“A Featherweight Model Of Hagler-Hearns”
It actually was 1 / 4 of a century in the past when featherweight talkers, punchers, showmen, fellow southpaws Naseem Hamed and Kevin Kelley collided lower than every week earlier than Christmas, in so doing giving struggle followers a genuinely unforgettable slugfest. Hamed, referred to as “The Prince,” was unbeaten and he was being showered with a ton of reward, reward that referred to him as an awesome. This was within the UK.
In a bid to make the American followers and critics believers, Hamed went to New York to tackle “Flushing Flash” Kelley. Hamed had received the WBO and IBF featherweight titles and he was unbeaten at 28-0. However 23 yr previous Hamed’s greatest wins had come towards a barely previous his greatest Tom Johnson, towards superb Welsh ‘Cinderella Man’ Steve Robinson and towards robust Mexican warrior Manuel Medina, who had made Hamed work laborious.
A win over Kelley would rank as Hamed’s greatest win to date, and a win over the previous WBC ruler at 126 kilos would earn the British large mouth a lot respect.
These two fighters had circled one another for a while and now, with the struggle signed, the hype was large; as was the trash-talk plentiful from either side.
“The primary spherical, I’m going straight for that mouth,” Kelley stated when discussing his ways forward of the struggle.
“I might have introduced Kelley to my very own yard and beat him up there. However I wished to return to his personal yard and produce him down there,” Hamed stated earlier than the struggle.
It was tasty stuff. It was totally entertaining hype. How good was Hamed? How a lot did the 30 yr previous, 47-1-2 Kelley have left within the tank? This was a heck of a US debut Hamed was taking.
The struggle didn’t disappoint.
A sold-out Madison Sq. Backyard crowd settled again – this after they’d been handled to at least one astonishingly good co-feature within the type of the Kennedy McKinney-Junior Jones shoot-out – and the bombs started to fly. Kelley drew first blood, dropping Hamed, who was now holder of the WBO belt solely, with a proper hook that clipped the defending champion on the chin. Kelley immediately threw his arms within the air, maybe pondering the shot had had extra leverage behind it than it really had.
However, Hamed was down. Kelley was simply getting going discovering huge holes in his rival’s defensive sport. Spherical two was unimaginable. Kelley, now the aggressor, landed a giant left that despatched Hamed spinning, his follow-up proper hook bending Hamed over. In a blur, Hamed’s glove touched the mat and, as he jumped proper again up, Naz was caught with one other proper hand and he touched down. Referee Benjy Esteves issued a rely.
Hamed wore an expression that learn damage and embarrassed. However then, in typical “Prince” trend, the visiting fighter roared again, dropping Kelley with a giant proper hand missile of his personal. Kelley smiled as he obtained again up. It had been a spherical filled with drama and pleasure.
Spherical three noticed each guys present mutual respect, the breath-taking motion having eased down a bit of. It was nonetheless don’t-blink stuff, nevertheless, and Hamed’s head was being noticeably knocked again. Would the British invasion be turned away?
Spherical 4 was magic.
Kelley, responsible of throwing wildly, going for the end that was tantalisingly shut, had extra success as he landed a few left hooks upstairs. However then Hamed countered by the use of two monster lefts of his personal, knocking Kelley down once more. Kelley beat the rely as soon as extra, this time thrusting each arms into the air in defiance having carried out so. Hamed poured it on, taking his flip in search of the end that was only a punch away.
However Kelley had another shot on the win; his proper hand being of sufficient pressure to make Hamed’s glove graze the canvas. Esteves dived in and administered a rely. What number of knockdowns had this struggle had now? Followers had little question misplaced rely. Then, lastly, Hamed closed the present, touchdown a crunching proper that was adopted by a swift left. Once more Kelley was knocked down, and this time he was unable to beat the rely. Simply. It was throughout, with each males having knocked the disrespect out of one another.
Complete knockdowns: Six. Hamed KO4 Kelley.
It was certainly, as Larry Service provider dubbed the struggle, “A featherweight Hagler-Hearns.”
