Shawn Porter Says Abdullah Mason ‘Grew Up’ In Albert Bell Title Fight

The former two-division world champion praised Mason’s adjustments, saying the unbeaten lightweight champion proved he can solve problems under pressure

Shawn Porter believes Abdullah Mason passed the toughest test of his young career against Albert Bell. The former world champion said Mason’s willingness to trust his corner and make mid-fight adjustments revealed a champion growing in real time.

Mason retained his title with a 12th-round stoppage after overcoming a difficult first half against the late replacement challenger. Bell’s movement, height and accurate right hand created problems early before Mason made the adjustments needed to take control over the closing rounds.

Porter said the performance showed more than just talent.

“We saw a young man grow tonight. It was beautiful to see, too,” said Porter during TNT Sports’ post-fight show. “He came out a little hesitant because of the size, because of the height, that return fire with that straight right hand that kept coming back to Abdullah. It caused him to slow down.”

Porter credited Mason’s father and corner for recognizing what needed to change during the fight.

“Shout out to the corner. Always wondering, what does a dad know? How much can a dad really give? He gave his son everything tonight, and his son went out and implemented it all.”

Porter also recalled Mason stressing the importance of following instructions during the pre-fight meetings.

“He said in the fighter meeting, ‘I just need to listen to my corner.’ I knew that statement came from the previous fight that he just had. We saw this young man grow tonight, and he listened,” said Porter.

Mason’s adjustments paid off over the second half of the contest. After trailing on two of the three official scorecards through six rounds, he swept the closing rounds before stopping Bell 45 seconds into the 12th to improve to 21-0 (18 KOs). The victory marked the first successful defense of the WBO lightweight title he won from Sam Noakes last November.

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