Galahad stops Dickens to claim vacant featherweight title on busy Saturday

Babic goes to war; Stanionis-Collazo no decision; Fox robbed

The first time Kid Galahad fought for a featherweight world title he lost a heart-breaking split decision to British countryman Josh Warrington in June 2019.

He thought he would have another chance to against Warrington when he became the mandatory challenger again and the fight was ordered. However, Warrington had no interest and vacated the title.

So, with Warrington watching at ringside, Galahad battered friend and longtime sparring partner James “Jazza” Dickens en route to an 11th-round knockout to win the vacant IBF title in the main event of Matchroom Boxing’s “Fight Camp” card on DAZN on Saturday in the garden of Matchroom’s headquarters in Brentwood, England.

The fight was a rematch of their 2013 vacant British junior featherweight title bout, which Galahad (28-1, 17 KOs), 31, won by 10th-round knockout to hand the southpaw Dickens (30-4, 11 KOs), 30, his first defeat.

Winning the world title bout nearly brought Galahad to tears.

“I’ve been waiting 19 years for this and it’s finally here, I’ve finally got it — IBF champion of the world,” Galahad said. “Not a little bit, the whole world. This doesn’t say ‘regular champion,’ this says ‘world champion.’ People can think what they want. I come to fight. I’m a full time professional. I don’t take no days off. Jazza Dickens will become a world champion 100 percent. Without a doubt, he’ll become a world champion. I’m just over the moon.”

Galahad slowly but surely broke Dickens down in a sharp performance in which he busted up Dickens’ face and left him a bloody mess.

The fight got off to a rough start for Dickens, who suffered a cut over his left eye from an accidental head butt in the first round.

Referee Michael Alexander deducted a point from Galahad in the 10th round for an apparent low blow but as the fight went along Dickens was slowing down. His left eye was closing and the rest of his face was also showing damage before Alexander stopped it in the corner after the 11th round.

According to CompuBox statistics, Galahad landed 276 of 1,077 punches (26 percent) and Dickens landed 92 of 445 (21 percent).

Galahad thanked his late trainer Brendan Ingle for having the belief in him as a young fighter.

“Brendan Ingle told me that I’m going to win everything from super bantamweight up to lightweight. Nobody believed me and everyone doubted me when I said I’d become word champion,” Galahad said. “Before I met Brendan, I would have probably been locked up in jail. He was the only person that gave me hope. If it wasn’t for boxing, (promoter) Eddie Hearn, DAZN, Brendan Ingle, my mum, I’d probably be locked up or dead.”

Galahad recounted how he met fellow Sheffield, England, fighter Naseem Hamed, the Hall of Fame former featherweight champion, and it changed his life.

“I said to him, ‘Naz, I want to be a world champion like you.’ He told me if I wanted to become a world champion I needed to go and find Brendan Ingle at the St. Thomas’ Boxing Club,” Galahad said. “The rest is history. I went and met Brendan and that’s it.”

Hearn said he planned to get Galahad a fall defense in Sheffield and then ideally a title unification fight.

Babic wins slugfest

In an electrifying undercard fight, heavyweight “The Savage” Alen Babic and Mark Bennett slugged it out for five scintillating rounds of non-stop action until Bennett, who had taken massive punishment but did not go down, retired on his stool after the fifth round of their scheduled eight-rounder.

The absolutely relentless Babic (8-0, 8 KOs), 30, of Croatia, survived a few rocky moments but otherwise laid a hellacious beating on the iron-chinned and steel-willed Bennett (7-2, 1 KO), 33, of England, who ate dozens of big shots but never stopped trying to win until the fight was stopped in his corner.

“It was a very, very tough fight,” Babic said. “I didn’t expect that. I’ve got to say that. All kudos to him. He’s a very, very tough warrior, a legit warrior. I threw maybe 100 power punches at his head, and I have knockout punches, so it was a very tough and competitive fight. I thank him for that. 
“Left, right and I was like, ‘fall, it’s your time to fall,’ but he just didn’t want to fall. He really caught me with a few (hard) ones. He didn’t catch me flush because I always bob and weave but he’s a very tough man and I respect him.”

After his post-fight interview on DAZN, Babic dropped to one knee, opened a ring box and proposed to his girlfriend, who was by his side. She said yes.

Stanionis-Collazo: No decision

Rising welterweight prospect Eimantas Stanionis and former world titlist Luis Collazo fought to a fourth-round no decision in the main event of the Premier Boxing Champions card on Fox before a crowd of 3,123 at The Armory in Minneapolis.

The fight, which Stanionis (13-0, 9 KOs), 26, a 2016 Lithuanian Olympian, was leading on all three scorecards, ended after an accidental head butt injured Collazo, who fell the canvas after the impact and suffered a cut over his right eye. Referee Charlie Fitch gave Collazo time to recover, but when it was obvious he would not be able to continue Fitch called off the fight at 2 minutes, 31 seconds. The fight was ruled a no decision because four rounds had not yet been completed.

“It's disappointing of course. He's a tough fighter and he's a warrior, so it's unfortunate it had to be like this,” Stanionis said. “I was just getting started. I knew he was going to come forward like that and that the head butts would be a factor. It is what it is. 

“He was coming into me and I wanted to show that I'm strong too and I could fight him off. It didn't feel like a big collision but it must have been worse for him.”

Collazo (39-8, 20 KOs), 40, of Brooklyn, New York, said going into the fight that this would be the last one of his 21-year career in which he has faced numerous top opponents. Despite the premature ending of the fight, Collazo said he still is retiring.

“Coming into the fight, we knew that we could test him,” Collazo said. “We were both coming in at the same time and that led to the clash of heads. It happens a lot.

“I love this sport and I still have the passion for it, but it's getting frustrating. I'm blessed to have the career that I've had. It's on to the next chapter of my life.”

Fox robbed vs. Maestre

In the co-feature, two-time Venezuelan Olympian Gabriel Maestre (4-0, 3 KOs) won an extremely controversial decision over Mykal Fox (22-3, 5 KOs) to claim the vacant WBA interim welterweight belt. The judges shockingly had Maestre winning, 117-110 from Gloria Martinez, 115-112 from John Mariano and 114-113 from David Sing.

Fox was in utter shock after hearing the scores.

“I was stunned by the decision,” said Fox, who took the bout on about one week’s notice when original opponent Cody Crowley came down with Covid-19. “There's no way he won more rounds than me. I knocked him down. I hurt him. I don't know what else I was supposed to do. I don't know what the judges were looking at. Look at his face and tell me he won that fight.”

Fox, 25, of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, dropped Maestre with a left hand he never saw in the second round and appeared to dominate and dictate virtually the entire fight.

“When I was knocked down, I didn't see the punch coming,” Maestre said. “He didn't really hurt me though so it was no problem to get up and keep going. The strategy was just to keep fighting him for 12 rounds. I just wanted to stay close to him and make sure I kept throwing punches. Fox definitely surprised me. He was a very good boxer. I think the key was that I was throwing multiple punches and combinations. That was the strategy from start to finish.”

Maestre, 34, said he is willing to fight Fox again.

“Fox fought very well and he deserves a rematch,” Maestre said. “It was a very close fight. If my team says that's what they want, I'll be ready to fight him again.”

Santamaria upsets Alexander

In the opener, Lucas Santamaria (12-2-1, 7 KOs), 23, of Garden Grove, California, won a unanimous decision over former two-division world titlist Devon Alexander (27-7-1, 14 KOs) in a junior middleweight bout. Scores were 98-92, 98-92 and 97-93.

Alexander, 34, a southpaw from St. Louis, who was fighting for the first time in 26 months, lost his third fight in a row.

“My legs were the key for me,” Santamaria said. “He was trying to catch me with the left and I was able to anticipate it. I was too quick on my feet for him. My footwork was the key. I'm ready to keep stepping up the competition.”

Alexander said he was slowed by a right biceps injury suffered in the first round.

“It really held me back from getting my offense going,” Alexander said. “I tried to shake it out as the fight went on but I just couldn't get anything going. I'm disappointed.”

Conlan outpoints Doheny

Michael Conlan outpointed former junior featherweight world titlist TJ Doheny in an all-Irish bout to claim the WBA’s vacant interim featherweight belt on Friday in Falls Park in Conlan’s hometown of Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Two-time Olympian Conlan (16-0, 8 KOs), 29, defeated Doheny (22-3, 16 KOs), 34, who is based in Australia, by scores of 119-108, 116-111 and 116-111 before a crowd of about 8,000.

The fight was initially scheduled as a 10-round junior featherweight bout but when Mexico’s Eduardo Ramirez vacated the interim belt on Aug. 2, it became the bout to fill that vacancy.

Conlan dominated the somewhat slow-paced bout and had his biggest moment in the fifth round when he dropped Doheny with a left hand to the body.

“It’s not even about the belt, it’s about the atmosphere,” Conlan said. “Nothing can create an atmosphere like Belfast. It was an honor to share the ring with TJ. I knew I would get him to the body, but I knew it would go to points because TJ is a tough mother f-----. I thought it was a mature performance against a former world champion. I'm really happy.”

Conlan said he still plans to fight at junior featherweight, where he is in line for a mandatory WBO title shot against the winner of the unification fight between Stephen Fulton and Brandon Figueroa.

“I’m planning to fight at 122 pounds,” Conlan said. “This opportunity came up and I said no problem. I’m still looking to fight the winner of Stephen Fulton versus Brandon Figueroa. Now my options open up even more. I wouldn’t mind doing both (weight classes).”

Path clear for Pacquiao-Spence

The attempt by Manny Pacquiao’s manager to stop his fight against unified welterweight world titlist Errol Spence Jr. on Aug. 21 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (Fox Sports PPV) was denied in California Superior Court for Orange County on Friday.

Pacquiao, the eight-division world champion, and Spence are now free and clear to meet in one of the biggest fights of the year. I wrote about the court’s ruling in detail for World Boxing News. Please read that story here: https://www.worldboxingnews.net/2021/08/06/manny-pacquaio-spence-paradigm-block/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=feed

Olympic rivals as pros

Olympic medals were earned this week as the Tokyo Games, delayed for one year because of the coronavirus pandemic, steamrolled toward a conclusion. The boxers in the tournament are largely unknown, but down the line many of them are likely to emerge as the next generation of professional stars and champions if past history is any indication.

Many of today’s Olympians will turn professional and there is a decent chance that if they develop they could someday face an amateur rival in a pro fight, a pairing that will add a layer of intrigue and an additional storyline to such a bout.

I came up with four examples of boxers who fought each other in the Olympics and later squared off as professionals. Was the pro fight a case of repeat or revenge? Please read my Ring City USA column here (it’s the second column on the page): https://mailchi.mp/fcff0bce679b/boxings-main-attractions-13396692?e=1cca2f980b&fbclid=IwAR2tvLUWmASwgUkIKyfsSKcyAdkfN5bdYKsrvT5hf1qcSjPBtHIZbtYYiHY

Galahad-Dickens, Babic photos: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing; Stanionis-Collazo, Maestre-Fox photos: Sean Michael Ham/PBC