At the Manchester Arena last-night, Liam Smith beat his domestic rival Liam Williams.
With Smith having failed to make the weight, the fight wasn?t, if Smith were to win, be for the WBO interim world light-middleweight belt, that belt would only have been awarded if Williams had of won the bout.
For much of the fight that looked exactly how it would end up, the Welshman was edging the contest and was a point ahead on the score-cards of all three judges before the fight came to an unexpected conclusion.
After nine exciting rounds, 24-year-old Williams was pulled out of the contest at the start of the tenth round due to a bad cut to his eye.
It was a bitter blow for Williams and there was some confusion as to whether the cut had been caused by a clash of heads or a punch.
Talking about pulling Williams out of the fight, his trainer, Gary Lockett, told the media,
‘The eye was damaged, it was a decision that had to be made.
‘He said he couldn’t see. I can’t let him fight with that. It was only going to get worse. He couldn’t see out of it.’
Analysis of the cut revealed that Williams had sustained a double laceration to the eye-lid and was sent to see a plastic surgeon straight after the fight.
With the fight ending in such a disappointing way, at least there is the prospect of a re-match, something which the promoter, Frank Warren, commented upon after the bout, with Warren remarking,
‘It’s a shame the winner is not coming away with a title. We’ll try and do it again for a title.?
With Smith himself adding,
‘I am the most genuine fighter you’ll come across, if Frank (Warren) offers the money I would do that again.’
Let?s hope that is the case, there is unsettled business to be completed here don?t you think?
Smith Stops Williams in Controversial Bout
