Fans witnessed both a piece of British boxing history being made and a superbly impressive performance last night in London. George Liddard, at age 23, became the youngest-ever British and Commonwealth middleweight champion, this courtesy of his 10th-round stoppage win over Kieron Conway at York Hall. Liddard, who went pro in November of 2022, proved to dominate the action despite his lack of experience.
Liddard of Essex, the younger man by six years, dropped defending two-belt champ Conway in the ninth round, this with a right hand that landed bang on the chin. Then, in the following round, Liddard staggered Conway with another stiff right hand to the head, and Conway’s corner decided to throw in the towel. Liddard is now 13-0(8), while Conway falls to 23-4-1(7) with last night’s defeat being the Northampton man’s first stoppage loss.
Liddard Silences Doubters With Mature, Ruthless Performance
Huge things can now be expected of Liddard, a fighter who is both exciting to watch and who has a ton of talent and skill. Some people in the industry might have felt Liddard was being moved a little too fast going in with Conway, who is as tough as they come, this after just a dozen pro fights, but it proved to be a totally different story.
Now, looking ahead, Liddard says he wants to continue fighting against the best.
“I feel on top of the world – I feel like a kid in a candy store, but my candy is belts,” a triumphant Liddard said last night. “I think everyone was shocked how cool, calm and confident I was coming into this fight – people thought the occasion would get the better of me, people thought it would be a step too soon, but I knew this was my time. I want to test myself against the best, that’s just the way I am.”
A Star Is Born At 160 Pounds
Liddard really does have an amazingly bright future ahead of him, and there are some potentially great fights out there for him at 160 pounds. Can Liddard go all the way and win a world title? Basing things on how special he has looked thus far in his short career, in last night’s fight in particular, one would have to think so. It will be interesting to see who Liddard fights next.
