McDonnell vs Nelson
1. 10-9. McDonnell. Azumah started faster but as the round slowed Jim boxed well, making Azumah miss, wildly at times. Close round
2. 10-9. McDonnell. I like what McDonnells doing here, boxing well and even outworking Azumah. Nelson really isn't the most graceful here
3. 10-10. Lots of good body shots from both, McDonnell choosing when to back up, when to stand his ground. Turn into a bit of a war toward the end
4. 10-9. McDonell. controls it well when he moves and keeps it at range with ones and twos, needs to stick to this as Azumah doesn't cut off the ring
5. 8-10. Nelson. That man can bang, just starting to come into the round then folds McDonnell with a cracking left that he never saw coming.
6. 10-9. McDonnell. Not sure about anyone else, but I'm still scoring these to McDonnell, looks the better fighter when he's boxing and moving
7. 9-10. Nelson. Azumah starting to turn the sbrew and McDonnell feeling the pace. Interesting to see the Archie Moore style cross armed defense
8. 10-9. McDonnell. Started well but Nelson came on strong and rocked him a couple times but over all Jim just did enough for me
9. 10-10. Nelson started fast and pressured early and countered well, thought he might take it but McDonnell stuck at it and took a share in second half
10. 10-9. McDonnell again, standing his ground for long spells, has a feel of Rocky Burns vs Rocky Martinez, where I spent the entire fight screaming at Ricky to get on his bike, yet he did so well in the exchanges with a dangerous puncher
11. 9-10 Nelson, close round but McDonnell starting to run out of steam.
12. KO Nelson. That was heart breaking. I knew the stoppage was coming, but hadn't expected McDonnell to have done so well in the fight. I found myself willing McDonnell on even though I knew he got stopped.
I had it 106-104 McDonnell going into the final round. With him getting dropped it would likely have swung to at least a draw but I'd really have loved to see him make the final bell.
But McDonnell was utterly spent by the time the ref stopped it, which was the right thing to do.
I've never watched a fighter move the way Nelson does here. There is no boxing stance what so ever for long spells of the fight, he literally walks forward, straight at you constantly. Yet never seems to get put of balance with a shot. And he gets into a boxing stance so effortlessly when you stop to trade and he wants to unload. Like a bloody machine, But there was not a lot of finesse or sophistication about what he was doing here but it looked bloody hard work to keep him off. Can't help think he might have saved himself a couple hundred yards if he moved sideways occasionally.
He had a fantastic engine, terrific chin and punch really bloody hard, you might call him teak tough.
But it's very easy to see how a master technician like Pernell Whittiker solved this particular problem only 6 months later. (Which I scored here
http://boxrec.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f ... &start=475)