Billy Joe Saunders needed an impressive win against Martin Murray to put himself in the running for a fight with Gennadiy Golovkin, Demetrius Andrade or the winner of the December 19 showdown between Canelo Alvarez and Callum Smith.
Saunders did just that in dominating Murray at the SSE Arena, Wembley in London. The WBO champion successfully retained his title with a bell to bell performance to win by unanimous decision (120-109, 120-109, 118-110). DAZN News scored the fight 120-108 for Saunders.
After a feeling-out process in the first round, Saunders (30-0, 15 KOs) let Murray know he was in charge and there wasn't anything he could do to stop him. Saunders started the rout by pumping the jab at will to keep Murray at a distance. In the fourth round, Saunders got on the inside and connected on power shots, including a right hook that wobbled Murray and sent him to a knee. But the referee ruled it a slip.
From there, Saunders had everything in control. He used the jab to set up his power punches. To Murray's credit, he showed a ton of heart but absorbed too much punishment in a resounding defeat.
Here is what happened at Saunders vs. Murray.
Billy Joe Saunders vs. Martin Murray results
- Billy Joe Saunders def. Martin Murray by unanimous decision (120-109, 120-109, 118-110) to retain WBO super middleweight title
- James Tennyson def. Josh O'Reilly via TKO at 2:14 of the first round
- Shannon Courtenay def. Dorota Norek by knockout at 1:35 of the seventh round
- Donte Dixon def. Angelo Dragone via unanimous decision (58-56, 58-56, 58-56)
- Lerrone RIchards def. Timo Laine by unanimous decision (80-72, 80-72, 80-72)