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April 06, 2019 18:30 Ed Clowes
Dubai: David Oliver Joyce claimed the WBO European featherweight title in Dubai on Saturday night, overcoming difficulty in the early moments of the fight to defeat Stephen Tiffney by TKO in the seventh round.
Joyce, who extended his perfect career record to 10 fights with the win, suffered a cut in the second round and appeared to be stunned by a good flurry in the sixth, but continued to push forward and set a high tempo throughout the fight.
The pair traded technical tit-for-tat blows throughout the enthralling opening stages of the fight, matching each other for output and intensity.
But it was Joyce who grew in to the fight, with the Irish fighter’s power and speed taking over by the fifth round.
A heavy favourite going in to the bout, Joyce ripped to the body in the sixth round, landing a left hook to the midsection and a right hand through Tiffney’s guard that appeared to take the wind out of the Scottish boxer’s sails.
Despite a good flurry from Tiffney at the end of that round that saw Joyce bundled to the ground, it was a big right hand that floored Tiffney in the seventh round, signalling the beginning of the end.
Tiffney got back to his feet but looked significantly depleted, taking a number of heavy blows to the head as his hands dropped to his sides. Saved by the bell, the fighter stumbled back to his corner at the end of the round.
The referee called off the fight moments later, handing Joyce his first his first title as a professional.
“It was an unbelievable performance,” Joyce said after the fight, “so thank you to MTK Global and all of the Dubai people who came out to see it.”
“I was confident going into the fight because I was on weight, and everything was perfect,” he added.
Joyce, who extended his perfect career record to 10 fights with the win, suffered a cut in the second round and appeared to be stunned by a good flurry in the sixth, but continued to push forward and set a high tempo throughout the fight.
The pair traded technical tit-for-tat blows throughout the enthralling opening stages of the fight, matching each other for output and intensity.
But it was Joyce who grew in to the fight, with the Irish fighter’s power and speed taking over by the fifth round.
A heavy favourite going in to the bout, Joyce ripped to the body in the sixth round, landing a left hook to the midsection and a right hand through Tiffney’s guard that appeared to take the wind out of the Scottish boxer’s sails.
Despite a good flurry from Tiffney at the end of that round that saw Joyce bundled to the ground, it was a big right hand that floored Tiffney in the seventh round, signalling the beginning of the end.
Tiffney got back to his feet but looked significantly depleted, taking a number of heavy blows to the head as his hands dropped to his sides. Saved by the bell, the fighter stumbled back to his corner at the end of the round.
The referee called off the fight moments later, handing Joyce his first his first title as a professional.
“It was an unbelievable performance,” Joyce said after the fight, “so thank you to MTK Global and all of the Dubai people who came out to see it.”
“I was confident going into the fight because I was on weight, and everything was perfect,” he added.
https://gulfnews.com/sport/joyce-wins-wbo-european-title-in-dubai-on-thrilling-night-of-boxing-1.63159947