On an eight-fight undercard preceding the much-anticipated heavyweight rematch, it felt fitting Moses Itauma wasted no time with a career-best victory in the night’s co-feature just days before he turns 20 after Serhii Bohachuk capped an unforgettable 2024 campaign with another all-action showing against a brave short-notice opponent, showing the difference in levels.
Itauma ices McKean inside a round
R1, 1:57 — Moses Itauma bt. Demsey McKean via KO, retains WBO Intercontinental and WBA International titles, wins Commonwealth silver
Well, so much for an acid test. The first round had barely begun and already, just like that, the overbearing music hit. How could it be over already?
Moses Itauma’s razor-sharp hands, that’s how. An overhand left caught Demsey McKean clean, before he flashed a right-left combination. The world-level opponent, this teenager’s first real challenge, and he’d barely stepped into the ring before looking outwardly to celebrate before grinning madly with his team.
If a cuffing left atop his head scrambled McKean’s senses, a beautiful overhand left sent him crumbling to the canvas. Turning 20 next week, the Ben Davison-trained talent still needs rounds but as has been the case over the past 12 months, matchmaking him is an exhausting assignment. So then, who’s next?
Bohachuk the bully as he stops short-notice opponent Davis
Timing! Bohachuk improves to 25-2 after winning this WBC light-middleweight final eliminator and is now set to box Sebastian Fundora vs. Errol Spence Jr winner in 2025 for full world honours.
It was all going so well for Ishmael Davis, but things sharply took a turn after his encouraging start in this, a second short-notice assignment on Riyadh Season cards in three months after going the distance against Josh Kelly on Sept. 21.
Davis was dropped in the final minute of round two, then cut in the third as Serhii Bohachuk typified exactly why his head trainer Manny Robles told me he’d be a breakthrough boxer everyone would know by the end of 2024 in January.
The Ukrainian couldn’t miss with the left hand, Davis having to work incredibly hard to match the former interim champion’s workrate, moving and punching wherever possible. Holding his feet in centre ring or with his back to the ropes would merely give the 24-2 pro a target to punch holes through.
Despite a better third, that’s exactly what happened and it wasn’t long before Davis’ corner had also seen enough against a world-level opponent now in his flow state.
They mercifully pulled him at the end of the fifth, having seen the Leeds man absorb damage aplenty in an avalanche of punishment, almost as if Bohachuk relished his opponent’s fast start and conjured more aggression that couldn’t be matched.
Fisher fades but survives Allen assault
It was brutal more than brilliant but an absorbing British heavyweight contest nonetheless, when David Allen’s pressure gave Johnny Fisher all sorts of problems from round five onwards en route to what should’ve been a ten-round upset victory.
Instead, the 12-year pro couldn’t mask his disbelief after hearing he’d suffered a split decision loss (95-94, 93-96, 95-94) and an immediate rematch appears the most likely course of action, likely headlining a Matchroom UK card in mid-2025 after Eddie Hearn’s favourite ticketseller was seriously chinchecked, his stock dropping in the process.
Having needed to bide his time carefully through four rounds, Allen refused to give Fisher any space and continued walking forwards onto shots where possible. The momentum shifted before the midway stage, Fisher’s durability and inexperience in deep waters coming to the fore under the bright lights.
Fisher appeared to switch off after hearing referee xxx’s instruction, allowing Allen to land a piercing left hook in the pocket Fisher didn’t see coming, leaving the favourite in serious danger and that’s how this continued for several rounds.
Allen now couldn’t miss with the uppercut, Fisher failing to protect himself sufficiently and leaving gaps by looking away from the target, his friend couldn’t believe these openings were readily available and persisted in a veteran’s showing, old-manning an unbeaten 12-0 prospect rather impressively.
Fisher fired where and when he could, but Allen was undeterred by this point and continued tagging him with looping shots, haymakers and stiff power punching against an opponent whose movement needed to be sharper.
A messy slugfest would always favour the seasoned underdog and so it proved in the second-half. Judging by their contrasting reactions at the bell, one looking resigned to defeat and the other slumping to the canvas half in celebration, half disbelief, the White Rhino is right to feel hard done by.
Early undercard results
A sloppy showdown unfolded for the WBC International featherweight strap, as Lee McGregor showed flashes of the skills many felt would propel him above showcase bouts like this and the determined Scotsman benefited from some rather frustrating scenes to earn a UD10 (96-92, 97-91 x 2) win over a typically rugged Isaac Lowe.
The latter was deducted two points in the latter stages after his mouthguard repeatedly fell out during a nippy clash punctuated by headbutts and weirdly timed sequences of showmanship between them.
Lowe landed better shots on the inside and there were plenty of gruelling exchanges up close, danger ever-present. Yet as time wore on, the tension dissipated and sequences became scruffy, McGregor receiving a stern warning from referee Lee Every after initiating a head clash which cut Lowe in the fifth.
He landed the round’s best punch with a peach of an uppercut to end the seventh after the sixth was overly physical without the third man in the ring deterring them from dirty boxing. McGregor matched Lowe’s intensity and soon, got his reward.
“I had a bad run, learned a lot from that, been in the best shape I’ve ever been in, trained for 11 weeks… fixed everything, I’m only gonna get better and stronger,” McGregor passionately told DAZN’s Ade Oladipo post-fight.
Peter McGrail edged an entertaining battle over ten rounds (96-94 x 2, 96-95) to inflict short-notice opponent Rhys Edwards‘ first defeat after news of a positive drugs test for original opponent Dennis McCann last week.
Up two weight divisions from his normal super-bantamweight domain, the 28-year-old southpaw began better and was rewarded against a spirited challenger who many felt did enough to squeeze through – almost kicking into gear at the sight of a nasty McGrail cut on the right eyebrow after an accidental head clash in round three.
Edwards jabbed well but not often enough, against a savvy Scouser happy to attack downstairs and land the flashier combination punching.
Daniel Lapin‘s four-fight knockout streak is over, though he boxed nicely and utilised his physical gifts expertly keeping Dylan Colin at distance to earn a UD10 (100-90, 99-91 x 2) win as the Ukrainian was a wide victor in a tussle of two unbeaten light-heavyweights for the WBA Continental title.
Andrii Novytskyi improved to 14-0 and defended his WBC International heavyweight title with a UD10 (100-90, 100-90, 98-92) win over Edgar Ramirez but while well-positioned under Egis Klimas’ guidance, there’s plenty of work for the 29-year-old to hone in the gym before the Ukrainian can consider himself among the divisional elite as his lack of offensive versatility will be exposed at the higher levels.
Riyadh’s own super-featherweight prospect Mohammed Alakel improved to 2-0 with a 60-53 decision win over Joshua Ocampo, where he dropped the 46-fight pro en route to success in a six-round contest after his professional debut over four rounds on the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol undercard on Oct. 12.
Picture source: Getty Images
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