A fight for the ages, and perhaps a fight in 2024, went the way of Ruadan Farrell, who defeated fellow North Belfast's Conor Carr by a 78-75 decision at the Ulster Hall to win the BUI Celtic super bantamweight title. .
It was a brilliant contest in every round, a convincing fight that could have gone either way, but perhaps Farrell had enough to overshadow this war, which culminated in a standing ovation for both. Maybe he was just doing his job.
Farrell, the taller and longer of the two, got off to a busy start while Kerr seemed content to set traps and try to counter.
“King Kong” seemed to pick up a bit to start the second match, and Farrell was happy to engage this fight when it caught fire.
It was a thrill to watch Kerr switch stances and the action ebb and flow at a breathtaking pace, digging into both. As the game moved into the second half with the game poised on a knife's edge, it felt like something had to give.
The sixth match was a microcosm of the match, with Farrell looking a little troubled at first with Kerr overdoing it, only to retaliate with a body shot that stung Kerr.
Going into the final round, the oil lamp flickered and both men used up every last ounce and continued the fight until referee David Irving made a noise and had to intervene. The crowd drowns out the last bell.
It was nerve-wracking waiting for the results, but Farrell fell to his knees in celebration when he got the verdict on his Fight of the Year contender.
Pharrell and Kerr battle
“Throughout my career I've doubted whether I would ever win a professional title, but now I'm here as a BUI Celtic champion,” said an emotional Farrell.
“I said I was dedicating this to my cousin who passed away from cancer in December and my aunt who passed away. I wanted to make them proud and I wasn’t going to be rejected and I was going to leave here as a champion. ”
In one of the strangest matches, Owen O'Neill defeated Belfast-based Slovakian Edgar Chemsky by 40-35 points.
O'Neill turned up for the match, but Kemsky clowned around from the off and pasted up posters, receiving a stern warning and ultimately having a point deducted from referee Eamon McGill.
He was also treated with a hair dryer in the corner, to no avail as his erratic behavior continued, although he did occasionally fight on his feet. He had to see to believe. Frustrated and clearly angry, O'Neill triumphed in a farce not of his own making.
Stephen Ward returned to the ring after nearly two and a half years in the wilderness with an easy 60-54 victory over Perry Howe.
Naturally, given the layoff, his timing wasn't quite right early on, but perhaps he was too headhunting chasing one-punch knockouts and trying to make an impression. There was no doubt that the Belfast man was fielding his rounds and he looked to be making an even bigger impact when he went downstairs.
Howe was a survivor, and his instincts kept him alive until the end. Ward won on points and will be happy with the banked six rounds after such a long layoff.
“It's good to be back after a long 27 months,” he said.
“There's a little bit of rust coming off. The timing is a little off, but what will happen?”
Gerard Hughes returned to winning ways with a sweep of all four rounds against journeyman Luke Fash on Eamonn McGill's scorecards. The West Belfast super bantamweight boxed patiently throughout, improving his record to 5-0-1.
John Boyd wins on debut
Another West Belfast man, John Boyd, made his winning debut for the former Ulster Elite champion with a 40-36 points victory over Newry's Alan White in the light middleweight division.
White came to try, but the southpaw Boyd quickly settled down and began to find his timing in an attempt to counter his opponent.
As the counter left announced, the second bout saw blood pouring from Whyte's nose, and it became a matter of whether Boyd could find a stoppage. Alan wasn't going to let that happen as he performed well enough to survive the second half and Boyd had to be content with a points win, but it was still a great debut.
“This is my first time competing in the Ulster Hall,” Boyd revealed.
“It was great to get four rounds against a real opponent.”
Dublin's Glen Byrne started the night with a 60-54 points win over Martin Shaw in the light middleweight division, while super featherweight JP O'Meara picked up points over Engel Gomez.
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