THERE was a shock in the bill-topper at Frome’s Cheese and Grain Hall when popular local southpaw Ryan Wheeler, unbeaten in 15 going into an eight rounder with tattooed Spaniard Jose Ramos Savin, was halted just 74 seconds into the second session by referee-for-the-night Mark Bates.
The visitor from Madrid, dubbed “Tornado”, was unbeaten himself in six outings but had won inside the distance only once – despite just one of his opponents boasting a positive record, that being on his debut way back in 2014.
Yet Ramos Savin began well enough and was pressing hard as the end of the opener approached. He went one better in the next, referee Bates not allowing Wheeler to continue after he was sent to the canvas.
The evening’s two other contests, one boxed over six rounds and the other over four, reaped rewards for the home punchers, neither of whom dropped a round.
Northampton-born but Bristol-based Ashley Lane, halted with just two seconds left last time out against Brad Foster for the British and Commonwealth super-bantamweight titles, returned to winning ways with a shut-out 60-54 victory overJose Aguilar.
The Spanish-based Nicaraguan (no show is complete without one these days it seems) had lost over the same distance in Sheffield to Sufyaan Ahmed just a fortnight previously.
Meanwhile, over the shorter four-round distance Bristol middleweight Aaron Sutton maintained his 100 per cent record by taking every session against evergreen Stourbridge operator Kevin McCauley, who just a couple of months shy of his 40th birthday and with just over 1,000 rounds already banked, was taking part in his 222nd paid contest.
There had been mention of a debut for southpaw lightweight Anton Haskins, the 19-year-old son of former world bantam champion Lee, but that one wasn’t forthcoming and will doubtless be rescheduled for a later date.
THE VERDICT: The best-laid plans go awry in Somerset.
RESULTS: Jose Ramos Savin, 6-0-1 (2), w rsf 2 Ryan Wheeler, 15-1-1; Ashley Lane, 14-9-2 (1), w pts 6 Jose Aguilar, 16-63-5 (6); Aaron Sutton, 9-0, w pts 4 Kevin McCauley, 15-195-12.
