Christopher Earns Dominant Win In Birmingham
[Written by Stephen Wright]
Tyler Christopher maintained his perfect record after dominantly winning his sixth bout as a professional boxer against Luke Middleton in the main event at the H Suite in Edgbaston, Birmingham, last night [March 25].
Middleton, a late stand-in opponent, showed little ambition and barely laid a glove on Christopher, with the referee scoring the four-round super-welterweight contest 40-36.
Despite Middleton’s sole intention of hearing the final bell, Christopher connected with several eye-catching punches, with a thudding right hook drawing gasps from the crowd in the opening stanza.
Cheered on by a small but noisy Bermudian contingent, including former national team footballer Dennis Zuill, Christopher looked hungry for his second stoppage, forcing Middleton against the ropes and landing combinations, including an accurate straight left-hand in the second round.
The bout became increasingly scrappy in the third, Middleton clinching, holding and tying Christopher up whenever possible to kill seconds off the clock.
Christopher, 26, continued to look for openings in the final round but was largely kept at bay by the savvy Middleton, who has won just two of his 27 bouts.
Birmingham-based Christopher will return to the ring on April 22 at the Holiday Inn in Yardley, Birmingham, as he steps up his mission of winning a Midland Area title before the end of the year.
“[Middleton] was just trying to stay alive, and it’s difficult to get those types of guys out of there,” the southpaw told Bernews. “It was good to get more rounds in; I need more to be eligible to fight for a Midlands title.
“I asked to be the main event because I want to be a headliner and need to know what it feels like to be last in the order [of fighters].”
Anthony Hull, who has coached Christopher since the Bermudian moved to the UK more than three years ago, said he expects his man to step up to six rounds next month.
“We’re hoping to get Tyler a decent opponent in his next fight,” said Hull, the head coach at the D&A Boxing School of Excellence in Stirchley. “When he gets to fight someone who throws back, we’ll see what Tyler is all about.
“It was a good learning curve for Tyler, especially with him being the main event.”
Jon Pegg, who manages Christopher, said he was impressed by his willingness to obey instructions and not lose his composure in pursuit of a knockout.
“He’s more than ready for a six-round fight and looked smooth tonight,” Pegg said. “He could have easily got ragged, going for the kill, but Anthony wanted him to keep boxing and keep it professional. Tyler did that. To me, that’s much more important than knocking someone out.
“He’s coming along lovely, and I’m over the moon with him. Eventually, I want to see him chin-checked. Fighters like Tyler, who is quite slippery and loose, usually take a good shot.”
