Saturday on terrestrial TV in the U.K. and in the U.S. on WealthTV (a newcomer to the boxing game), Tyson Fury (19-0, 14 KOs) took a sideways step in his quest to become a legitimate player in the heavyweight division, stopping Vinny Maddalone (35-8, 26 KOs) of Queens, New York in round 5 via technical knockout.
Both fighters started off a bit cautious, but Fury was able to land a number of solid straight rights in the opening frame that highlighted the difference in class between the two. Fury landed the right hand off his jab and Maddalone looked bothered by the Manchester native’s power.
Maddalone’s face began puffing up a bit in round 2, as more jabs and straight rights found the mark. Fury used the ring well, outmaneuvering Maddalone when he waded forward without his jab.
The difference in height and reach was too much for Maddalone to overcome, as Fury consistently kept himself out of harm’s way by keeping his opponent on the edge of his straight shots.
Fury began working in more hooks and uppercuts in round 4 as part of his combination punching, often landing at a high clip. A straight right midway through shook up Maddalone on the ropes, but he was unable to finish him with the follow-up. Fury wobbled Maddalone again, opening a cut underneath the left eye in the closing minute with some accurate power punching.
Fury jumped out quickly to open round 5 looking for the stoppage, but Maddalone weathered the storm quite well considering how close he was to being out in the previous round. The expected outcome, however, was reached midway in the round as referee Ian John Lewis rescued him at 1:35 in the round after he took a few more hard shots and wore the look of a defeated fighter on his face.
Fury promoter Mick Hennessy said in the post-fight interview that they are looking at two, maybe three more fights before getting a Klitschko brother.
When pressed on who they would like to get in between now and a Klitschko, Hennessy mentioned Tomasz Adamek as the guy they would like to get in with soon. Hennessy mentioned bringing Fury back in November for his next fight.
Prized Brighton middleweight prospect Chris Eubank, Jr. (5-0, 2 KOs) outpointed the game Terry Carruthers (11-12-6, KO) over six entertaining rounds. Though Eubank controlled nearly every second, Carruthers had some moments even after suffering a cut near the right eye in round 2. There was good action throughout, with Eubank always getting the better of it in showing his proficiency as a body puncher and combination puncher. The fight was scored 59-57 in favor of Eubank.
Despite the lack of an extensive amateur career, Eubank has shown his class in the paid ranks having defeated a number of tough customers in his first five fights.
Select rounds were shown of the European bantamweight title fight between Lee Haskins and Stuart Hall in which Haskins wasn’t bothered by a late Hall rally in order to win the vacant crown. Scores were 118-111, 117-111, 118-110 in favor of Haskins.
Mark Ortega can be reached via e-mail and followed via Twitter. Mark also contributes to renowned boxing publications RING Magazine and Boxing Monthly, and is a member of the Boxing Writer’s Association of America and RING Ratings Advisory Panel.
