Lewis Ritson Wins Clean Victory Over Dejan Zlaticanin
At the Newcastle Arena in Newcastle, England you had a key junior welterweight battle between Lewis “Sandman” Ritson (23-2, 13 KOs) and Dejan Zlaticanin (24-4, 16 KOs) in what was a ten-round contest. Ritson is still in a bit of rebuilding mode following a tenth-round TKO loss to Jeremias Nicolas Ponce in June 2021, where he was knocked down three times prior to being stopped.
He rebounded from that setback with a ninth-round stoppage win over Christian Uruzquita in December of 2021. Ranked twelfth by the IBF and thirteenth by the WBA, Ritson has eyes on a possible world title shot later this year.
Against southpaw Zlaticanin, he faced a fighter who is a former WBC lightweight champion. However, the 37-year-old came into this one on a bit of a downslide having lost three of his previous five fights.
IN CONTROL EARLY
Ritson started matters attempting to fight at distance. He was the busier fighter while working the jab in an attempt to penetrate the high, tight guard of Zlaticanin. Due to the disparity in size, Zlaticanin had to fight outside his comfort zone. He’s not at his best on the front foot but had no choice if he were to land with meaningful shots. However, the former world champ was having an issue combating Ritson’s height and length.
WASH, RINSE, REPEAT
The middle rounds followed a similar pattern. Ritson was not doing anything spectacular. It was just smart, calculated boxing. He continued to work the jab to keep Zlaticanin at bay, then got off with combinations to build up points.
Unfortunately, this resulted in the action becoming rather repetitive and monotonous. But it didn’t matter as the judges scored for the fight in Ritson’s favor in a near shutout (100-90 x2, 99-91). Overall, it was a comfortable win for the victor who, for the most part, did whatever he wanted.
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By: Michael Wilson Jr.
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