With scores of 95-95, 99-92, and 97-93, England's Savannah Marshall became the new undisputed super middleweight champion with a majority decision victory over Franchon Crews-Dezurn on Saturday night at the Manchester Arena.
Crews-Dezurn traveled to England for the first time with the newly won belts, but the skillful Marshall managed to avoid falling to the provocations of the champion who took the fight into tricky territory.
From the outset, and true to her unorthodox style, Crews-Dezurn started the fight by throwing hooks to the face and pushing the challenger into the pocket, but after a few adjustments, Marshall neutralized most of her opponent's attacks.
Adjusting and pressuring the champion, Marshall — despite a possible broken right hand — kept the pressure and managed to push Crews-Dezurn into even more dangerous territory where mid-range punches went in without a problem in a weak guard.
Despite the wear and tear, both fighters kept throwing punches throughout the 10-round fight, and at the end of the contest, Marshall acknowledged the toughness of the opponent she faced:
"It's sweet dreams (to hear that I am now undisputed). She was much tougher than I thought, she's too tough a woman. I think I even broke my hand. I think it was the clean punches that got me the win tonight," said Marshall.
With the win, Marshall not only regained her championship status but also became the undisputed champion nine months after she lost to Claressa Shields.
At the end of the fight, Savannah hinted at her interest in facing Shields again and avenging that defeat.
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