Upset king Burns topples Katsidis
Scotland’s Ricky Burns defied the odds once more to lift the vacant WBO interim lightweight title after a unanimous points victory over Australia’s Michael Katsidis at Wembley Arena last night. Burns, in his first outing since relinquishing his WBO world super-featherweight crown due to weight making difficulties, looked the bigger man in the ring against the seasoned Katsidis who was coming down from light-welter.
Burns (9st 9lbs) began by poking out his jab in Katsidis’ face but 45 seconds into the contest the Scot was forced to oblige the rugged Aussie in a toe-to-toe battle. But just as he proved when capturing the WBO super-featherweight crown against Roman Martinez, Burns once again showed that he has the willpower and the skills to dig deep when a fight enters the trenches. After withstanding some spiteful body shots from Katsidis (9st 9lbs) in the opener, Burns took the fight to the visitor and pushed him uncharacteristically onto the back foot in round two, shaking him with a right hand.
Katsidis typically tried to press the action but Burns refused to be intimidated and maintained a tight guard as he stood with his back to the ropes as Michael blindly wailed away in round three. Far from being content to restrict Katsidis from being able to land cleanly, the Scot exuded confidence as he cracked the Aussie with left hooks to the body as he continued to execute his plan perfectly.
Round four was more untidy as the contest, whilst intriguing to watch, failed to ingnite as the fighters wrestled inside. The fifth though clearly belonged to Katsidis as he began to bully Burns for the first time and enjoy more success inside. Ricky got back to his boxing in the sixth however, consistently poking out his jab which didn’t always land cleanly but remained a constant thorn in Katsidis’ side as he struggled to get his own punches off.
Burns had built up a lead in the first half of the contest but began to lose his way in the middle rounds as Katsidis’ persistence finally brought him some much-needed success. In truth, neither fighter was able to dominate this contest and Burns seemed to be content with taking rounds off here and there in an effort to conserve his energy. A left hook to the head momentarily appeared to trouble Ricky in the seventh and a succession of body shots forced the Scot onto the defensive in round eight whose punch output was noticeably dropping now.
The powerful Australian, who hammered Graham Earl and Kevin Mitchell on his two previous visits to Britain, was made to look predictable by Burns who seemed to have more in reserve if he needed it. After taking a round off in the eighth, Burns restablished his effective jab to nullify Katsidis’ attacks in round nine. Michael came back well in the tenth, arguably his most effective session since the fifth, and scored well with some hooks to the body but the battle-hardened slugger from down under had it all to do as the boxers entered the championship rounds.
Burns clearly outboxed Katsidis behind the jab in the eleventh but was content to keep the fight at long range to safely put another round in the bank. The body language of both boxers in twelfth and final round was telling. Burns boxed as though he only needed to remain on his feet to secure victory. In contrast, Katsidis never stopped punching throughout the three minutes but despite mounting a sustained assault he struggled to land a blow of consequence as Burns astutely tucked up behind his watertight guard.
All three judges were in agreement that Burns was a clear winner, 117-111 twice and 117-112. BoxRec News saw it much closer, scoring the bout a draw after giving Burns rounds 2, 3, 4, 6 9 and 11 and Katsidis rounds 1, 5, 7, 8, 10 and 12 but I wouldn’t argue with the decision. Ricky’s victory tonight was far less dramatic than his previous career-best win over Roman Martinez but was arguably of greater substance against a fighter who has repeatedly competed against the lightweight division’s leading contenders. Undoubtedly the 31-year-old Katsidis is coming to the end of his hard career. However, for any lingering doubters who questioned Burns’ right to call himself a world class fighter, the plucky Scot emphatically proved them wrong by upsetting the form book once again.
