It wasn’t all plain sailing against a determined short-notice opponent, but light-heavyweight contender Lyndon Arthur finished stronger and scored a fantastic right-hand knockdown in the final seconds en route to a decision win over Boris Crighton in Bolton on Friday night.
Arthur finds himself in a battle, but prevails
- Lyndon Arthur scores third win in six months on regional scene after R4 KO loss by two-time world title challenger Anthony Yarde in Dec. 2021
- Arthur’s promoter, Kalle Sauerland, insists during post-fight interview that victory ensures the 31-year-old will still get IBO world title shot after original opponent, Braian Nahuel Suarez, failed a pre-fight medical
- Glasgow resident Crighton, a former sparring partner of the Mancunian, is a two-time GB amateur champion but was preparing for an Apr. 14 date in Scotland and fared admirably over ten rounds on a day’s notice
99-91, 98-92, 96-93: Lyndon Arthur bt. Boris Crighton via decision
The scorecards were lopsided, with the latter one closest to how things actually unfolded at Bolton’s Whites Hotel, as Arthur was forced to think and pick his spots against a determined opponent in Crighton – with nothing to lose on short notice.
Having blasted Joel McIntyre out in less than two full rounds on December 2, and picked apart Walter Gabriel Sequeira three months before that, you could excuse Arthur for being quietly confident about another stoppage victory in the build-up.
However while his original opponent spoke a big game about his future ambitions on the UK scene, the 31-year-old Argentine didn’t make it to the ring after failing a pre-fight medical and late-notice replacements carry serious risk.
Especially against someone you’re familiar with, haven’t trained for, and finds himself in a potential career-boosting position – the main event on free-to-air UK TV sounds like a spot many wish for.
“He was a completely different style to what I was training for, a good 10 rounds before a bigger fight. I’ll get back in the gym straight away, keep trying to progress. It’s great for me so I’m happy.” Arthur said afterwards.
Crighton landed a right hand that wobbled him in the third, and won most of the middle rounds. Importantly though, Arthur finished stronger in the final two rounds – absorbing some good shots along the way – before landing a well-executed counter right of his own, a punch many had been calling for him to throw throughout.
Picture source: Getty Images
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