Elation for Tyler Goodjohn as he lands English light-welterweight title
Tyler Goodjohn won a majority decision over Ricky Boylan to secure the English light-welterweight title on his second attempt at the O2 Arena.
The previously unbeaten Boylan, 26, played his part in a domestic classic but was arguably slightly flattered by the judges' scoring cards of 96-96, 96-94 and 96-94 – the latter two in favour of the impressive Goodjohn, who exhibited his boxing skills after a sixth-round cut threatened to spoil the bout.
Goodjohn harnessed the face-off needle between the two to good effect in the opening round – connecting sweetly with several uppercuts that surprised Boylan even if they failed to shake him to his boots. Boylan was more cautious in round two – boxing at range to shade a close session before engaging Goodjohn in toe-to-toe action again in the third, landing some heavy bodyshots while Goodjohn's left hook continued to look dangerous.
Goodjohn was then again on target with some trademark hooks and although Boylan's repeated showboating was perhaps ill-advised, it did prove the Surrey fighter's punch durability. Round five proved a more sedate affair until the final minute, when Goodjohn leaned back on the ropes and proceeded to make Boylan miss with some wild swings and pick his man off with some fierce uppercuts – returning to his corner smiling with his work.
Boylan tried to force the tempo early on in the sixth and the impact was immediate – cornering Goodjohn and firing in a barrage that left the Ely man with a cut above his right eye and a bloodied nose. The cut was ruled to have been caused by a head clash but the round belonged to Boylan regardless.
Goodjohn attempted to establish the jab in the next session, clearly content to box at range but by the standards of a thrilling fight, there was little action to speak of and Boylan continued to find his man tough to pin down in the eighth with Goodjohn using the ring cleverly and keeping exchanges to a minimum.
Although he found himself on the ropes yet again at the start of the ninth, Goodjohn had found a lovely rhythm in slipping Boylan's over-zealous punches and produced enough in terms of attack to keep the judges interested. Boylan threatened to swing the momentum with a sustained flurry at the end of the round only for Goodjohn to throw back before the bell as the crowd roared.
The final round was fought at close quarters as Boylan summoned up all his energy in an attempt to find the knockout he needed, but Goodjohn's defence and punch resistance stood up to the test to secure a deserved victory.
Both fighters proved their worth at the level and pleased fans with their warrior-like performances. A rematch will almost certainly tantalise the public's desire.
Islington middleweight John Ryder got his hands on the WBA Inter-Continental middleweight title with a fifth-round stoppage of late replacement Theophilus Tetteh.
Ryder, 26, had been due to meet Sergey Khomitsky only for the Belarussian to pull out at short notice but Tetteh looked able enough as the pair traded jabs throughout a tentative first round. It was downhill from there for the Ghanaian as Ryder quickly imposed his strength on the bout in round two and began to unleash meaningful short right-hooks from his southpaw stance to visibly trouble his opponent. Tetteh was forced to hold on and by the third round, Richie Davis had seen enough to deduct a point as Ryder continued the assault with more combinations – leaving Tetteh's corner pondering whether to withdraw their man before the fourth. The visitor lasted one more round but in the fifth, having already been deducted another point for holding and appearing exhausted, Davis called an end to the contest following a stinging right hook and piercing follow-up jab.