Lloyd’s emphatically back on winning trail
Lloyd with corner team Pete Hickenbottom (left), Vidor and Roberts
TALL Shifnal heavyweight Jacob Lloyd put the first career loss firmly behind him by taking every round against Ryan Labourn.
On BCB’s Friday night show at WV Active Aldersley, the 22-year-old boxed sensibly, jabbed purposefully, worked the body well and found another gear with every session of the four rounder. Referee Ryan Churchill scored a shut-out 40-36.
That performance has erased any lingering demon’s from Lloyd’s points loss to Craig Nelson in July – and in my humble opinion that defeat, in only his second outing, is not the stuff setbacks are made of.
Nelson was also ambitious and unbeaten: it was a refreshing “live” encounter between two men at the beginning of their journeys.
Who won isn’t important, the experience is. And the experience Lloyd gained in that hard fight is far more valuable than five run-outs against journeymen, in there solely to survive. Those bouts breed bad habits.
Back in my day, no one would’ve batted an eyelid over a result like that. It was part and parcel of serving your apprenticeship.
Sadly, today too many fighters preserve their “0” as if protecting the crown jewels and that hinders development.
Lloyd has a point when he told me: “I think that (the loss to Nelson) gave me credibility – people think I must have something to take a tough fight like that so early on, and I have.
“I think I learned a lot from that, I’ve learned from it, it’s all valuable experience.”
In truth, Laybourn (14st 13lbs), still without a win after 38 starts, didn’t present the stiffest of tests. But fighters like the Bradford southpaw can make things messy and Lloyd didn’t allow that to happen, keeping the visitor honest behind stiff shots before really opening up with both lands.
Laybourn was against the ropes and under severe pressure at the end.
“I’m happy,” Lloyd said, “I did what I needed to do. There was a bit more pressure (because of the loss), I was just thinking, ‘I need to put it right’, that was all I was thinking.
“There was just that little bit more added pressure, that made me more switched on. I channelled it the right way.”
There’s a dilemma for trainer Mitch Roberts. Lloyd weighed 15st for this one – five pounds heavier than for Nelson. He appeared to punch with more authority, looked sturdier and certainly wasn’t carrying any spare baggage.
He’s been billed as a cruiserweight. Presumably, Roberts and fellow coach Lou Vidor are of the mindset that Lloyd can come down to cruiser with the future luxury of “day before” weigh-ins.
He looks like a heavyweight to me. What’s more, at 22 he’ll fill out more. Build him up or boil him down? That’s the question.
*Jacob wishes to thank employers Belvedere High School for giving him the flexibility to train for the bout, while Mitch Roberts has issued a thanks to Toyota Material Handling boss Lee Harley.