Edwards takes belt in an absolute war
New champ…Jamie Edwards with lightweight belt. Pic: Manjit Narotra/BCB
JAMIE Edwards had to dig deeper than ever before to take the vacant Midlands lightweight title in a brutal, breath-taking, barnstormer of a battle.
The unbeaten Coventry boxer and Harvey Sturton served up a thrilling 10 round scrap that could’ve been scripted by Sly Stallone for his Rocky franchise.
Quite simply, this was one of the best area title battles I’ve witnessed in years: a fight that left spectators drained, the combatants spent. Edwards and Sturton fought as if a world championship was on the line.
On BCB’s show at the WV Active Stadium, Wolverhampton, both punched themselves to the point of near exhaustion. Just when it seemed Edwards, his nose bloody, was on the brink of victory, the incredibly brave Nottinghamshire fighter would rally to force the 28-year-old back.
In the final round, both simply slugged it out for the entire three minutes. By that stage, science had gone out of the window.
When the dust settled, referee Chris Dean scored it for Edwards 95-93, I had the new champ one round up.
The difference between the pair proved a point deducted from Sturton in the third for slapping with the back of his glove and a fifth round knockdown.
For likeable Edwards, now unbeaten in eight, there has been little time to savour the success. He was back at his Jaguar Land Rover day job on Monday.
Of his monumental tussle, Jamie said: “The fans enjoyed it. I knew Harvey was coming for a fight – he can box, he was really tough.”
That’s an understatement. Sturton was a rock in there.
Sturton hits the deck in fifth, but would mount an amazing rally
“I knew I had him (in the fifth),” Jamie said, “I could see in his eyes he wasn’t there. Then the bell saved him, which was a bit disheartening.”
In fact, at the end of the fifth, I confidently told a ringside colleague: “This won’t go another round.” I got that badly wrong.
The end seemed only seconds away after Sturton was sent to the canvas in that session. He was frozen by a big right and sank to the floor under a volley of blows. He rose at four and the bell prevented tall Edwards from launching another attack.
Amazingly, Harvey, from Hucknall, Derbyshire, roared back in the sixth, taking it on my card. I also gave the 22-year-old the seventh as he doubled and tripled jabs, then landed clusters. By that stage, the blows carried little power, but forced Jamie back.
Edwards, blood now pouring from his nose, again grabbed the initiative in the eighth with two heavy right hands. From then on, it was simply a bur of leather as both punched near non-stop to the final bell.
“I learned an awful lot from that,” Edwards said, “it was quite an eye-opener. The last three, two rounds I had to dig deep.
“I got the win, I’m really happy. I know I always find ways to make it harder for myself, I could’ve boxed a lot cleaner.”
The future looks bright for the former standout Coventry Triumph amateur, with some mouthwatering potential matches out there.
He added: “For me, it’s about keeping going up the chain. The English (title) next would be nice. Making weight is always a bit of a struggle, but I made it fairly well for this one.”
It’s too early to confidently predict fans in Wolverhampton on Saturday night witnessed the Midlands fight of the year. Edwards-Sturton will, however, take some beating.