Hamzah Sheeraz Rallies Late to Defeat Bradley Skeete
Undefeated #11 WBO junior middleweight Hamzah Sheeraz (13-0, 9ko) is making a big step up by taking on veteran Bradley Skeete (29-3, 14ko) on the rematch undercard of Lydon Arthur vs Anthony Yarde.
Skeete is a familiar name within the British boxing circles, as he was once a highly-touted talent. He has won several minor titles during his professional run, including the Commonwealth/BBBofC welterweight title, the WBA Inter-Continental title, and the WBO European welterweight title as well. In 2018, he suffered devastating knockout losses to EBU European title holder Kerman Lejarraga and Diego Ramirez. Afterwards, Skeete would walk away from the sport before returning against Dale Arrowsmith in June 2021.
Sheeraz, in the amateurs, made it to the final round of the national junior championships three times. However, he almost walked away from boxing after feeling disappointed in being left out of the Commonwealth Youth tournament. Deciding to give boxing one more try as a professional, he was signed by Frank Warren at the age of 18.
The young prospect made some noise in the sport by winning the WBO European junior middleweight title in his tenth bout. He will be making the fourth defense of the title against the dangerous veteran with a lot of experience in Skeete.
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YOUTH VS EXPERIENCE
Skeete right away took control of the fight from the opening bell, pumping the jab, moving around the ring, and throwing punches in different variations. The older fighter kept the much younger opponent confused with movement and quick combinations that penetrated the high guard of Sheeraz.
The younger undefeated fighter started to get closer by using the jab and a right-hand. However, Skeete quickly responded with hard left hooks to take back control.
As the fight continued, Skeete fought as if he discovered the fountain of youth, boxing off the back foot and making Sheeraz pay with sharp counters after every missed punch. For some reason, Sheeraz kept waiting instead of attacking the more experienced fighter.
LATE FIGHT DRAMA
Sheeraz, in the closing rounds, started turning up the heat. He finally decided to jump on Skeete, who was beginning to slow down. In the eighth round, Sheeraz landed a good overhand right that caused Skeete to take a knee.
However, Sheeraz connected with two hard shots while Skeete was down. After a brief intermission, the referee took a point away from Sheeraz for hitting his downed foe. Upon restarting the round, Sheeraz jumped all over a hurt Skeete, dropping him in the same round.
Skeete barely made it out of the eighth round, and going into the ninth round the fans were on pins and needles. Full of renewed energy, Sheeraz quickly attacked, landing brutal left hooks on the chin. Skeete finally withered from a barrage of punches and went down.
The referee waved the fight off as Skeete was on unstable legs. Sheeraz survived a scare, and he got a good victory over a solid veteran.
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By: Garrisson Bland
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