Big time boxing returned to the Co-op Live in Manchester, for the second week running. This time it was Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing who were in town, with Jack Catterall topping the bill against the Mexican-American, Arnold Barboza Jr. The main card was littered with domestic dust-ups, along with some top prospects on the prelims, earlier in the evening.
It was a solid night of action in Manchester, it was also a nice bonus for the action to be finished by 10:30pm – a result of Eddie Hearn experimenting with start and finish times. Below you will find my overall rating of the action, look out for the ‘My Fights to Make Next” section at the end of this review.
Performance of the night: Arnold Barboza Jr.
Fight of the night: Reece Bellotti Vs Michael Gomez Jr.
Barboza Jr def. Jack Catterall (MD12).
Arnold Barboza Jr squeezed past Jack Catterall, winning via split decision to set up a clash with unified champion (WBO & Ring Magazine) Teofimo Lopez, or not…
It’s likely Teofimo Lopez will be looking for bigger fights than what Barboza Jr can offer him, there’s talk of Lopez taking on the IBF 140lb champion, Richardson Hitchins. If that were to happen, Lopez would be stripped of his WBO title with Arnold Barboza Jr being upgraded to the full champion. That’s how high the stakes were at the Co-op live, on the 15th February. You have to feel for Jack Catterall, he arguably should have been undisputed champion back in 2022, and brutally fell at the final hurdle against Barboza Jr.
Catterall and Barboza Jr both struggled to dominate. Early rounds were marked by tentative exchanges, with neither fighter committing fully. As the fight progressed, they began landing more significant punches, making it difficult to separate them throughout the contest.
Catterall displayed effective counter-punching and movement in parts, but Barboza Jr’s resilience and body shots kept the fight competitive. Significant moments included Catterall’s sharp counters and Barboza Jr’s body work, and a controversial slip in the 10th round that could have been ruled a knockdown, and thus influencing the scorecards. In the 11th round, Catterall pressed forward aggressively, while Barboza Jnr defended well and countered with precision.
The final round was marked by strategic exchanges and tension as both fighters believed they were ahead. One judge scored the bout 115-113 in favor of Catterall, with the other two scoring it 115-113 for Barboza Jr, and ultimately awarding him the victory. Barboza Jr was rightly delighted when he was announced as the winner, while Catterall was visibly disappointed.
Reece Bellotti def. Michael Gomez Jr (RTD10).
After a last minute cancellation (literally) from their originally scheduled bout, Reece Bellotti finally got his hands on Michael Gomez Jr. Bellotti successfully defended his super featherweight British & Commonwealth titles by beating Gomez Jr into submission, who was pulled out by his corner before the tenth round.
Gomez Jr started the fight by pressing forward with a high guard, Bellotti targeted the body of Gomez Jr early, a sign of things to come…
Bellotti continued to aggressively target Gomez Jr’s body, causing significant damage and forcing him to lower his guard for protection. By the third round, Bellotti’s powerful body shots were taking a visible toll on Gomez Jr. In the fifth round, Bellotti’s forceful attacks resulted in Gomez Jr collapsing to the ground after absorbing several brutal blows. Despite getting up at the count of nine and courageously continuing, Gomez Jr was clearly struggling.
Gomez Jr was moaning in pain, in his corner at the end of the fifth round. His trainer, Michael Jennings was giving instructions to box on the back-foot when Gomez Jr responded with “I can’t, I can’t”.
Gomez Jr had a brief resurgence in the seventh round but continued to suffer from Bellotti’s effective body shots. In the eighth round, another punishing blow forced Gomez Jr down again, leaving him in significant pain and increasingly desperate.
By the ninth round, Gomez Jr’s bruised torso clearly showed the effects of Bellotti’s unrelenting attack on his midsection. Recognising the toll the fight had taken, Gomez Jr’s trainer, Michael Jennings, decided enough was enough and retired his fighter from the action.
It was another great win for Reece Bellotti, who has revived his career by winning six straight fights against a crop of impressive domestic opposition.
Pat McCormack def. Robbie Davies Jr (RTD6).
McCormack was superb, there’s no two ways about it. He brutally defeated the former British, Commonwealth and European champion, Robbie Davies Jr. Davies Jr subsequently retired from boxing following completion of the bout, bringing an end to his successful career as a fighter.
McCormack was levels above Davies Jr, from the word go. His ramrod jab and superb footwork allowed him comprehensively outbox Davies Jr, before eventually forcing Davies Jr’s corner to retire their fighter.
The third round marked the beginning of the end for Davies Jr, as McCormack landed a sharp left jab and right straight combination that sent him to the canvas. Pat McCormack didn’t rush his work, he stalked Davies Jr around the ring and bounced in and out of range, whilst landing straight shots. Seconds before the end of the third round, McCormack landed the very same combination, and sent Davies Jr to the canvas for a second time in the round.
McCormack continued to dominate the fight in the fourth round, but Davies Jr managed to survive the round without hitting the canvas. After a momentary break in the fifth round for a low blow, McCormack forced Davies Jr to take a knee, after landing a hard jab followed by a right hook. A jaded Davies Jr looked over to his corner, but rose to his feet once more. At the end of the round, Davies Jr’s trainer, Anthony Crolla, vowed that he would only allow the content to go one more round, if the punishment continued.
The sixth round showed no signs of encouragement for Robbie Davies Jr. At the end of the round we got a great insight into the trainer and fighter relationship, as Anthony Crolla said, “It’s just looking really unlikely, yeah? I care too much about you, yeah? Listen, you’ve not done much wrong, you’ve just come across a very good kid who’s just a little bit too sharp for you.” That was that, Anthony Crolla pulled Davies Jr out of the fight, and ultimately brought a close to his 12 year professional career.
Jazza Dickens def. Zelfa Barrett (UD10).
Jazza Dickens revitalised his career with a vintage performance against the underwhelming hometown favourite, Zelfa Barrett. Barrett was unable to make use of his size advantage, as Dickens effectively bounced in and out of range throughout the fight.
Barrett’s woes against southpaws continued, and in the end he was comprehensively outboxed by Jazza Dickens. Barrett’s corner were desperately trying to get him to increase the tempo, but as the fight went on, and the rounds ticked away, Dickens was able to successfully pick him off with his consistent counter-punching.
It’s a long road back for Zelfa Barrett, who went into the fight with kicking on towards his word title ambitions. However, you would have to assume there’s a couple more big nights left, in the story of Jazza Dickens.
Prelims Results
- Conner Tudsbury def. Sadaam Da Silva Caetano (TKO2).
- William Crolla def. Ayoub Zakari (TKO1).
- Aqib Fiaz def. Lydon Chircop (TKO3).
- Alfie Middlemiss def. Caine Singh (PTS4).
My Fights to Make Next.
- Arnold Barboza Jr Vs Teofimo Lopez.
- Jack Catterall Vs Liam Paro.
- Reece Bellotti Vs Zelfa Barrett.
- Pat McCormack Vs Conah Walker.
- Jazza Dickens Vs Josh Warrington.
