Jordan Ellison knocked out by Lewis Ritson in Northern Area title cracker

Brave Jordan Ellison's crack at Northern Area championship glory ended with a seventh-round KO to old rival Lewis Ritson.
Lewis Ritson (left) on the attack against Jordan Ellison. Picture by CRAIG LENGLewis Ritson (left) on the attack against Jordan Ellison. Picture by CRAIG LENG
Lewis Ritson (left) on the attack against Jordan Ellison. Picture by CRAIG LENG

The Hartlepool-based boxer was floored by a right hook to the body from the title favourite.

Ellison was counted out at one minute, 35 seconds by referee Andrew Wright to win the vacant belt in an exciting championship showdown.

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The 21-year-old had begun brightly against the unbeaten Geordie, landing with both gloves.

But from the third round onwards, Ritson took control, his dominant jab forcing the Seaham boxer on the retreat, backing up his left with a sporadic right.

Ellison, briefly, had the 23-year-old, from Forest Hall, in trouble in the fifth with some good head shots but an interruption for Lewis's gumshield to be put back in seemed to ruin his flow.

He started round six smartly too but Ritson was simply relentless and when he drove in a right to his rival's body, down went Jordan.

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Up by seven, he was quickly floored again and while he appeared hurt, referee Wright did not count it as a knockdown.

Ellison rose again and, to his enormous credit, survived the remainder of the round with a gutsy effort.

However, the writing was on the wall for the Gus Robinson Developments camp.

Ritson got through with another right to the body early in the seventh and when he repeated the trick midway through the round, Ellison was dumped on the floor.

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This time there was no getting up and after lengthy medical treatment, he was able to congratulate Ritson on his triumph, the second time the Newcastle fighter has beaten him following a points win last September in Gateshead.

In the other title affair, Darren Surtees produced a devastating first-round performance to stop Luke "The Nuke" Keleher to clinch the International Classic Challenge Belt in just 89 seconds.

The Thornley light-welterweight floored Keleher with a perfect left-right combination and while the Halifax scrapper was up at the count of four, he was soon back on the canvas from a left hook.

Again, Keleher hauled himself to his feet but after a barrage of Surtees shots, referee Graeme Williams stopped the contest.

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Hartlepool's Peter Cope registered his first win for new coach Neil Fannan with a four-round points success over Newark's Fonz Alexander.

Cope controlled the contest with his jab, referee Williams scoring it 40-36.

It was the same score in the opening contest of 'Christmas Cracker' as Fishburn's Gary Fox dominated the action against Manchester's Will O'Reilly.

Sunderland's Isaac Macleod extended his winning run to six bouts with a shut-out 60-54 points victory over tough Sheffield opponent Ryan Hardy.

Jay Hughes, originally from Trimdon, but now fighting out of Crimdon, won on points over four rounds against Dewsbury's Youssef Al Hamidi.