Rose dethrones Prince to capture British title
Ben Carey at ringside: Brian Rose outsmarted an out-of-sorts Prince Arron to seize the British light-middleweight title on a split decision at the Robin Park Centre in Wigan last night. Judge Phil Edwards surprisingly preferred Arron’s (largely ineffective) aggression and scored the fight 115-114 in the now former champion’s favour, however judges Victor Loughlin (116-113) and John Keane (117-113) made the well-supported Rose the clear winner, as did BoxRec News.
It wasn’t a classic but tactically Rose fought the perfect fight. He waited for Arron to commit and countered him with accurate single shots and defensively didn’t put a foot wrong. Boxing behind a high held guard, Rose’s (10st 13lbs 8oz) face was a picture of intense concentration where in contrast Arron’s relaxed style always presented an opportunity for him to be hit. Rose made a solid start, drilling Arron with a right hand in the first ten seconds and he also had the edge in speed when the pair traded by getting home with right hand counters as Arron missed wildly.
Arron, who came into this on a 12-fight unbeaten streak, showed none of the qualities that saw him stop Sam Webb to claim the British title with a final round knockout in May. His jab, so often the chief weapon in his arsenal, was ponderous and out of range and his trademark straight right seldom connected with its intended target. Growing in confidence, the shorter Rose even began to outjab Arrron in the third and the Blackpool man followed up with an impressive three-punch salvo off the left hook.
Brian had swept the opening four rounds on my card and an upset suddenly seemed to be a distinct possibility as Arron struggled to find his accuracy. Round five was closer as Rose was not able to punish Arron for overcompensating on his attacks as before. Arron continued to force his attacks but his head was snapped back by a beautiful left hook counter by Rose in the sixth. Brian was fairly conservative with his punch output but his work was of a greater quality and always caught the eye.
After headhunting in the main, Arron switched his focus to the body in round seven and landed with a solid left hook but Rose’s composure never wavered. Try as he might, Arron just couldn’t string together an attack of note and land a fight-changing punch that he now urgently needed. His work lacked accuracy, imagination and urgency as he continued to do the same things which were just not working.
As his title slipped away Arron’s frustration grew. He was warned for rabbit punching by referee Marcus McDonnell in the ninth and had to be restrained by the official after he reacted angrily to a shot that Rose landed just as the bell had sounded to end the tenth session. Referee McDonnell brought both fighters together in the centre of the ring at the start of round eleven and made the former sparring partners touch gloves to curtail any lingering animosity.
Rose’s workrate had notably dipped in the previous two rounds and he was again outworked by Arron in the eleventh who occasionally got through with right hands following some spirited exchanges. It was far too little, too late though for Arron who will be furious with himself when he reviews his performance back on tape.
Rose’s impressive work, particularly in the first half of the contest, had given him a commanding lead and as such he never felt the need to chase the fight and over commit himself where Arron might possibly punish him for a mistake. As expected, Arron poured forward in the final round but Rose tucked up neatly and unleashed a left hook – right hand combination which caused Arron to stumble to the delight of the challenger’s vociferous supporters.
It remains to be seen how long Rose, now 18-1-1 (5), can hold on to the Lonsdale belt, but he deservedly becomes Blackpool’s first British champion since heavyweight Brian London won it half a century ago.
Undercard report to follow.
