Dublin disappointment as Casey feels the 'Big Bang' from Rigondeaux

Willie Casey was dealt a resounding “Big Bang” last night as the Limerick hero suffered a resounding one-round demolition at the hands of Cuban Guillermo Rigondeaux. Both men were undefeated entering in to the City West Hotel, Dublin showdown but Willie found the speed, power and accuracy of the former two-time Olympic gold medallist just too much to handle.

Having followed Casey’s career from the start it was difficult to watch as the Southill man was comprehensively handled by 30-year-old Rigondeaux in this WBA Interim super-bantamweight duel. Rather than cutting a despondent figure in the dressing room post-fight, Willie was his usual upbeat self as he sat in the corner of the room, having his hand tape cut by a disappointed training team. Chatting cordially to members of the press, microphones and tape recorders all thrust in his direction, Casey went over the post mortem.

“He’s so skillful and clever, which we knew beforehand,” lamented Willie. “His shots came from every angle. Good chin or bad chin, if you get caught with shots like that then you’re going down.”

The first bell had barely sounded; Casey was backed up against the wall and in a desperate battle for survival. He tried to roll the head - a trait that trainer Phil Sutcliffe demands from all of his fighters. He wanted to move from side-to-side, work into punching range and apply the intelligent pressure that his team believed would garner success. It was obvious from the first 20 seconds that Rigondeaux’s speed was phenomenal. A left hook to the body started the downfall. Casey backed off after taking it, he tried to shake off the effects and circle out of danger. Guillermo was nonchalant, stalking into distance with his hands coiled like a spring waiting to unload. Willie was immediately wary, his ribs tingling from moments earlier he tucked his hands down to protect the bruised torso from another onslaught. No problem for Rigo, he just moved upstairs, slamming a left uppercut into Casey’s jaw and forcing the 29-year-old to touch down briefly, his legs dipping to the canvas.

“He showed that he can fight and really punch too,” Casey said afterwards. “In boxing it’s you or them. Unfortunately it was me tonight.”

Casey responded to defeat with the same gracious manner that has endeared him to fight fans throughout a quite amazing rise to prominence. From undercards in Killarney to bill toppers in Limerick and Dublin, in front of thousands of screaming supporters and fighting for European and ‘world’ title bodies’ belts. No wonder he’s been labelled the Cinderella Man of Irish boxing.

But as the old saying goes, all good things must come to an end and knockdown one was the beginning of the end of this unbeaten thrill ride. Casey dragged himself vertical and bounced on the spot; Rigondeaux had already raised an arm aloft as he paraded to the neutral corner. Another lightning bolt flurry reined in on Willie. There was an uppercut, a right to body thrown in there too - who knows which particular blow did the damage. He was down again.

This time it was no flash knockdown. Casey was hurt, but rose bravely and stumbled around the ring on jelly legs, trying to regain his balance. Vastly experienced referee Stanley Christodoulou gave him the benefit of the doubt but clearly signalled that one more trip to canvas and he would rightly call a halt to proceedings. As it happened Casey wasn’t strictly on the floor when he did jump in. It was just moments later, Rigondeaux was teeing off on the ropes, his punches landing with alarming regularity. The South African official held on to Casey and Phil Sutcliffe jumped in to the ring to cradle his charge.

The fans applauded Rigondeaux as he jumped onto a corner man’s shoulders. The supporters in attendance may have seen their hero’s run come to a shattering conclusion but they had also witnessed something special in the ring. Rigondeaux was arguably one of the greatest amateurs of all time and now looks to have all the tools to emulate that success in the professional ranks.

“He was the best amateur and will be just as good as a professional,” lauded Cork manager Gary Hyde, a man who has enjoyed mixed success in bringing Cubans over to Ireland. “Rigondeaux was nervous beforehand but I was even more nervous because I knew that Casey was a warrior and it would take something special to stop him. Guillermo is something special.”

Phil Sutcliffe also had a word post-fight: “Willie is still European super-bantamweight champion so we’ll back again. We just ran into an exceptional fighter tonight. Willie was caught early (from body shots); he stepped back and was hurt. Rigondeaux knew this immediately and just stepped in for the kill.”

“A true champion gets back up and recovers from these set backs,” concluded Casey.

Gary Hyde had two other prospects from his stable on the undercard. Mark ‘Kid Dynamite’ Heffron stopped David Pulido in the third round. Pulido had already tasted canvas from a body blow in the second session. Technically proficient Heffron looked useful and has been around a bit already, fighting in varied locations as he looks to establish himself on the pro game.

Georgian light-welterweight Levan Ghvamichava isn’t the easiest name to remember but it could be worthwhile trying after he dominated former European title challenger Mihaita Mutu over four rounds. Mutu was dropped from a left hook and lost 40-35. It was scheduled as a six-rounder in the official programme and Mutu’s corner were a little perplexed when it was wrapped up after just four.

In the pick of the undercard contests Ian Tims won the vacant Irish cruiserweight title over ten rounds in only his ninth contest. Opponent Michael Sweeney wasn’t in the best of shape yet landed some quality bursts. Tims’ non-stop aggression earned him a 97-95 verdict on Emile Tiedt’s scorecard.

Former European title challenger Affif Belghecham should face a lengthy ban after his disgraceful reaction to being stopped by Anthony Fitzgerald. Fitz unleashed a barrage in the fifth and Affif covered up on the ropes but was not firing back. He is a vastly experienced operator at this level and was not in major difficulty but the referee believed otherwise and dived in. Belghecham pushed the official twice and landed a blow to the throat before security, and Affif’s corner man, pulled him off. It was an early stoppage, but a disgusting end to the fight. Belghecham was cut on the nose and still ranting like a maniac backstage about hometown decisions long after the conclusion.

Former bareknuckle pug Paddy Ward used his huge size advantages to tame Igoris Borucha over four rounds. Paddy secured a 40-36 verdict behind his left jab and has shown great improvements since losing his debut.

Paddy McDonagh outpointed colourful Latvian Jevgenijs Andreevs 60-54 in an all-southpaw encounter.

Christina McMahon opened the show with a fourth-round stoppage of Julia Cvetkova, but suffered a badly cut left eye in the process. Katie Taylor received the second loudest cheer of the evening. She outpointed Spaniard Maria Del Carmen over four-twos in a female amateur affair.