SCOTTISH No.1 Sonny Kerr has a new rival – on his own doorstep.
The Commonwealth Games come to Glasgow next summer, and Kerr is looking to represent the host country around 70kgs.
The 20-year-old Tri Nations champion is part of the Great Britain squad after impressive performances with Scotland and Byron ABC.
Ben Bonner is another success story from Aberdeen.
The Granite City teenager has won three successive GB titles at Junior and Youth level and his move up to 70kgs has put the 19-year-old on a collision course with Kerr.
Granite City coach David McAllister reports the pair last sparred around five years ago and believes they could fight competitively this season.
McAllister said: “Sonny is ahead of Ben at the moment and it’s up to Ben to change the coaches’ minds.
“Ben is planning to push him and they could meet in the Championships.”
McAllister matched Bonner on the club’s show at Aberdeen’s Beach Ballroom against Ryan Norrie (Kincorth).
Norrie had beaten a couple of Bonner’s clubmates, but Bonner was too good for him and won unanimously.
McAllister says Bonner’s main attributes are that “he’s tall for the weight and has good judgement of distance and timing” and they were all on display in a near punch-perfect nine minutes.
Bonner was soon landing his jab and when Norrie looked to come back with his lead hand, Bonner slipped it and countered with his right, bringing applause from the home crowd.
Bonner also found a gap behind Norrie’s elbow for his left hooks.
He went on to finish a more competitive second round with an eyecatching two-fisted burst and put on a show in the last, dropping his hands and picking off Norrie as the crowd sang his name.
Also on the show, Kevin Murray outpointed the spirited Cody McCleod (Lochee) at 67kgs.
Murray, gold medallist at the King of the North Box Cup in June, won unanimously after handing McLeod a count in the opener, but McCleod showed a solid chin, huge heart and big engine to stay in the bout until the final bell.
McLeod looked to set the pace in the opener and Murray got down to business after shipping a couple of left hooks.
He threw fewer punches – but they had more weight behind them.
Murray slammed a left hook-right hand off McLeod’s jaw in the last 30 seconds of the opener to force an eight count, and his heavier hands gave him the edge in the second as well.
Whatever Murray threw at him, McLeod kept coming forward swinging punches – until the final minute, when Murray landed a hard body shot that deflated him for a few seconds.
In a Youth bout over 3×3, Lagu Rowyinor, another who won King of The North gold for the Aberdeen club, jabbed his way to a unanimous points win over Billy McPhee (Beath).
Rowyinor was longer and quicker. Midway through the opener, McPhee landed a body punch that he thought was a breakthrough, but when he looked to follow up, Rowyinor stuck him on the end of his jab to seize back control.
McPhee struggled to get into range until an exchange late in the second when both connected with left hooks.
Rowyinor had more left in the tank for the final three minutes as he kept McPhee on the back foot with his long, straight punches.
In a Junior bout, Codie Cuthbert scraped past Sean Haughton (Dunston) on a desperately tight 3-2 split decision that left the loser heartbroken.
Haughton clearly finished the bout stronger, coming forward and landing rights in the final two minutes.
For three of the judges, Cuthbert did enough clean work on the counter in the opening two rounds to still be ahead at the final bell.
Cuthbert had only recently returned to the gym following an injury.
