That's exactly what Jordan Gill's poise and consistency showed in Manchester tonight (April 13). It seemed like a bolt out of the blue, or more accurately, a punch from which Zelpha Barrett turned things around, and there was no turning back. Reduce close margins on scorecards.
Usually when you need something decisive, there's no punch more decisive than a body shot. And both Gill and Barrett came to understand it more than ever in round 10. Barrett continued to take the lead and continued to whittle away at his ambitions by cornering Barrett, and once again in this round, Barrett dropped Gill with a left hook to the body in the opening minute.
At that point, considering Gil's reaction, it seemed as if the battle was over. The telltale signs of a wounded warrior were there for everyone to see. He lay on his back, writhing in pain, as if everything was being sucked out of him. But then Gil took a breath, perhaps realizing he had the upper hand in the fight, or perhaps remembering his situation in his personal life over the last few years, and calling this a body shot and just an inconvenience. I think they either thought it was there or not. In the grand scheme of things.
In any case, Gil rather miraculously got back on his feet and resumed his role in the battle, albeit in a more cautious manner than before. Now, the Chatteris man not only suffered physical injuries, but was also wary of being tagged in the same spot again. Of course, that was Barrett's exact goal for both the rest of this round and the rest of the match.
The last two and a half rounds, which had seemed so comfortable, suddenly represented a marathon in Gil's mind. The pain was slow to subside, his posture became more squat, and Barrett knew exactly what he had to do to prolong his suffering. It's about continuing to target the same area. He did this very skillfully for the rest of the 10th round, and eventually Gil succumbed to another left hook to the body, which had the same effect as the first. Once again he was writhing on the floor. Once again, he was trying to muster himself up and convince himself that it was worth continuing.
This time, referee John Latham took a closer look at Gill as he returned to an upright position, but this time it was clear how hurt Gill was from the second body shot that basically cost him his guard on the restart. Ta. Attacked his head to prevent Barrett from hitting him cleanly to the body again. This was a rather strange sight. Gill kept his arms to himself, and there was nothing to stop the 31-2 (17) Barrett from smashing his head off. No further signals were needed and Barrett slammed away, and the referee intervened shortly after the second down.
It had been a pretty even fight up until that point. A decent production with plenty of quality, if not much in terms of drama. There was a good flow throughout, and the rounds were exchanged freely, like punches.
Gill seemed to get off to the better start of the two, showing great composure and numerous feints, but Barrett was more involved in the fight in the third and fourth rounds. By then, he had found a home for uppercuts thrown with both his left and right hands, was timing Gil's incoming moves, and was taking advantage of his opponent's short stature (thus regularly throwing uppercuts at ).
Indeed, it was in the fourth round that we were given an early indication of what was to come, when Barrett hurt Gil's body with a left hook and then attacked him, landing several more shots in the area. I shot it, but I couldn't reproduce the damage. first. Either way, if you're careful, that round will show you how both Barretts can turn the tide in their favor and ultimately win the match, as shown in round 10. You should have found a clue.
This will require some patience on Barrett's part, just in case. In fact, of the two well-educated fighters in the super-featherweight division, it was Gill who did the better job from the fourth round onwards, taking advantage of Barrett's reluctance for most of the rounds that followed, and taking advantage of Barrett's reluctance to defeat Manchenia. It worked when people wanted to move, defend, or attack. Just rest. Until the finish, this seemed to be the pattern of the fight heading into the final third, but Gill never wavered in his game plan or even his stance, maintaining his control and growing in confidence. But of course, when a boxer is in pain, it is often when he feels in control, confident, and no longer feels pain. The final blow and reality.
For Jordan Gill, 28-3-1 (9), this has never been more true than tonight. Unfortunately for him, reality arrived – in the form of a body shot from Zelpha Barrett – 2 minutes and 44 seconds into the 10th round.
