Simpson Defeats Chelli, Becomes British And Commonwealth Super Middleweight Champ
Callum Simpson delivered in his hometown of Barnsley, beating Zak Chelli to become the British and Commonwealth Super Middleweight Champion.
Simpson took the win on the scorecards with a wide unanimous decision: 118-111, 118-110, 117-111. Chelli was the champion coming into the fight, as Simpson aimed to extend his undefeated 14-0 streak. It was all Simpson early on with an impressive start. He landed a crushing right hand over the top that sent Chelli staggering backwards. He had his man on the ropes, as the champion was in survival mode near the end of the first round.
Simpson Starts Well
Chelli reacted well to that early adversity. He established his jab in the second round, sending Simpson backwards with clean shots to the head. However, the success was short-lived. As Chelli moved forward to close the distance, Simpson connected with a brutal right uppercut. The challenger was making Chelli guess with his lateral movement and feints.
Chelli was in trouble as he sought to slow the pace down. In the sixth, he landed shots to the midsection, but Smith simply kept coming forward. The challenger ended the round strong, as he had Chelli on the ropes.
Chelli In Trouble
After the halfway stage, Chelli had to increase his work rate. Unfortunately, it remained much the same. Simpson was putting the pressure on heading into the championship rounds. Chelli had to get a KO to retain his hopes of staying champion. While the pair exchanged in the final few moments of the fight, it was too late for Chelli to mount a challenge. Simpson won a wide unanimous decision.
Post-Fight Comments
“It were amazing. the main thing was to not let the occasion get to me. The mantra was to fight the fight and not the occasion and that’s what we did. I showed a bit of inexperience. I’m not really happy with my performance, I made a lot of mistakes but a win’s a win. This is a learning fight and every day’s a school day I’m not the finished article. I want to win the British title outright. [And] I saw Mark Jeffers ringside, he’s a great fighter and he deserves a shot. I want to prove I’m the best domestically and then we can push on,” Simpson said
Other Bouts
Callum Simpson beat Zak Chelli via a unanimous decision (118-111, 118-110, 117-111) for the British and Commonwealth super middleweight titles
Caroline Dubois beat Maira Moneo via a unanimous decision (99-90, 100-89, 100-90); Women’s lightweight
Stephen McKenna beat Joe Laws via a third-round TKO; Light middleweight
Connor Coyle beat Kyle Lomotey by a PTS |(77-75); Middleweight
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