By Mark Klimaszewski: Tonight in Liverpool’s Echo Arena, Kevin Mitchell showed he still has the skill and heart to get back on the horse as he handed the ever-game John Murray of Manchester his first defeat. In a thrilling 135lb contest, the two men went at it and gave fans a great domestic war.
In the opening stanza Mitchell looked sharp and seemed to have more pop in his punches. During round two, Murray seemed to have Mitchell in trouble with a few well timed shots but the Dagenham man’s upper body movement saw him slipping and weaving well. In a series of gripping exchanges the rounds flew by and an all action fight certainly gave all present and watching at home their money’s worth.
Mitchell began to find his stride from the end of round four, as Murray continued to plough forward hoping he would wear Mitchell down. Both men threw good shots and landed a fair few too as the action flowed back and forth. By the end of round six it seemed more or less even but round seven saw the Dagenham man start to take control as Murray struggled to find the mark. Mitchell landed plenty in this round and Murray’s face was beginning to show the effects of his poor defence.
Still, the Manchester warrior soldiered on and despite being hurt at the end of the round he seemed to revive a little before coming out for the eighth. Mitchell threw some good shots and Murray even landed a big one of his own, forcing Mitchell to try and hold. Moments later a big, two-punch combination dropped Murray hard. Beating the count he bravely tried to continue but Mitchell went in for the coup de grace and left the referee with no choice but to prevent Murray from taking more punishment.
This fight was expected to be a classic and it certainly delivered on the action front. It was a compelling contest. It now leaves Mitchell with some interesting options and Murray licking his wounds after a first defeat. Mitchell is being rumored to face WBA 135lb champ Brandon Rios in what would be an interesting but very hard-to-win fight for the Dagenham man. Murray now is in the unenviable position of being frozen in the domestic scene for the foreseeable future, which is a shame as he’s battled staunchly over the years to climb the ladder the hard way. With more emphasis on his defence, Murray could and should get back in the mix and try to work his way back up but we shall see.
Alas, a great fight and a great result for Kevin Mitchell who hopefully has his hunger back and can now move on to the world stage once again.