Dave “the Doncaster De La Hoya aka The White Rhino” Allen had a career performance on Saturday as he knocked out Lucas Browne in the third round after sneaking a left under Browne’s guard.
Britain’s favorite boxing everyman looked to be in the best shape of his life but got off to a usual slow start with Browne being the aggressor and out boxing Allen for the first two rounds.
Allen admitted later on that his game plan was to wait for his opponent to slow before taking his chances and it didn’t take long for Browne to get sloppy and open himself up to being countered.
Allen caught Browne coming in with a stiff jab, breaking Browne’s nose, who continued with an ineffective flurry then caught a massive body shot under his guard on the way out. Browne immediately collapsed to his knees and did not get up until well after the 10 count.
The knockout saved the night after what could be described as the worst fight of the year between Derek Chisora and Senad Gashi. Thi was essentially Luis Ortiz vs Malik Scott all over again with the smaller fighter unwilling to engage and spend the entire night evading while the slower, bigger puncher does a poor job of cutting off the ring and cruises to an easy points decision. Chisora gets the victory but doesn’t do any favors for his career.
Supporting the card was the welterweight bout Josh Kelly vs Przemyslaw Runowski; an uneven affair where Kelly won every round, scored three knockdowns and clowned his opponent throughout the whole process.
The fight served as a showcase but it doesn’t tell us anything new about Josh Kelly. It’s time for him to fight somebody in the top 100. Fans seemed to agree as they weren’t impressed with his antics against a clearly outmatched opponent.
At lightweight, British prospect Joe Cordina continues to improves with a British title victory against veteran Andy Townend. Cordina recorded his seventh stoppage in nine fights and looks ready to ascend passed the domestic scene.
