ADAM BOOTH has expressed his pride at the performance of charge Andy Lee, who got up from two knockdowns to push the undefeated Peter Quillin to a draw last weekend in Brooklyn. The WBO champion from Limerick came on strong late in the fight and decked Quillin in round seven. Booth was full of admiration for his man’s effort and the nature of his comeback.
“A close decision is not necessarily a bad decision,” Booth reflected to Boxing News. “After that horrific start, the two trips down messed things up a bit. On the official scorecards, in the eighth I think, Andy peppered Quillin with jabs and body shots, and Quillin landed two right hands; two judges scored it for Andy, one for Quillin and he was the only judge who scored the fight for Quillin.
“But after almost being ruined in the first round, making the most basic of errors and almost paying the price, I’m more proud of Andy than anyone I’ve worked with, for first steadying the ship then turning the fight on its head, hurting, dropping and outboxing Quillin. What more can a coach ask?”
With former champion Quillin having weighed in around a half-pound over the middleweight limit and Lee likely to soon have a pressing engagement against No. 1 contender, Billy Joe Saunders, Booth does not foresee an immediate rematch.
“There’s nothing to gain,” He opined. “Andy is still the WBO champion, I don’t think Quillin or his people are interested in the WBO title. Andy’s also got his mandatory challenger. Billy Joe Saunders is world class, he’s beaten Chris Eubank Jnr who is a world-class fighter in his own right. Eubank Jnr just beat the WBA Interim champion and had a very close fight with the WBO No. 1. People have wanted to scoff at Chris Jnr for a long time but I’ve known how well that boy can fight since I first saw him.”
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