Maxi Hughes wins Kid Galahad to keep his lightweight IBO title and continue his impressive resurgence in the sport.
Galahad returned to the ring after a shocking knockout loss to Spain’s Kiko Martinez. The Sheffield-based boxer jumped into two weight classes for this light bout, coming in with the heaviest of his career.
Maxi Hughes entered the arena in a haphazard manner after a six-game winning streak in his career that has seen him decline in the past.
The fight never quite caught on fire, with Hughes fighting off his south side and Galahad orthodox with a switch south or two in the middle innings. Referee Marcus McDonnell had an ongoing conversation with Galahad about the squeeze, shove and eventually head lead, for which he deducted a point in the tenth half.
At his best, Hughes is moving to score some bigger shots and rush out in time to miss any retaliation. Galahad, despite his leaping weight, handles pace well throughout the game but often has trouble building his shot.
Mixing the two counter-attacking styles is never entirely logical, and no fighter seems to be constantly left out, perhaps with the risk of losing another fight always on their mind. It’s a battle of jabs and distances for most of the fight, with the action speed increasing towards the end.
The eleventh adds a bit of intrigue with both warriors willing to trade. Galahad’s work opened a cut above Hughes’ left eye that some will have to consider. It all culminated in a final round that they both desperately wanted to make.
The official scoreboard has one draw and two in favor of the champion. 114-114, 114-113 and 116-111. As the numbers were read out at Nottingham Arena, Galahad left the ring sharply, followed by his team and coach, Dominic Ingle.
After his victory, Hughes and his promoter, Eddie Hearn, expressed interest in a war over large US dollars, with Ryan Garcia was mentioned as a potential competitor.
Elsewhere on the card, Terri Harper defeated Hannah Rankin of Scotland for a unanimous decision win, taking the WBA superweight title.
