Briton Josh Kelly was pressured to dig deep to retain his IBF light-middleweight world title, surviving a spirited late comeback from Belfast’s Caoimhin Agyarko to win a slender factors determination in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Kelly regarded in full management till the complexion of the competition modified when he acquired a deserved sixth-round level deduction for repeated punches to the again of the top.
The 31-year-old was then bloodied by cuts throughout his face and a gash on his nostril as Agyarko grew in confidence and started to land with rising success.
However Kelly stood agency via the championship rounds to safe victory, with the judges scoring the competition 114-113, 115-112 and 115-112.
“That was a messy and arduous combat. I did not get cuts from punches like this, it comes from heads and elbows. That is what it seems like if you’ve obtained tight pores and skin,” Kelly stated.
“I knew he [Agyarko] was go to be difficult and awkward. [He had] an excellent sport plan. He tried to make it an excellent boxing match. I needed to present a special facet to me on the finish and that’s what a champions does.”
Combating on the undercard of Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight comeback in opposition to Kristian Prenga, Sunderland’s Kelly claimed his twenty first skilled victory.
Agyarko, 29, had hoped to change into Eire’s first black world champion. As a substitute, regardless of a courageous second-half comeback, he suffered the primary defeat of his skilled profession in his thirtieth contest.
Additionally on the cardboard, WBO super-middleweight champion Hamzah Sheeraz laboured to an underwhelming factors win over Simon Zachenhuber.
The 27-year-old Briton was removed from his greatest and struggled to search out his rhythm however was awarded a majority determination as he prolonged his file to 24 wins and one defeat.
