TWO knockdowns inside the opening 54 seconds of the sixth of a scheduled 10-rounder at the Magna Centre saw Sheffield welter Anthony “The Truth” Tomlinson not only end the title hopes of Stafford’s Rob Hunt but also complete a double quick turnaround.
The dying moments of the previous session had seen Tomlinson appear in possible danger himself as Rob, who had been down from a right as the bell to end the second sounded, looked to have overcome the early setback; growing in confidence by the minute, he threatened to silence the locals.
Everything changed again though when Hunt was felled by a short hook in the opening moments of the sixth – and his fate was sealed when a huge left on the resumption sent him over backwards once more, referee Howard Foster waving it off despite Rob hauling himself upright.
Victorious early too was Bradford’s Amin Jahanzeb, who put paid to the hopes of Nicaraguan Moises Mojica, a stoppage with 57 seconds of the fifth and penultimate round remaining being his reward. Referee John Latham mercifully rescued the visitor from a contest that had become too one-sided.
A six rounder and a pair of fours comprised the remainder of the undercard. All three ran their allotted distance and none saw a visitor take even a share of a round.
Prior to jetting off to Montenegro to attend a wedding, Lydney’s Lewis van Poetsch exchanged pleasantries with Sheffield’s hard-hitting Christian Kinsiona. Despite being bested, especially so in a final round during which Kinsiona was really starting to enjoy himself and let his shots go, Lewis came through unscathed in a six refereed by Phil Edwards. And with a grin he quipping “Close, then!” when the 60-54 score was announced.
The Preston official also took charge of the four between Sheffield’s Razaq Najib, who after being outpointed over 12 in Spain last time out challenging for an EU title, eased back to winning ways with a trouble free encounter against Swindonian Joe Beeden.
Meanwhile, Mr Latham presided over a shut-out win for unbeaten Wakefield puncher Dom Hunt over ambitious Sheffield new start Paul Scaife, who deserves credit for taking such a tough bout as his first.
The Verdict An IBO Continental belt is the reward for Tomlinson, who secures win number 11.
FULL RESULTS
Anthony Tomlinson (146lbs 2oz), 11-0 (6), w rsf 6 Rob Hunt (145lbs 9oz), 26-6-2 (3); Razaq Najib (128 1/2lbs), 11-3 (2), w pts 4 Joe Beeden (130lbs 2oz), 2-67-1 (1); Christian Kinsiona (169lbs 1oz), 9-1-1 (3), w pts 6 Lewis van Poetsch (175 1/4lbs), 9-110-2 (2); Dom Hunt (149 1/2lbs), 5-0 (1), w pts 4 Paul Scaife (148 1/2lbs), 0-1; Amin Jahanzeb (130 1/4lbs), 5-0 (2), w rsf 5 Moises Mojica (124lbs 6oz), 9-9-2 (6).
