Brook, Rees, Fury, Haskins Win Big British Fights

It was a big night of action in the UK on Saturday evening with important bouts taking place on two good fight cards in Sheffield and Clevedon.

It was the Kell Brook show at Sheffield’s Motorpoint Arena but the much-hyped welter starlet had to come through a very difficult fight against American spoiler Carson Jones, who very nearly clipped the wings of perhaps England’s best bet to capture another world title.

Brook started well against the visitor, outboxing Jones early but the Ingle camp stylist was forced to expend a great deal of energy by the oncoming American.

The pressure strategy of Jones began to pay dividends by the middle frames as Brook could no longer stick and move, but was forced to fight.

Jones made the most of his new found proximity to Brook by driving hurtful shots into the Englishman’s midsection and a few upstairs while shaking off anything Brook managed to land in return.

Jones hit paydirt in the eighth by nailing Brook with a flush right hand, afflicting Brook with a bloody and likely broken nose

Brook regained his earlier form in the ninth but the control was short-lived as Jones shook the local icon in the tenth. The eleventh was a pitched battle before Jones nearly broke the bout wide open in the 12th, clearly hurting Brook in the contest’s final seconds.

When the scores were read, Brook escaped with a 114-114, 115-113, 116-113 majority decision, retaining his undefeated record at 28-0 (18), while Jones sees an eight bout win streak evaporate, dropping to 34-9-2 (24).

Brook retains his IBF International strap and wins that organization’s title eliminator, putting him in line to face the winner of the upcoming clash between IBF champion Randall Bailey and former IBF/WBC light welter king Devon Alexander.

There was a cracking fight on the undercard at lightweight as European champ Gavin Rees, 37-1-1 (18), and British champ Derry Mathews, 30-7-1 (16), went at it once again after producing a four round technical draw last October.

Mathews started well, using his height and reach advantage to beat Rees to the punch for the first two rounds but was rattled in the third when he was cut above the eye and his rival closed distance and went to work on the inside.

Former WBA light welter boss Rees was the sharper of the two from that point on, dishing out more than Mathews could return until the Liverpool veteran was felled by a Rees combination at 1:27 of the ninth.

There was another rematch on the bill, with Kerry Hope, 17-4 (1), looking to reproduce his shocking European middleweight title winning upset of Grzegorz Proksa, 28-1 (21), of four month ago.

However, it was not on the cards on Saturday as Hope’s high work-rate contended with Proksa’s skill advantage for the first six rounds in this battle of southpaws before the stylish Pole started to hammer clean blows home in the seventh.

Hope’s ambitions were sharply cut off late in the eighth when the Welshman was downed and judged unable to continue after beating the count at 2:59 of the frame.

At the Hand Arena in Clevedon, heavyweight Tyson Fury, 19-0 (14), showed good form in facing off the challenge posed by American hard man Vinny Maddalone, 35-8 (26).

Former British, Commonwealth, English and Irish titlist Fury towered over the 38 year old New Yorker, keeping Maddalone at a distance with the jab and landing hard rights or uppercuts whenever the tourist closed distance.

Maddalone was unable to get much of anything on the 6’9 Fury, flailing with an overhand right that never seemed to land while Fury started to sap the ambition from the American with a series of big rights to the body.

By the fourth, Maddalone was cut below the left eye and getting rocked when Fury stepped up the pace, finishing the round on sheer guts.

The fifth saw Fury dish out punishment until referee Ian John-Lewis stepped in to stop the one-way traffic at the 1:35 mark.

The Hand Arena also saw a good contest at bantam as ex-British and Commonwealth super fly king Lee Haskins, 26-2 (11), captured the vacant European crown against former British bantam boss Stuart Hall, 12-2-1 (7).

The flashy Bristol southpaw was too tricky for Darlington grafter Hall, who lost a unanimous decision 118-109, 118-110, 117-111.