In his first fight for over a year, Wilson (11st 5lbs 12oz) started on the front foot positively, and a close first got underway with Ryder (11st 5lbs 9oz) finding some rhythm towards the end of the session. Wilson wanted a close range battle and was dogged in his attacks, but Ryder kept things under control without racing ahead.
Wilson appeared to get the better of Ryder in early exchanges on the ropes, and threw some wild uncultured swings that were avoided, but the former Central Area champion had success at the end of the round with a right hand just before the bell.
Ryder was more accurate in his work, but Wilson was by no means overawed as yet and stuck to his task. There were periods where he beat Ryder to the punch in the fifth and made the round close. Ryder was cut above left eye, which must have made Wilson fancy it more in the sixth as he bettered his previous effort, turning it into a close range affair and again landing with his right.
Ryder outboxed Wilson in the seventh, staying away from said right hand and landing accurate jabs from range. In the eighth, he hurt Wilson with hooks to the body, which drew another dogged response and led to more close range trading in which Wilson again held his own.
Ryder stepped up his efforts in the ninth, and a left from a combination had Wilson wobbled and in trouble, forcing him to take a knee. After referee Mike Alexander finished his eight count, he waved it off at 1.09. A few thought this to be early, but another shot would have put him down, and I thought the ref got it spot on. They usually do. Without too much protest from Wilson, who was game in his first fight for over a year, but undone by a ferocious burst from the ‘Gorilla’.
Ryder marches towards another crack at the British title, and we could see him challenge for the belt again this year. Billy Joe Saunders needs one more defence to win the Lonsdale outright, but he’s rumoured to be boxing Italian Emanuele Blandamura for the full weight European title on May 17 after Frank Warren, Saunders’ promoter, won the purse bids. There’s also been talk of Saunders moving up to super middle, but I cant fathom this.
Trowbridge’s Nick Blackwell, who outpointed game Brummie Terry Carruthers tonight over ten rounds in Bath, is next in line for a crack at the British. His first attempt came too early – in his ninth fight against a rampant Martin Murray. Blackwell also gave Saunders problems late on in his second attempt eighteen months later. The Board decided to postpone purse bids for Saunders v Blackwell II, and will consider the title at their next meeting.
The English champion, Bristol’s Danny Butler, was also a winner in Bath by knocking down Leicester’s Martin Conception twice and forcing his retirement before the fifth. Like Blackwell, Butler certainly hasn’t had things easy in his career, and is fully deserving of another British title opportunity – hopefully this time with a bit more notice. Back in 2009, he had just two days to get ready for Darren Barker, and gave a fair account of himself before being stopped in the seventh.
Also on the Prizefighter Welterweights IV bill (full report to follow), cruiserweight Wadi Camacho (14st 7lbs 2oz) got a few rounds in against Croatian Toni Visic (14st 1lb) in preparation for his grudge match with Scot Stephen Simmons, which could happen on the Froch v Groves II undercard at Wembley.
Camacho towered above the Croatian, who was busy with counters and kept the Canning Town based cruiser on his toes while he llept Visic in his place and looked to unload.
Camacho could do with being busier in the ring – it was lack of industry that cost him in his British title eliminator with Romford’s Tony Conquest back in October, but as was inevitable in this contest, Visic sank to his knees for a count at the end of the third, even though it looked like he did this to avoid a shot rather than from being caught by one.
Overhead rights from Visic kept Camacho focused until the next time the Croatian was put under pressure taking shots in the corner, Marcus McDonnell waved it off – 1.04 into the fourth. Camacho’s warm up for the grudge match with Scot Stephen Simmons went according to plan. The pair’s mildly amusing Twitter spat, in which themselves and their followers continue to bombard each other with prank photographs often depicting alternative sexual imagery, is worth a look, as is the press conference for their planned first meeting.
One of Matchroom’s more recent acquisitions, Carshalton light welter ‘Pretty’ Ricky Boylan (10st 2lbs) was in action over six threes against Poland’s Krzysztof Szot (10st 3lbs), a familiar import who plies his trade mostly in the UK these days without getting stopped.
Szot offered little resistance to Boylan’s pressure in the opener. The Carshalton fighter did pretty much as he wanted. After he slipped and touched down in the second, Boylan’s concentration dipped a little, and Szot got his first successful shots in.
Boylan had a brief spell playing rope-a-dope in the third, and with Szot on the front foot, he managed to find Boylan’s chin on occasion with his jab, but not enough to take the round. The Pole started the fourth session full of confidence, switching his feet and dancing around the outside of the ring, but by the end of the round Boylan was again in full control.
Szot was cute with accurate counters, and the final session saw him have some early success, but throughout the contest he didn’t trouble Boylan, who was fairly fluent. Power could be an issue. Marcus McDonnell scores 60-54 for Boylan. BoxRec News had it 60-58, with the third and fourth sessions even. Southern Area champion Boylan moves to 11-0.