Junior featherweight contender Sam ‘The Ghost’ Goodman’s determination to take an interim combat earlier than difficult Ring junior featherweight champion Naoya ‘Monster’ Inoue at all times seemed like a dangerous transfer.
And in the course of the mid-rounds of his bout towards Thailand’s Chainoi ‘Rock Man’ Worawut on the WIN Leisure Centre in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia on Wednesday evening, it seemed prefer it wouldn’t repay. However ultimately, Goodman was capable of pull off a unanimous determination win to maintain his probabilities to combat Inoue alive.
The 25-year-old from Albion Park acquired the higher of the motion via the primary 4 rounds, dictating the exchanges and utilizing his handspeed, footwork and angles to land the cleaner, sharper photographs.
Worawut, 27, had pockets of success within the center rounds, however the cleaner work was coming from Goodman, who says he injured his left mitt round this stage of the combat.
The seventh warmth noticed nice two-way motion, and the customer turned the tables on Goodman along with his high-volume, correct punching. Goodman settled within the eighth behind his jab, trying to preserve vitality forward of a giant run dwelling.
Goodman seemed fatigued to start out the ninth as each boxers traded quick photographs in shut. The combat was paused with 30 seconds left within the spherical to repair some unfastened tape on Worawut’s glove. The quick break appeared to energise Goodman, who seemingly stole the spherical with the final half-minute of motion.
The tenth was one other all-action affair with Worawut pushing Goodman again whereas the native fighter tried to stroll his opponent on to photographs. A counter proper hand from Goodman within the final minute of the spherical snapped Worawut’s head again. It was the punch of the spherical.
Goodman acquired again behind the jab within the eleventh and utilized his intelligent footwork to keep away from Worawut’s large proper hand bombs. It was a intelligent technique from The Ring’s quantity 4 contender at 122-pounds, who tagged his opponent any time he managed to shut the gap and banked one other spherical.
Within the twelfth Goodman continued boxing on his toes, utilizing his velocity, timing and motion to maintain Worawut off stability and guessing.
When the ultimate bell rang it was not a query of who gained, however by how a lot.
Decide Chris Aliendi scored the bout 119-109, whereas judges Leanne Reid and Will Soulos handed in card of 117-113 and 117-111 respectively, all three for Goodman. With the win, Goodman strikes to (19-0, 8 KOs). Worawut falls to (25-1-1, 15 KOs).
Goodman was anticipating to face Inoue (27-0, 24 KOs) in December this 12 months after the 27-year-old Japanese phenom has yet one more hit-out in September. That may all rely upon the state of his left hand.
“It was hurting in spherical 4 or six,” Goodman mentioned post-fight.
“Later within the combat I felt it go much more. We’ll acquired get a scan. It shouldn’t preserve me out for too lengthy. I needs to be proper by 12 months’s finish for the world title.
“We wish ‘The Monster’. We’re coming for him. We’ll go get this hand checked out and we’ll go.”
