierra turned in a card reading 57-57.

The busy visitor, 36, who gave it a good go, raised his arms at the finish thinking he’d done enough, an opinion shared by several at ringside, but tagged regularly to the body and by not so regular overhand rights he was forced to settle for a share.

Heavily tattooed Baker, who struggled to get his shots off at times as the Spaniard pressed, picked up a nick above the eye along the way whilst Valtierra suffered a cut to the scalp when heads clashed late in the penultimate session.

The evening’s only other sixround encounter saw Solihull referee Chris Dean award Brummie super-middleweight Troy Jones a 58-56 win over regular visitor

Pavol Garaj of Slovakia. Garaj enjoyed a couple of decent moments in the later stages, most notably in a see-saw penultimate round but by that stage the contest had moved beyond his reach.

Hereford debutant Gyvon Henry enjoyed his first paid outing, flooring Bolton’s Ben Thomas with a short right in the opener of another bout refereed by Mr Dean and ultimately triumphing 40-35 despite picking up a cut lip along the way.

The remaining four contests, including a marking time bout for Redditch’s Andrew Robinson, all finished 40-36 with referees Parker and Dean overseeing two bouts apiece.

THE VERDICT Easily accessible, the spacious Eastside Rooms may well prove a regular host.