Lewis Crocker vs. Paddy Donovan | DAZN - 1 March 2025

[rd350lc]

Very odd tactics from the Croc , stay in range , get punched lots and throw the odd counter in the clinches .
Donovan got his number for sure .

[margaret thatcher]

sean been on tonight

no sympathy for paddy he was dirty as hell throughout and didnt reel it in when he easily coulda won clean. he was impressive yet unimpressive at same time

As usual, you’ve put my thoughts out better than I could.

No sympathy.

[mickey1975]

Does Hearn promote them both?

Most probably but the money is with Crocker particularly with that sell-out Belfast crowd.

They're a very knowledgeable crowd, though, they know Crocker got beaten up tonight.

[margaret thatcher]

Very odd tactics from the Croc , stay in range , get punched lots and throw the odd counter in the clinches .
Donovan got his number for sure .

ever since his comeback post mtk he has fought this way, just wade forward and wing in shots. maybe fell for some of this puncher hype he started getting. he used to box and move and counter very nicely, was very high on him but hes been a loss waiting to happen for a bit now

tbh donovan was so much on top that a rematch wouldnt even interest me despite croc getting the w. donovan is a really good boxer so hope someone can reign him in mentally

[Delta Jay]

Very odd tactics from the Croc , stay in range , get punched lots and throw the odd counter in the clinches .
Donovan got his number for sure .

ever since his comeback post mtk he has fought this way, just wade forward and wing in shots. maybe fell for some of this puncher hype he started getting. he used to box and move and counter very nicely, was very high on him but hes been a loss waiting to happen for a bit now

Nah it was a shite gameplan. He might’ve had a misguided assumption that Paddy’s tank might run dry and thought the best way to empty it was doing whatever that was. Nothing like a Plan B. I’m starting to think Paddy was too thick or too conceited to adjust or maybe just kept going with what was working. I would love to hear every word in on the corners between rounds.

Paddy could’ve pissed that in second gear and threw it away playing derty

[steve689]

Just home from the fight. A very odd evening. The place erupted into a near-riot after the decision. Didn't do a good job of settling it down.

Donovan well ahead but those elbows and headbutts helped cause the damage on Crocker's face. Hard to know what to make of it.

[gilgamesh]

Honestly if I were Crocker I may go ahead and take my mandatory shot at a title off of this because it's likely the only chance he'll ever get. If he does the rematch with Donovan 1st he'll lose, and I wouldn't be confident he can ever get back to mandatory title status.

Don't get me wrong. He'll get his ass thoroughly kicked by Jaron Ennis, but at least he'll be able to say he fought for the World Title.

[Ruthless-RKO]

compubox stats

[Ruthless-RKO]

Main card

Paddy Donovan def. Lewis Crocker by DQ (R8, 3:00)
Craig Richards def. Padraig McCrory by TKO (R8, 1:47)
Kurt Walker def. Leon Woodstock by majority decision (95-95, 97-93, 96-94)
Steven Ward def. Tommy McCarthy by TKO (R6, 1:17)

Prelims

Ruadhan Farrell def. Gerard Hughes by points (79-73)
Elif Nur Turhan def. Shauna Browne by TKO (R1)
Jack O’Neill def. Mohammed Wako by points (39-36)
Aaron Bowen def. Juan Cruz Cacheiro by points (60-54)

[Delta Jay]

Honestly if I were Crocker I may go ahead and take my mandatory shot at a title off of this because it's likely the only chance he'll ever get. If he does the rematch with Donovan 1st he'll lose, and I wouldn't be confident he can ever get back to mandatory title status.

Don't get me wrong. He'll get his ass thoroughly kicked by Jaron Ennis, but at least he'll be able to say he fought for the World Title.

That’s why I was on about. He’ll be able to spin this into two high paying fights

[high tower 1]

Just home from the fight. A very odd evening. The place erupted into a near-riot after the decision. Didn't do a good job of settling it down.

Donovan well ahead but those elbows and headbutts helped cause the damage on Crocker's face. Hard to know what to make of it.

Many good scraps in the crowd ??

Always thought that crowd was a recipe for disaster - loyalists v gypsies.

[jameswilson]

Just home from the fight. A very odd evening. The place erupted into a near-riot after the decision. Didn't do a good job of settling it down.

Donovan well ahead but those elbows and headbutts helped cause the damage on Crocker's face. Hard to know what to make of it.

Many good scraps in the crowd ??

Always thought that crowd was a recipe for disaster - loyalists v gypsies.

Is that the only two demographics in a Belfast crowd?

[forcefraser]

Just home from the fight. A very odd evening. The place erupted into a near-riot after the decision. Didn't do a good job of settling it down.

Donovan well ahead but those elbows and headbutts helped cause the damage on Crocker's face. Hard to know what to make of it.

Many good scraps in the crowd ??

Always thought that crowd was a recipe for disaster - loyalists v gypsies.

Is that the only two demographics in a Belfast crowd?

Donovan is from travelling stock isn't he?

[handsofstone]

As much as I sympathize with Donovan the ref got it right imo, both were a big reckless with the head but Donovan more so, Crocker didn't quite merit points off but Donovan despite dominating was more dangerous and cut Crocker up, can't complain about the deductions, he was warned plenty times, shame as he was brilliant Donovan, befuddled Crocker all night with his movement, mixed up the speed and variety, showed the angles and Crocker couldn't cope, Crocker tried to mix it up but was second best nearly every time, got through with the odd left hook but Donovan boxed brilliantly, just a shame he couldn't stay legal, he finally got to Crocker in the 8th, dropping him, seconds left of the round he waded in, the bell went and Donovan decked him with a right hook, it's a DQ especially with the damage to Crocker from headbutts

I feel for both men tbh

[TheLeprechaun]

First of all Marcus McDonnell is one of the most bent referees I've ever seen. However, in this fight, I think Paddy can only blame himself. He was definitely going in with the head. I know Crocker was coming forward and Paddy was trying to control the range and get the best of any head clash if it was going to happen but if you just watch the fight and watch what he's doing with his head, I think it was excessive. Crocker was outclassed and Paddy was the better fighter. Punching after the bell was just terribly stupid, especially when the ref has been on your case and Crocker is ready to go. A real petulance and lack of control. Then crying and running around the ring. He will learn from this and control his emotions better. If he was clinical about it he wouldn't have taken that last shot. I absolutely despite Marcus McDonnell because as I said, in my view he's as bent as a two bob note, but in this case the DQ was fine. I think Andy Lee should have worked on Paddy controlling his emotions more. I never understand why fighters hit opponents when they are down or after the bell, especially when they are well in control of the fight.

Paddy can come again. Crocker won't have the rematch unless big money is thrown his way which I don't think will happen. Paddy will improve on this bigtime and become a better fighter and stronger man. He will be a force moving forward. He showed he could fight well inside and we know he can fight well outside. He did get hit a bit too much for my likings but he showed his own power and he was always doing smart movements up close to try to take the sting out of any shots coming his way. He's a good fighter. I'll be tuning in to his next fight. As for Crocker, he's basic and plodding. High guard and coming forward. He will get blasted out when he moves up. It's not a style that you can win a world title with unless you get exceptionally good matchmaking.

[high tower 1]

Many good scraps in the crowd ??

Always thought that crowd was a recipe for disaster - loyalists v gypsies.

Is that the only two demographics in a Belfast crowd?

Donovan is from travelling stock isn't he?

Crocker from a v old loyalist areas in the city centre. Donovan a Limerick gypsy.

[Stevieaber]

It seems to have been overlooked, but Donovan missed with a left after the bell BEFORE he threw the last punch.
Considering he’d already lost two points he was always going to get booted out.
Total lack of control that lost him a fight that he was going to win by stoppage.
He needs to grow up and stop making excuses. Learn from the experience and move on.
It now that he needs to show some character.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Eddie Hearn predicts Paddy Donovan rematch would be bigger for Lewis Crocker than Boots Ennis fight

BELFAST – Promoter Eddie Hearn was last night caught in a crossfire, but came out admitting he felt it was only fair that Paddy Donovan landed a rematch with Lewis Crocker.

Donovan was on top in their hotly-anticipated fight and he had floored Crocker in the eighth before nailing him moments after the bell to end the fight having been penalized for a third time.

Hearn tried to unpack the mayhem straight afterwards.

“There are a lot of mixed opinions. In an isolated incident, and as a culmination of things,” Hearn explained of the finale. “When that punch lands after the bell – and it was after the bell – it was very close to after the bell but it was after the bell. I will acknowledge Andy [Lee]’s point about when he [Donovan] was going for the finish and the ref hears the 10 seconds, ‘Bang,’ be there, to be close to the action, so when the bell goes you step in. There’s so much noise going on, but in that instance, it’s not easy always to hear the bell.”

Donovan had lost points for using his elbow and his head, but many felt Crocker had been as culpable for heads coming together frequently as the Limerick man. But Crocker avoided warnings from referee Marcus McDonnell, who admonished Donovan as early as round one.
“Regarding the heads, I think there were use of the heads some times,” said Hearn. “Both guys were leading in with heads a lot of the time. I think one of them [the rulings] was very harsh on Paddy, another time he did lean in with his head. It wasn’t the cleanest of fights at times, but I have to be honest, when the punch landed after the bell, I expected the ref to say, ‘Okay, this is an isolated incident. I’m going to give you time now, to recover and everything.’ That’s what I thought he was doing. He went over to Lewis. He helped him to get up. Then I thought he was going to decide what to do and give him time to recover to restart the fight, but what he did was give an instant disqualification.

“I feel like, in these instances, the referee should come and talk to the media. I really feel like there should be an explanation why he feels that was a disqualification. I think, honestly, it’s a very mixed reaction. Some people think he should have been disqualified, other people think he shouldn’t have been disqualified, but I think the fouls in the fight are something we have to look back on, because it was that kind of fight.”

Hearn, like the 8,000 in the venue, had been impressed with Donovan. He was in charge and Crocker’s time was nearly up in the fight. That was Hearn’s belief, too.

“Unfortunately, for Paddy, it was when the fight was nearly over and it was the shot that dropped him [Crocker],” added Hearn. “All the things couldn’t have gone really worse. If he doesn’t get dropped there, if he hits him on the gloves… In another world, who knows? He [Donovan] boxed out of his skin. He was winning the fight comfortably. He was on his way to winning the fight. Unfortunately, he did land a shot after the bell in the heat of the moment when you can’t really hear things.”

Hearn, who works with both fighters, said beforehand that the winner would get their IBF title fight likely at home, with Donovan boxing in Limerick and Crocker back in Belfast – in anticipation of Jaron Ennis at some point relinquishing his title. As it stands, he will have to wait to see what the IBF decides to do with Team Donovan’s appeal.

“It’s difficult for me because I’ve got both fighters,” said Hearn. “I’ve got [Crocker’s coach] Billy Nelson shouting at me saying I’m bias to Paddy Donovan, then I’ve got Paddy Donovan before the fight thinking, ‘Eddie Hearn has brought me to Belfast.’ You can’t win.

“Would I like to see a rematch? Yes. Would I be trying to make a massive rematch in the summer? Yes. If I was Billy Nelson and Lewis Crocker, would I take the rematch? I don’t know.

“There’s going to be a lot of pressure on Lewis Crocker to take the rematch. When the dust settles and you realize how big the rematch is, financially, you realize that the IBF might say, ‘Tough shit, you’ve got to do it.’”

Hearn was then asked whether there was any way that he could see Donovan and Crocker fight for the vacant IBF title. Incumbent champion Ennis is bidding to unify on April 12 against WBA ruler Eimantas Stanionis in Atlantic City, but Hearn has long said Boots will be moving north to 154 sooner than later.

“That’s a very good point, and that would probably be the icing on the cake, if there was a vacant title on the line,” Hearn said of a possible rematch.

“He [Crocker] may take the rematch. He may feel under pressure, ‘no I want to prove myself, I didn’t perform tonight, all my fans want to see the rematch…’ I would say, financially the rematch with Paddy Donovan is bigger than a fight with Jaron Ennis. There you go. That’s how big this rematch would be.”

[cormack]

I was out and got back just in time for the last 4 / 5 and was dissapointed by crockers output but also angered by donovans dirty cheat behaviours - which he didnt need to be doing , clearly the better boxer and by then crocker was like a pirate with an eyepatch .

the DQ was merited but stupid .

Crocker and Nelso probably couldnt believe their luck .

[Old bones Ian]

Does Donovan get paid? It was always purse withheld don't know if that's still the case

[Coco]

Does Donovan get paid? It was always purse withheld don't know if that's still the case

Normally your purse is held back minus expenses.

Then you wait for the next board meeting where there is a hearing, and they will decide how much the fine is.

[steve689]

Just home from the fight. A very odd evening. The place erupted into a near-riot after the decision. Didn't do a good job of settling it down.

Donovan well ahead but those elbows and headbutts helped cause the damage on Crocker's face. Hard to know what to make of it.

Many good scraps in the crowd ??

Always thought that crowd was a recipe for disaster - loyalists v gypsies.

Yeah a few good scraps. Chairs flying and all. Needed the police to settle them down. Security nonexistent for a good while.

[keithmoonhangover]

compubox stats

The punch stats are surprisingly close for most of the rounds. Donovan was winning, but I do think Crocker (and his face) would have done a lot better without the elbow and all the headbutts. The shot after the bell was totally unforgivable and it was nice to see a referee do the right thing for a change.

[Callowland]

Does anyone know if the scorecards for British title fights are released like this.

[gilgamesh]

I thought Crocker had won a few rounds, and with the point deductions he was still in the fight for sure, but the momentum was in Donovan's favor. He just kept fouling.

I knew as soon as he knocked him down, and said out loud "That was after the bell" the moment it happened. I just knew that was one of them cases where it's too clearly late to be forgiven. If you get the guy right at the moment the bell is ringing, you may have squeaked it in, but 1 or 2 beats after the bell has rang. No that's too much. Referee really had no choice, but to DQ him there on the heels of 2 point deductions for fouls already.