Prizefighter Results
Ovill McKenzie Triumphs in the Cruiserweight Prizefighter Tournament
May 20, 2009
McKenzie, who was a late addition to the series following the withdrawal of Mark Krence, scooped the £25,000 cheque put up by promoter Barry Hearn as a reward for winning the popular all-in-one-night tournament.
Prizefighter Quarter Finals
The night's action started with four quarter finals that had been drawn the week prior to the event.
In QF1, bookies favourite Dean Francis defeated Neil Simpson via a 3rd round stoppage following a confident display. Francis was dominant throughout the fight and forced the referee to step in early in the final round after catching Simpson with a flurry of unanswered punches.
The second QF proved a lot tighter as John Keaton progressed through after a close points decision against veteran Bruce Scott. The telling moment came in the 1st round as Keaton scored an early knockdown as Scott suffered an onslaught of heavy blows. Scott rallied well in the 2nd, but couldn't do enough overall to turn the fight around.
QF3 saw the popular Terry Dunstan defeated by Ovill McKenzie. Dunstan was simply not quick enough as McKenzie picked his opponent off and even knocked down Dunstan in the 2nd which proved enough for the judges at the end of the fight.
The fight of the round came in QF4 with Darren Corbett defeating Mickey Steeds on points in a brutally hard hitting contest. Corbett scored an early knockdown in the 1st after a huge right hand rocked the Londoner. Steeds came back well in the 2nd, but Corbett continued his dominance in the 3rd and got the decision at the bell.
Semi Finals Produce Shocks
Both Prizefighter semi finals went against the odds in two excellent fights.
In SF1, John Keaton provided the shock of the night as he defeated Dean Francis after a surprise 1st round stoppage. Francis simply couldn't handle the full on offence delivered by Keaton.
An aggressive Keaton came out on the attack from the bell and knocked Francis down early in the 1st. A groggy Francis struggled to clear the cobwebs and was down again less than a minute later as Keaton continued to land heavy blows. This time the ref had seen enough and stopped the fight, which saw Keaton progress to the final.
SF2 saw Ovill McKenzie come up against the hard hitting Irishman, Darren Corbett. Significantly, Corbett got very little rest following his gruelling QF due to the early finish in SF1.
That didn't seem to hamper Corbett in round 1 as both fighters fought a close round. McKenzie, who looked a shade quicker, caught his opponent inside a few times while Corbett landed some more big hits with his more aggressive style.
Round 2 was fought at a quicker pace, which favoured McKenzie. A flurry of combos early on led to a knockdown from McKenzie on a tired Corbett. The Irishman valiantly continued but was subjected to more quick combos as McKenzie went for the kill.
A second knockdown led to the referee stopping the fight and awarding McKenzie the victory that sent him into the final.
An Epic Prizefighter Finale
The final saw a resilient John Keaton take on the impressive Ovill McKenzie for the Prizefighter trophy.
Round 1 saw a composed McKenzie land the better punches as Keaton, sporting a nasty black eye, struggled to keep pace.
The 2nd saw both men up the pace as Keaton came out landing some big hits as McKenzie ducked and dived to land more telling blows of his own.
With Keaton down on points,the last round became a slugfest as both men looked for a knockout blow at a furious pace. McKenzie landed more significant punches as a dogged Keaton left himself open as he searched for one big hit.
As the bell rung, the crowd gave both men a standing ovation for a thrilling fight. The judges unanimously declared a jubilant McKenzie the victor as Barry Hearn presented the Prizefighter trophy to the deserved winner to round off an excellent night's entertainment.
