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LIVERPOOL, UK – Nick Ball retained his WBA featherweight title after getting away with a kick aimed at challenger TJ Doheny.
Following a fight week littered with needle, tensions boiled over at the end of the first round. Doheny got Ball in a headlock and refused to let go. Ball broke free and kicked Doheny in his rear in an incident fully viewed by referee Michael Alexander.
In most cases, swiping a leg and connecting with your opponent would be a disqualification. However, it seems Alexander wanted to show leniency to Ball, who was defending his title for the first time at home in Liverpool.
Ball, who was in control from the first bell, beat up Doheny for the next nine rounds until the fight was stopped after ten completed sessions.
CompuBox: Ball and Doheny were separated by 2 landed punches after four rounds. From the fifth round on, Ball out-landed Dohiney 154 – 57. Rounds seven through ten were particularly lopsided, as Ball landed 101 punches while Doheny only landed 23. 24% of Ball’s power punch lands were body shots.
Doheny’s corner pulled the plug after Doheny landed a fight-low seven punches while absorbing 43 from Ball in the tenth round.
Nick Ball’s kick goes unpunished.#BallDohenypic.twitter.com/okwbLdmA9W
— World Boxing News (@WorldBoxingNews) March 15, 2025
Undercard Results
Andrew Cain claimed the British and Commonwealth bantamweight titles by outworking former champion Charlie Edwards. The Liverpool native cut a frustrated figure as Edwards ran from trouble for the entire twelve rounds. Edwards refused to engage for fear of being knocked out by the hard-hitting scouser. As boos rained down from the arena, Edwards celebrated at the final bell despite Cain doing most of the attacking.
As the result was read out as a split decision, further groans from the crowd heckled the judges. However, it was good news for Cain fans as two of the officials gave him the nod.
Following the domestic title bout, Jack Turner produced a scintillating knockout in a Merseyside derby against Ryan Farrag. Turner began brightly and hurt Farrag in the first round. He then stepped it up in the second and completely wiped Farrag out.
Turner has ended ten of his eleven wins early and pointed out his ‘God-given power.’
World-ranked lightweight Jadier Herrera moved to 17-0 by halting Jose Macias late but showed vulnerability that future opponents could exploit. The Cuban left his chin in the air too often but had too much skill for the Mexican.
Brad Strand lost for the second time in his career against a dogged Ionut Baluta in a WBO European super-bantamweight title battle. A closely-fought ten-round bout came down to subjective scoring after the final bell. Strand seemed to have done enough, but on viewing either corner, the eventual winner could have been predicted.
Balut took it via contrasting scores of 98-91 and 96-94 to 98-92 for Strand. Baluta improved to 17-5-1.
Hot hometown prospect Stephen Clarke overcame a cut from a head clash to remain undefeated at 6-0. The 23-year-old, trained by Liverpool favorite Stephen Smith, won every round of six against Dmitri Protkunas.
Earlier, a foursome of debutants began proceedings at M&S Bank Arena.
Heavyweight Joe Bourne drew his first outing against Cristian Uwaka. However, William Birchall, his brother Leighton, and Lewis Lawton won.
Further action saw Lucas Biswana move to 2-0 Ezequiel Gregores with a four-round decision win at welterweight.
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Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010.
