In the opening round, Whittaker used his jab well against the aggressive Suarez. He then landed a right hand to the side of the head, sending Suarez down for the count of referee Steve Gray.
Joe McGrail, 13-0 (6 KOs), of Liverpool, UK, stopped BBBofC Central Area champion Aaron Hayden, 10-1 (2 KOs), of Rawtenstall, Lancashire, UK, at 2:22 of the fifth round of a scheduled 10 rounds for the vacant WBA Gold super bantamweight title.
In the first two rounds, Hayden switched from orthodox to southpaw and used constant feints, appearing to have an edge over McGrail, who looked to counter. In the third and fourth rounds, McGrail came back strongly and was the more active fighter.
In the opening minute of the fifth, a clash of heads caused a bad cut over Hayden’s right eyebrow. McGrail then landed a right to the head, a left to the body, followed by a right on the chin that dropped Hayden for the count from referee Mark Lyson.
Middleweight Stephen “Stevo” Clarke, 10-0 (2 KOs), of Liverpool, Merseyside, UK, came off the canvas to defeat Luis Enrique Montelongo, 18-17 (4 KOs), of Mexico City, Mexico, over eight rounds.
Clarke dominated the first two rounds. In the third, both fighters exchanged well, with Clarke taking the round.
A minute into the fourth, Montelongo dropped Clarke with a right hand to the head. Referee Mark Lyson gave him an eight-count. Clarke recovered and held through much of the round. In the fifth, Clarke responded well to take a close round.
The sixth and seventh were competitive, though Clarke had the edge. In the eighth and final round, Montelongo pressed hard, knowing he needed a knockout, but Clarke took another close round.
Referee Mark Lyson scored it 78-73.
In the chief support, super bantamweight Molly “Meatball” McCann, 4-0 (1 KO), of Liverpool, UK, defeated a game Ashleigh Johnson, 3-4 (0 KOs), of Swansea, Wales, UK, over eight two-minute rounds.
The first round was close, with McCann holding a slight edge while countering the aggressive Johnson. Johnson came back well in the second to outland McCann. In the third, Johnson suffered a bump on her forehead in another close round won by McCann.
In the fourth and fifth rounds, McCann scored well to the body and took both sessions. In the sixth and seventh, McCann outworked Johnson in an action fight, though Johnson never stopped coming forward. In the eighth and final round, McCann finished strongly in another close round.
Referee Mark Lyson scored it 78-74.
Middleweight Tom Rafferty, 17-0 (7 KOs), of Shaw, Lancashire, UK, stopped Pablo “Vargas” Sosa, 12-11-3 (3 KOs), of Cordoba, Argentina, based in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, after three rounds of a scheduled six.
The first two rounds were all Rafferty. In the third, a body shot from Rafferty dropped Sosa for an eight-count from referee Steve Gray. At the end of the round, Sosa’s corner retired him.
Heavyweight 19-year-old Leo Atang, 6-0 (5 KOs), of York, Yorkshire, UK, defeated 40-year-old Viktar Chvarkou, 6-33 (3 KOs), of Karaganda, Kazakhstan, now based in Watford, UK, over six rounds.
Atang outworked Chvarkou in the opening round. In the second, Atang landed a left to the chin that forced Chvarkou to grab and hold. In the third, referee Steve Gray warned Chvarkou for excessive holding.
In the opening minute of the fourth round, Gray deducted a point from Atang for use of the head. Atang came back to take the fifth with chopping right hands. In the sixth and final round, he went the distance for the first time and closed strongly.
Referee Steve Gray scored it 59-54.
Middleweight Jack Power, 8-0 (2 KOs), of Runcorn, Cheshire, UK, stopped Novak Radulovic, 21-16-1 (8 KOs), of Nis, Serbia, at 1:37 of the sixth and final round.
Power controlled the first three rounds. In the sixth, he dropped Radulovic for an eight-count from referee Steve Gray, who waved it off when Radulovic rose.
Super featherweight southpaw Sam “Sammy the Bull” Norris, 3-0 (0 KOs), of Liverpool, UK, defeated southpaw Jahfieus Faure, 4-25-3 (0 KOs), of Oldbury, West Midlands, UK, over four rounds.
Referee Mark Lyson scored it 40-36.
Ring announcer: David Diamonte.
Read the full article here