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BURNS STOPS MITCHELL TO RETAIN WBO TITLE

23/09/2012 - 20.15.57

 

Ricky Burns stops Kevin Mitchell to retain world lightweight title

A sensational performance by Ricky Burns in Glasgow ended Kevin Mitchell's hopes of taking his WBO world lightweight title.

Ricky Burns versus Kevin Mitchell
 

The 29-year-old Scot had his Essex opponent down twice in the fourth round before the referee stepped in.

The three previous rounds were stunning in their intensity and ferocity.

Mitchell caught Burns on occasion with his quick punching but the taller, broader champion looked in control after an evenly matched first round.

The bout had been hyped to the heavens and the first round did not disappoint, with both boxers charged by the electric atmosphere created by 10,000 fans and stoked by legendary MC Michael Buffer.

Burns clubbed Mitchell, 27, with a right but took a heavy hit in return, just one of several painful opening exchanges.

Mitchell, with the cross of St George emblazoned on his shorts, was on the receiving end of a thunderous right hook from the Scot in the second round, as Burns began to edge ahead.

The ferocity of the punches left one wondering how the pair could be such good friends away from the ring.

An outstanding little warrior, Mitchell thumped his chest in defiance after being pinned against the ropes and beaten about the head in the third.

And with his flashing fists there was every chance he could land a succession of blows to upset the home crowd.

This he did briefly in the fourth but that was between moments of belligerence by the reigning champion.

A thumping left by Burns, from Coatbridge in North Lanarkshire, put Mitchell down and after the ref's count of eight he never truly looked like lasting until the bell.

Burns moved in to finish the contest after his opponent went down for a second time and Terry O'Connor did the right thing in ending the contest before the brave man from Dagenham took any more punishment.

After the fight, Burns said: "The whole build-up went perfectly. I've been feeling so much stronger. My confidence is there too, but I felt so much stronger.

"I said I'll try and suss him out in the first round. When I had him on the ropes I wanted to rough him up and it worked.

"On Monday I'll be on the phone to Frank Warren. Hopefully we can push for a unification fight, it would be a dream come true."

Mitchell was keen to praise his rival: "He done the job on me tonight. He's very fit and very strong."

Promoter Frank Warren said of Burns: "This guy is going to unify titles. He'll fight again this year.

"There aren't many guys in the world at his weight. He should be proud of what he's done for Scotland."

On the undercard, Scott Harrison continued his comeback with a 60-53 points win over Nottingham's Joe Elfidh , a late stand-in.

Elfidh recovered well from a first-round knock-down and wobbled the 35-year-old Scot with a right in the final round.

Former British and Commonwealth featherweight champion John Simpson retained his Celtic super-featherweight title with a second-round stoppage of Merthyr's Dai Davies.

Edinburgh's John Thain took his record to eight consecutive wins by outpointing Lee Noble from Barnsley 60-55 in their light-middleweight bout.

Another boxer from Scotland's capital, cruiserweight Stephen Simmons, won all six rounds against Bulgarian Tayar Mehmed.

And Stockton-on-Tees' Bradley Saunders proved too strong for the Slovakian Ivan Godor in a six-round lightweight contest.

The referee stopped the fight after two knock-downs in the third. Godor's subsequent balancing on one leg to display his readiness to continue cut no ice with the official.

How the fight unfolded

Round One: After a fairly cautious opening, the fight exploded into life during the final 30 seconds. Mitchell, having landed a nice body shot of his own, was caught by a good right hand from Burns. An even round, possibly shaded by Mitchell

Round Two: Burns stepped up a gear. After a great combination in the opening minute, Burns stunned Mitchell with a big right to the chin

Round Three: Mitchell , desperate to show he was not seriously hurt by the punishment he was taking, beat his chest and goaded Burns into hitting him harder. At one point, Burns landed five or six good shots without reply

Round Four: Despite being advised by his corner to better disguise his main weapon, the left hook, Mitchell was quickly picked off. A beauty of a left from Burns left him on the canvas. A second knockdown quickly followed and the referee stopped the bout soon after

Sourcewww.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/boxing/19679799

 

Brilliant Burns stops Mitchell in 4th

ESPN staff

Kevin Mitchell's bid to win the WBO lightweight title ended in failure on Saturday as Ricky Burns produced a world class performance to defend his crown in Glasgow.

Mitchell, who had only lost one previous bout - against Michael Katsidis in 2010 - entered hostile territory to take on Burns, the former WBO super-featherweight champion who was looking for his seventh victory at world title level. The Dagenham fighter attempted to out-manoeuvre Burns, but he got dropped twice in the fourth round to signal the stoppage.

Burns' last defeat came three years ago against Carl Johanneson, but he has grown in stature since that bout and has constantly dictated fights in recent times. He landed a chopping right to signal his power in round one, as both men entered into a toe-to-toe exchange that got the crowd on its feet.

Mitchell maintains that his defeat to Katsidis was a result of problems outside the ring, and he had been supporting that claim in recent bouts with fine victories over John Murray and Felix Lora. However, he was undoubtedly stunned by a right from Burns in the second as his light-footed approach failed to give him control of the ring.

Burns clearly took the third round and then delivered the fight-ending blows in the fourth, signalling the beginning of the end with two clubbing rights followed by a left. Mitchell got back to his feet, albeit shakily, and was quickly dropped again, before two more rights from Burns finished the job.

Also on Saturday, Carl Frampton propelled himself into world title contention with a sixth-round stoppage victory over Steve Molitor in Belfast. Frampton was facing the biggest challenge of his career against the two-time IBF champion, but he turned on the style in front of his home crowd on a night when the Commonwealth and WBA Inter-Continental super-bantamweight titles were at stake.

An explosive opening round saw Frampton rock his man with heavy shots off either wing, before Molitor hit the canvas in the third - claiming a slip. More shuddering right hands landed from Frampton, who dropped his man without question this time right on the bell.

Molitor took another count in the fourth, complaining to the referee during the pause, and was in trouble once again in the sixth - finally put out of his misery by the referee who decided Molitor had taken enough punishment.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Lee Selby was forced to pull out of his British and Commonwealth featherweight title fight with Martin Lindsay due to illness.

And Paul McCloskey defeated Manuel Perez via a unanimous 118-110 118-111 118-112 decision for the WBA Inter-Continental light-welterweight title.