Stourbridge Sport

Gordon falls short in title bid

By Matt Maher

7:55pm Sunday 14th March 2010

BRIERLEY Hill welterweight Martin Gordon’s attempt at the British Masters crown ended in disappointment with a points defeat to Tipton’s Rob Doody.

The 27-year-old found himself on the wrong end of a 98-94 decision on the Crunchtime at Lunchtime 2 bill at Wolverhampton Civic Hall earlier this afternoon.

But there was better news for Dudley’s Jamie Ball and Richie Ghent, who both preserved their unbeaten records, while Lance Brooks made a promising start to his professional career defeating Bekhi Moyo.

The Gordon-Doody battle was much anticipated but failed to live up to the excitement of the duo’s first meeting in January, which ended in a draw.

After a cautious opening by both men it was Doody who began to control the bout, making good use of the ring to evade Gordon’s frequent forays before hitting back with counter punching.

For all his effort and bravery, Gordon struggled to land regularly and it was only in the final two rounds he put Doody under any kind of consistent pressure, rocking his opponent with right hooks on three occasions.

But it proved too little, too late.

Speaking afterwards, Gordon said he was “gutted” but admitted he had not done enough to win and was particularly critical of his slow start.

He said: “There was no reason for starting so slowly, there was nothing wrong with my fitness or anything like that.

“I just wasn’t landing my shots and I couldn’t put any punches together. I was always looking for the big shot instead of putting him under pressure.

“We had talked about doing that before the fight but I didn’t listen. If I had listened to my corner I really believe I would be champion now, instead I’ve lost the fight.

“This feels like 100 steps back for me.”

The defeat was the seventh of Gordon’s professional career but his first for four fights.

Earlier the Civic crowd had watched middleweight Ball record the ninth win of his career with victory over Yorkshire’s Martyn King.

Ball did not lose a round in his 60-55 win but also started slowly in a scrappy opening.

The 25-year-old stepped it up in the third, catching King with some good left shots, while he had his opponent on the ropes twice in the final round.

Ball said he was satisfied with the performance and was also happy with the added exposure given to every fighter, as the entire bill was screened live on the Hatton Promotions website.

He said: “It was good to get six rounds in. It was a scrappy fight but we tried to make it that way.

“I landed some good shots and to be fair he took them well.

“The whole experience with the cameras being here has been great, it really give you the taste of a big televised show.”

Light welterweight Ghent recorded the fifth win of his pro career, taking all four rounds against Birmingham journeyman Sid Razak.

The former Priory Park star was always in control of the fight and connected with some good right-left combinations in the third round.

Debutant Brooks thrilled his legion of fans with a confident display in his pro debut, winning 40-36 against London’s Moyo.

Brooks was nicknamed Mr Popular after shifting more than 200 tickets for the fight and the 21-year-old clearly relished the attention, giving Moyo a tough time throughout with a performance which bodes well for the future.

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