Luke Campbell, Gavin McDonnell Get Big Wins in Hull

By Alexey Sukachev

Hull Arena, Hull - 2012 London Olympics bantamweight gold medalist Luke Campbell (9-0, 7 KOs) won his first international accolades with a dominating fifth-round stoppage of rugged Argentinean Daniel Eduardo Brizuela (now 26-4-2, 8 KOs). Brizuela was earlier showcased in one of the best 2014 fights against Tommy Coyle (with no less than 8 knockdowns and 2 point deductions).

Campbell was faster, bigger and more skillful. His advantage piled up as rounds went by. He repeatedly hurt Brizuela in rounds three and four, almost dropping the Argentinean late into the latter round. The British fighter continued to demolish the Latino import in the fifth and finally dropped him with a left hand. He jumped on Brizuela right after the Argentinean got up and soon forced referee Ingo Barrabas to call it of on a succession of punches.

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Gavin McDonnell, the heavier sibling of ex-IBF bantamweight champion Jamie McDonnell, acquired his first international title against a grizzled veteran in South African Vusi Malinga with a close unanimous decision.

McDonnell, a bigger fighter of the two, controlled the action in majority of the rounds, while Malinga, 34 and six years older than McDonnell, looked better in the opening rounds and at the very end. The decisive difference was round eight, when McDonnell scored a quality knockdown with a counter right hand to the jaw of Malinga.

At the end, the judges saw it 115-112 and 116-111 (twice) - for the new WBO international super bantamweight champion Gavin McDonnell (12-0-2, 4 KOs). Malinga is down to 21-6-1, 12 KOs, with 1-3 in his last four fights.

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Promising junior welterweight Robbie Davis Jr. (7-0, 4 KOs) scored an important sixth-round TKO over experienced (but younger) and upset-minded Georgian Kakhaber Avetisian (36-26-1, 18 KOs). Davis dominated the fight with his skill and his jab. He dropped down Avetisian in round five with a combination of body punches, then again at the beginning of the sixth. The Georgian bravely fought on but was soon stopped on his feet by referee Michael Alexander at 0:53 of the round.

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