Last Saturday’s Matchroom boxing card saw British 140-pound contender Dalton Smith overcome American multi-world title challenger Jose Zepeda in a groundbreaking knockout victory. The two super lightweights headlined at the Sheffield Arena in Smith’s hometown of Sheffield on March 23rd, and further saw British WBO welterweight champion Sandy Ryan retain her title in her own emphatic victory over fellow Brit Terri Harper.
Dalton Smith (16-0, 12 KO’s) retained his unbeaten record and further collected the WBC Silver super lightweight/junior welterweight title as he coursed to a knockout (KO) win against Jose Zepeda (37-5, 28 KO’s) in the fifth round of their twelve-round bout. Despite the result, the match proved evenly-sided up until Smith caught Zepeda with a crunching right to the body that dropped the American and ultimately resulted in him being counted out.
There were vulnerabilities at display for Smith as Zepeda showed his aptitude on the front foot, pushing Smith back and causing some issues when several shots of Zepeda leaked through. However, Smith soon regained himself as he gradually figured Zepeda out through his counters.
Around the half-mark of the fifth round, Dalton Smith was winning the round more easily with his counters, and a body shot from a arduous set of combinations sent Jose Zepeda to one knee, and eventually counted out to make Smith the winner by knockout as Zepeda failed to rise on time.
With his victory, Dalton Smith has put himself in a position where he might fight for a title soon, with two fighters associated with Matchroom each bearing a world title that should see it more likely for Smith to gain an opportunity against either WBC champion Devin Haney (31-0, 15 KO’s) or IBF champion Subriel Matias (20-1, 20 KO’s) in the near future―depending on the outcome of their upcoming fights.
While there are still question marks surrounding Dalton Smith’s ability to fight the very top of the division, as Jose Zepeda is now the only opponent he’s faced that has fought for a world title, his showing will likely have made him close to a top contender. Additionally, the vacant WBC Silver title that Smith won may have positioned the Brit as a future challenger for Haney’s title, depending on how he will be ranked by the WBC next.
The Sheffield-held event also saw WBO welterweight champion Sandy Ryan (7-1-1, 3 KO’s) defend her title successfully against Terri Harper (14-2-2, 6 KO’s) in a ten-round title bout. It was a dominating showing for Ryan who wiped away the disappointment of drawing against Jessica McCaskill (12-3-1, 5 KO’s) during her last fight by soundly beating Harper.
From the first round until the fourth, Ryan launched an onslaught of punches that Harper was unable to deal with. Physically, Ryan’s seemingly endless amount of volume punches and pressure on the front foot saw Harper endure a formal beating in the ring, and the match was stopped by Harper’s corner following the fourth round that had seen Harper suffer the most devastating damage of the match.
Sandy Ryan was announced the winner by referee technical decision/corner stoppage (RTD), retaining her WBO title in the process with her likely angling for a rematch with Jessica McCaskill that had been a unification match involving two of McCaskill’s world titles [WBA and WBC].
Given McCaskill is expected to be stripped of her WBC title for not facing a mandatory challenger, an opportunity has now recently opened up for Ryan to divert from a rematch and face the highest-rated contender on the WBC’s welterweight rankings for potentially the vacant WBC title as she is already ranked at #2. Ivana Habazin (22-5, 7 KO’s) is ranked at #1 above her, and due to having been McCaskill’s WBC mandatory will be fighting over the vacant WBC title in the near future.
The Matchroom card also saw Campbell Hatton (14-1, 5 KO’s), son of legendary British two-division world champion Ricky Hatton, suffer his first career loss [by unanimous decision] to James Flint (14-1-2, 3 KO’s) in a 140 lbs contest for the BBBofC (British Boxing Board of Control) Central Area title―that was held and defended by Flint.
It was a pivotal experience for the 23-year old Hatton who found his level of ability not yet high enough to challenge for the BBBofC national British title, with Flint clearly winning most of the rounds of their ten-round contest. With Hatton having been expected to win, he has suffered a mild setback to his career that can be redeemed through a likely rematch.
However, going forward, Campbell Hatton’s development in the pro ranks will remain under scrutiny as the son of a British boxing legend attempts to come back from his loss in what will be a high-stakes match for him if he faces James Flint in a rematch. With the expectations of his accomplished father hanging above his head, the time Hatton has to improve enough for a potential rematch will be slim, making for what may be his last chance in several years to become considered a serious and genuine contender if he loses to Flint again.
