By Ezio Prapotnich – QUARTER FINAL 1: PATRICK MENDY VS SAM HORTON. Short and sweet. Mendy (8-4-0) and Horton (15-3-0) don’t waste time feeling each other with the jab and go straight into battle at close quarters, but it is Patrick to connect first with a powerful right hook that turns the fight in his favor. Another hook from the left opens the way to a flurry and Sam, who is coming from a loss to James De Gale for the WBA International title, is stopped in a corner at 1:42.
QUARTER FINAL 2: DANIEL CADMAN VS EDDIE McINTOSH. It’s an untidy affair between Cadman (12-5) and McIntosh (10-2), requiring many breaks and admonitions to both fighters from referee Richard Davis, whose level of involvement makes him look as a third fighter in the ring. They clinch and throw rabbit punches for most of the fight, with Danny even pushing Eddie to the floor in almost every round. But, in the midst of it all, it is Cadman to land the clean shots throughout the fight, starting in the first round by nailing his opponent with hooks to the head. In the second, he starts connecting with the right time and time again, with the left hook still going. McIntosh comes back with his own hooks at the end and starts the third aggressively, but Danny nails him again and the referee gives him a standing count. Cadman wins by unanimous decision: 29-27, 29-28, and 29-28..
QUARTER FINAL 3: JEFF EVANS VS PETER FEDORENKO.
By comparison, the match between Evans (4-1) and Fedorenko (5-3) is tamed and uneventful. Peter is the aggressor all the way, forcing Evans on the back foot with short straight lefts and hooks to the body. He moves his head and shows good defense, but his shots lack power. With neither man taking chances, the bout ends wit ha surprising split decision in Evans’ favor: 28-27 and 29-28, with one judge scoring 29-28 for Fedorenko.
QUARTER FINAL 4: CARL DRAKE VS PAUL DAVID.
In another contrasting session, Carl Drake (5-6-1) and Paul David (12-5) start the first round very actively. David looks more confident, though, and controls the action from outside with the jab, letting Drake in and countering with hooks. Carl seems incapable to find the answers, except at the beginning of the second, where he scores a good hook. He looks very tired at the beginning of the third, bleeding from the nose, while the fight follows the same pattern until a right uppercut from David closes the argument after 56 seconds.
SEMIFINAL 1: CADMAN VS MENDY.
Mendy dominates the first round attacking immediately with jabs, hooks, and uppercuts, keeping Cadman on the back foot with nothing coming back. Against all expectations, Daniel comes back strong, charging like a bull at the sound of the bell and nailing Patrick on the ropes. After the assault, Patrick’s work rate seems to drop compared to the previous round and he becomes vulnerable to Cadman’s right hand. But, the latter starts the third with a shut left eye and bleeding from the mouth and, although scoring some good right hands, lets Mendy regain control and win a unanimous 29-28 decision.
SEMIFINAL 2: DAVID VS EVANS.
The first round starts slow, but David manages to establish his jab and to follow it with the overhand right, which will be instrumental in building a point lead. He also scores hooks to the body. The pace increases a little in the second , where Evans is forced to take more chances than he would like to and comes back a little scoring with hooks, He keeps up in the third round, engaging in some close exchanges, but he eventually slows down while David opens fast and ends up outworking him to go into the final. 29-28, 30- 27, and 29-28, the final decision.
FINAL: MENDY VS DAVID.
In the first round, David uses the same style that worked for him all night by boxing on the back foot behind the jab, but this customer is unafraid to walk forward, offers a more elusive target, and counters effectively with the left hook. After Mendy pushes him to the canvas in the second, not a knock down by al means, the fight gets a bit messy, with both clinching and mauling. They slug it out in the third, but Mendy scores first with a left and nails him to head and body with the left hook to win on all three scorecards with 29-28, 28-27, and 29-28. He is the Prizefighter Champion and might fight European title holder Magee, who attended the bout, in a voluntary defense.
