Saturday night saw British boxing return to the mainstream with week 1 of Eddie Hearn's Fight Camp
Fight Camp, the brainchild of Matchroom's Eddie Hearn, took place in the grandiose setting of the promoter's childhood home in Essex, England. It saw 5 fights take place in a specially crafted ring situated in the gardens of the manor house which now serves as Matchroom's head office.
With no audience present, referees in facemasks and post-fight interviews held at a distance, the event was far removed from the packed-out stadiums we'd become used to pre-COVID-19
Given the limitations, SKY and Matchroom put on a great show and the unfamiliar conditions didn't seem to bother the fighters who put on some fantastic matches. Here's a brief overview of how the action unfolded -
Jordan Gill vs Reece Bellotti - Featherweight
Winner - Jordan Gill (97-93, 97-93 and 96-95 )
Gill continues on the comeback trail after the 2019 loss to Mario Enrique Tinoco with an impressive victory over Reece Belotti.
Belotti fought his heart out over the ten rounds but was unable to solve the puzzle of Gill who boxed brilliantly off the back of a stiff jab that allowed him to control the distance and tempo of the fight.
Dalton Smith vs Nathan Bennett- Super Lightweight
Winner - Dalton Smith (KO round 5)Dalton Smith scores an impressive stoppage in his 6th pro outing, dropping Nathan Bennett in the 5th round with a beautifully timed right hand.
All credit to Bennett who came to fight and showed a good chin, continuing to put the pressure on Smith and making him work for the win. Smith, however, was a class above and never looked to be in any trouble, regularly finding a home for his right hand off the back of a quick double jab - the very tactic that would spell the end of Bennett's night.
Fabio Wardley vs Simon Vallily - Heavyweight
Winner - Fabio Wardley (TKO round 3)Wardley takes his record to 9 - 0 with an impressive stoppage win over the more experienced Vallily.
The first two rounds didn't have much in them with Vallily appearing ponderous and leaving Wardley to look the slightly the better of the two.
In the third, Vallily backed Wardley onto the ropes and started to let his hands go and in doing so left himself open to a big left hand that rocked him back on his heels.
If he'd taken a knee here he might have been able to recover, but in trying to remain on his feet he allowed Wardley to follow up with some heavy combinations and force the referee to call it off.
Wardley's finishing was extremely impressive for a relatively inexperienced fighter. When he saw Vallily was hurt he went in for the kill but didn't get over-excited, keeping enough distance to pick his shots and not smother his own work.
James Tennyson vs Gavin Gwynne - Lightweight
Winner - James Tennyson (TKO round 6)
Tennyson keeps his winning streak going up at lightweight by stopping and extremely tough Gavin Gwynne in the sixth.
Tennyson came out throwing heavy shots and applied relentless pressure from the start - Gwynn just didn't seem to have the power to deter Tennyson.
In the rounds that followed Gwynn had patches of success but it was a punishing night for him with all the clean effective punches coming from Tennyson who landed a hard right hook in the sixth, forcing Gwynn to take a knee.
Gwynn managed to beat the count and attempted to battle on but he just didn't have enough in the tank to keep his opponent at bay and the referee had to step in.
It's onwards and upwards now for Tennyson who will be thrilled at having his name mentioned with the likes of Jorge Linares by Eddie Hearn post-fight.
Ted Cheeseman vs Sam Eggington - super welterweight
Winner - Ted Cheeseman(115-114, 116-113 and 116-113)The main event featured fan favourite's Ted Cheeseman and Sam Eggington going head to head in a fight that lived up to all expectations.
Cheeseman took the decision over a highly competitive 12 rounds that saw some relentless in-fighting and some incredible back and forth.
You can read our full fight breakdown
here.
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