Lewis Ritson moved closer Saturday to a shot at a WBA super lightweight title, defeating Robbie Davies Jr. via unanimous decision in an action-packed eliminator bout in Ritson's hometown, Newcastle, England, and on DAZN.
Judges scored the bout 117-112, 116-112 and 116-112 in favor of Ritson.
The victory puts Ritson in a position to potentially fight for the 140-pound Super or world title. Regis Prograis and Josh Taylor will fight for the vacant Super belt next week, while Mario Barrios holds the world belt after defeating Batyr Akhmedov on Sept. 28.
Ritson (20-1, 12 KOs) and Davies (19-2, 13 KOs) were happy to stand toe to toe and exchange punches for much of their fight. Ritson sent the home crowd into a frenzy in the first round with a left hook that had Davies backing up. Davies responded late in the round by pinning Ritson against the ropes. Davies momentarily quieted the crowd in the second when he again backed Ritson into the ropes, this time with body shots. Ritson took on more damage in the fourth but later found a rhythm that kept him off the ropes.
Both men looked weary as the fight entered the championship rounds yet showed no signs of slowing down as they traded punches. At one point, Davies, a former British and European champion, again pinned "The Sandman" against the ropes, landing uppercuts and body shots, before Ritson hit back with his jab.
The fighters emptied the tank in the 12th as they searched for a knockout. Technique went out the window as they exchanged shots up to the final bell.
Co-main event: Scott Fitzgerald upsets Ted Cheeseman to claim British super welterweight title
Fitzgerald (14-0, nine KOs) earned a unanimous decision that left Cheeseman (15-2-1, nine KOs) feeling as though he was robbed. The judges scored it 116-113, 116-113 and 115-113 for "Fitzy."
"The Big Cheese" appeared to surprise Fitzgerald at the start by going away from his usual fighting style of taking punishment while walking down his opponent. Fitzgerald adjusted and soon was taking the center of the ring with his jab to keep Cheeseman moving around. Cheeseman landed an occasional jab before a well-placed left hook to the head shook Fitzgerald in the second.
Both men looked for an opening to deliver a power shot in the middle rounds. Fitzgerald connected a few times with uppercuts and hooks, but Cheeseman fired back with combos of his own. Cheeseman continued to land cleanly in the seventh, frustrating Fitzgerald, and landed more frequently as he stepped up through the gears.
The fighters went toe to toe in the center of the ring midway through Round 10. Fitzgerald bloodied Cheeseman's nose and his body shots had Cheeseman looking tired and hurt. Sensing his opponent was vulnerable, Fitzgerald went in search of the stoppage in the final round but was unable to land the knockout punch.
Cheeseman expressed his anger with the scoring in a postfight Instagram post:
Undercard
Savannah Marshall def. Ashleigh Curry; super middleweights.
Lawrence Osueke, Ricky Summers fight to a draw; light heavyweights.
Martin Bakole def. Kevin Johnson; heavyweights.
Kieron Conway def. Konrad Stempkowski; super welterweights.
John Docherty def. Lewis van Poetsch; super middleweights.
Terry Wilkinson def. Daryl Pearce; super lightweights.
April Hunter def. Borislava Goranova; welterweights.
Thomas Whittaker-Hart def. Darryl Sharpe; light heavyweights.
Joe Laws def. Justice Addy; welterweights.