Several intriguing boxing events came up yesterday January 21 of 2023, featuring some former world champions and current titleholders as Liam Smith, Chris Eubank Jr, Jonathan Guidry and Bermane Stiverne.
In the first one at the AO Arena in Manchester, England, Liam Smith (33-3-1, 22 KOs) put on a stunning performance to defeat former world champion Chris Eubank Jr (32-3, 22 KOs).
Following Eubank's dominant third round, Smith stormed out in the fourth, flooring his opponent for the first time in 45 seconds. Eubank was badly injured, and Smith knocked him out for the second time within seconds, with the referee jumping in to stop the bout, even though Eubank tried to fight on.
In the co-main event rising cruiserweight Richard Riakporhe (16-0, 12 KOs) resumed his ascent to world titles by crushing Krzysztof Glowacki (32-4, 20 KOs) in just four rounds, when Riakporhe unleashed a right, followed by a left to the body, and then opened up with a four-punch salvo that had Glowacki in serious trouble and pinned in a corner. Riakporhe landed two more thudding rights before referee Howard Foster intervened at 2:44 of the round.
In the next event, but already in the USA, heavyweight Jonathan "The King" Guidry (19-1-2, 10 KOs) defeated former WBC heavyweight champion Bermane "B. WARE" Stiverne (25-6-1, 21 KOs) in ten rounds at Casino Miami Jai-Alai in Miami, Florida.
For the first five rounds, the fight was slow-paced with little action. Guidry was aggressive at times but spent far too much time defending himself. Stiverne, 44, pushed forward but didn't land many blows. Guidry increased his aggression late in the fight and pulled away on the scorecards to win 100-91, 97-93, 100-91. As a result, Guidry holds his WBA NABA "gold" title.
Image Credit: Sky Sports