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ACKNOWLEDGMENT Billy Joe Saunders advanced Martin Murray into retirement with another defense of his WBO super middleweight title.
The 31-year-old champion lost his uncle Tom Beaney in preparation for the Wembley Arena clash in England and had his name stamped on his uniform.
And he made him proud with his 30th career win, displaying moments of supreme skill and stubborn heart, to fire the 38-year-old warhorse, who now has five failed world title attempts on his impressive CV.
The southpaw was too cool, slick and precise for the tough man from St Helens, but not powerful enough to stop the respected veteran.
All three judges were able to watch a masterclass from Saunders, scoring 120-109, 120-109 and 118-110 and now he can go back to chasing career-defining fights with Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin.
He said: “I’ve been out for over a year and it was like boxing in a graveyard because I like to box for a crowd.
“I tried to set the pace, but he’s a smart old fox so I can’t yell out people’s names in that performance.”
Both men pushed and shoved with their jabs in the opener, a straight left hand to Murray’s body was probably Saunders’ best shot of the round. Murray landed a right hand in the second, but it only hit the Hatfields man’s chest.
Saunders threw more combinations with his fluorescent yellow gloves, but the veteran’s guard was high and tight and he caught most of them. By the third, it was clear that Murray was looking to break Saunders’s body, especially with Saunders’ left-handed jab.
But Saunders landed a right uppercut twice that made his few fans cheer in the dark of the arena.
Murray went down in the fourth, definitely hurt after two one two, but referee Phil Edwards called it a slip. Saunders was turning up the gears and slicing through Murray’s defense with lasers.
Saunders hadn’t enjoyed a high-level opponent or performance since he cheated on David Lemieux in 2017, but he didn’t show a hint of rust in the ring.
He was becoming positively one-sided in the fifth when Murray’s big heart and hard chin were the only things keeping him in it.
Both of the warring Brits were warned for head butting and badmouthing in the sixth and Murray looked alive with a right hook that he scored and a jab early in the seventh sent Saunders back.
Coach Mark Tibbs told Saunders to drop the 10th, after some tough clashes and spikes, but he landed with a brilliant head-to-head combination.
Saunders had gone three years without an elite opponent and without performance, but he showed no resistance to the ring, as Murray’s endurance provided the perfect platform to show off his punches and movement.
The proud Traveler won the fight with a piston-like jab and a screw uppercut, winning each round on two of the cards.
Gutted Murray admitted he lost to a better man and refused to confirm his retirement as he waited to rush home to his family.
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