The British and Commonwealth title fight between unbeaten super bantamweights Dennis McCann and Brad Strand always looked like it had the potential to steal the show but rather than a great fight, fans were treated to a dominant performance by McCann.

After a one-sided 12 rounds, McCann was awarded a wide unanimous decision. The scores were 118-111, 116-111 and 116-112. 

The fight was always going to have major ramifications for the winner but Liam Davies’s decision to vacate the Lonsdale Belt ahead of his fight with Erik Robles added another layer of intrigue to the eagerly-awaited battle. 

McCann left his long-time trainer, Al Smith, after his bloody draw with Ionut Baluta last August and after a short spell in Los Angeles, settled in Liverpool with Joe McNally. The 23 year old is a confident character and didn’t look for a gimme fight to get used to hearing a different voice in his corner.

McCann may train in Liverpool but Strand, 27, is a scouser through and through. He was a quality amateur who has built his own unbeaten record away from the spotlight and momentum began to build behind him as the fight drew closer. 

McCann set up with his usual wide stance and his southpaw jab was the key punch of the opening round. For his part, Strand was content to sit back and have a look. 

McCann is a clever fighter and he came out for the second round feinting the jab. Strand bit and McCann quickly threw a left hand followed by a brilliant right hook. Strand went down heavily, his face already reddening. McCann’s left hand suddenly couldn’t miss and he hurt Strand again and again with it, although Strand did finally find a right hand as the round ended.

Strand began to find his feet in the third and fourth rounds. He seemed to have begun to work the the constantly moving McCann’s habits and began to spend more time in centre ring and although Strand kept his punch output low, McCann heeded the advice of his corner and remained patient. He hurt Strand towards the end of the fourth with a straight left hand and seemed extremely comfortable with the tempo of the fight. 

McCann began to fire in a straight left hand to the body in the fifth and although Strand’s face was a picture of concentration, he just could find any type of sustained success to build on. He may find a jab or a straight right hand but they were few and far between and McCann’s punches were faster and harder.

Strand was hurt by a left hand to the body in the sixth. McCann began to move and show angles and – bewildered by the variety McCann was presenting him with – Strand offered precious little in return. What was supposedly a pick ’em fight had suddenly turned into something of a showcase for the precocious talent. 

Although the body shots were now troubling him, Strand mounted a stand in the eighth. He tried to to counter McCann with hard punches but his shots had lost their sting and the confident McCann was more than happy to stay in front of him, try to make him miss and capitalise on the extra openings Strand was presenting him with. 

McCann went hunting for a finish in the 10th. He landed a nice right hook, got on the front foot and stalked Strand but loaded up with single shots rather than putting his punches together. Strand just couldn’t find the punches to capitalise on the lulls in action. 

Strand did just that in the 11th and had his best round of the fight. He bravely dug in and outlanded McCann, even forcing him onto the back foot at times with his right hand. Well aware that he was on course for the victory, McCann took his foot off the pedal and all but coasted over the finish line. 

McCann, 15-0-1 (8 KOs), produced the best performance of his career and is now the British and Commonwealth super bantamweight champion. 

Eithan James and Owen Cooper used to share a room together when they were amateurs but tonight the unbeaten welterweights shared the ring as they met for the vacant English welterweight title. 

The switch hitting James fell into his usual rhythm immediately, popping out his jab and moving. Cooper bobbed, weaved and had a brief look at the challenge in front of him before exploding and flattening the 23 year old from Northampton with a picture perfect leaping left hook. 

James clambered to his feet but Cooper jumped on him, letting both hands go. James’ mouthpiece was dislodged during the attack and he was allowed a long, crucial break while it was retrieved and replaced. 

James was being hurt by every shot Cooper landed. His legs were badly stiffened by a right hand and Copper seemingly had no respect whatsoever for the shots that were coming back his way. 

James made it back to his corner but had a mountain to climb. The next couple of rounds were purely a survival mission. James spent the second round boxing as a southpaw but almost instantly the rampaging Cooper found a home for his right hand. Midway through the third he tried switching back to orthodox but circled to his right and directly into Cooper’s left hook.  

James may not have won the fourth but he at least managed to get something of a foothold in the fight. Cooper’s output dropped slightly and James’s kept him out of trouble, moving constantly and picking away with his jab. Cooper just had absolutely no respect for James’ power but seemed to be conserving his energy.

After appearing to give away the fifth, Cooper bounced out for the sixth and hurt James with a pair of right hands. Undoubtedly aware that the fight was almost out of reach, James tried something totally different. He dispensed with the jab and forced Cooper to the ropes where he initiated a long exchange. Cooper was more than happy to oblige and landed the cleaner, harder shots as the taller man left too many gaps. 

Normal service was resumed in the seventh. Cooper pressed forward and although his fire had dimmed slightly, he still landed the significant punches. James picked, poked, moved but was far too upright and had his head rocked back by Cooper’s stiff punches. Midway through the eighth, James put nice double jab, right hand together and Cooper began to spend more and more time on his heels, the pace clearly beginning to tell. If James had felt the tide beginning to turn, however, Cooper ended the round with another sickening left hook. 

The ninth round played out in a similar fashion but once again, Cooper hurt James with a flush left hook and another right hand.

That final sequence persuaded James’ trainer, James Conway, to call referee Michael Alexander over and halt the fight. James, 12-1, wasn’t happy but had no conceivable way to win the fight and Cooper had plenty left in the tank. 

Cooper, 10-0, (4 KOs), was the underdog ahead of the fight but is a former Midlands Area welterweight champion and now holds the English title.

Harry Scarff is the reigning British champion but is waiting for a date for his IBF final eliminator against Karen Chukhadzhian. Last week, the British Boxing Board of Control ordered purse bids for a fight between Scarff and his mandatory challenger, Liam Taylor. 

Cooper will have to wait for his shot but the 23 year old from Worcester proved himself to be a legitimate domestic operator tonight.