Gavin Gwynne was lively and bright on a Monday morning.
on Saturday night Former British, Commonwealth and European lightweight champion boxer Cameron Wong fought over 10 rounds in Birmingham.
Most observers believed that Gwynn deserved the raise. Wong, on the other hand, kept his unbeaten record intact with a close and controversial unanimous decision.
“As a fighter You know when you win a fight? You know what I mean,” Gwynn, 17-4-1 (5 KO), told BoxingScene as he walked French Bulldog Rocky. –I’m terribly sorry. Because I know I did more than enough to win. Not that I just poked it.
“I’ve done more than enough.”
Gwynne kept the young fighter under constant pressure from the opening bell. Instead of declaring all-out war, Gwynne calmly closed the distance and forced Vuong to work at a higher rate than he wanted. His presence forced Vuong to punch when he didn’t want to.
The inexperienced 7-0 (3 knockouts) Vuang set himself up well and deserves a lot of credit for staying in shape and staying disciplined throughout the grueling fight. But whenever his back touched the ropes Quinn will let go and reap the harvest. The reward of focusing on precision rather than power.
“I was quite comfortable there. And that’s why I wasn’t ready for the shot,” Gwinn said. “I knew that if I had to load up my bullets, Because he’s a great controller. He probably saw them coming. And he would make me fail and fight back. That’s why I don’t use a lot of power in my shots. And it just hit him with combinations, like five or six punches at once.
–eSince round one I just felt comfortable being there. He was powerless to worry me. I remember coming back after the first round and telling Gary (Lockett, my trainer) that he was in trouble. Because he clearly had no power to keep me from him.
“Gary wouldn’t want me to do that. He wanted me to go behind the jab. Then in the next round you saw me take out the jab. And I jabbed him too. Everything went well for me tonight. Don’t let the judge nod at me. Do you know what I mean?”
Although the fight is seen as ambitious for a fighter with only six professional bouts, But there was a very clear reason why Vuong’s team pursued it.
Gwynne hasn’t been at his best in recent fights. And even then they didn’t overlook his abilities as a fighter. But everyone outside the Welsh camp is guilty of underestimating how much he has left.
Vuong’s team knew that Gwynne’s size, heart and fitness warranted rigorous testing. But it is expected that during their careers a fighter’s speed, wit and talent will carry him to meaningful and impressive victories.
Gwynn, 34, has been involved in the sport long enough to fully understand the role he played on Saturday night. But when the final bell rang He had no doubt that he had done enough to win. He walked towards the center of the stage, hoping to announce the winner.
“I had to throw three times as many shots as he threw,” he said, “so even if I hit half a shot or a quarter, I was better than him no matter what. So if it goes out like that There was no way he could win.
“That’s what I’m saying. There was no way he could win the fight.
“I watched a replay of the fight yesterday. And he threw like a strange eye-catching shot. PPeople were saying on the internet, ‘Oh, look at Gavin’s face.’ bThey have to realize that I’m 34. I’m much older than them. So I made the decision much easier.
“And another thing he did – he reached out and rubbed his hand in my face. And the referee (Kevin Parker) didn’t say anything about it. Do you know what I mean? It is one of them. Everything is for him. Opportunity is evident; Fierce young fighter
“I just told one of my friends, He would have been more respectful if they had given me a nod. They would have said, ‘Look, it’s too early for him.’ He went into battle. Reduce your chin and it will come back better.’
“He probably has more credit for doing that.–
Quinn isn’t the type to scream, yell, and yell, even when a decision doesn’t go his way. But he still isn’t the type of fighter who uses the situation to spur fake competition. His argument lies with the judge, not Wong.
Thirty-six hours after the battle, Gwynne had time to reflect on what had happened. And while he believes that deep down, 22-year-old Vuong knows he’s lost the fight. He gained a lot of respect for the route. He was willing to test himself early on. in his career
“I think he did that. by posting on social media,” he said. “He messaged me saying ‘thank you’, great fight and everything. I learned a lot from that.’
“Nothing but respect. I have always had respect for the people I fought or I fought. So show the utmost respect to him for doing that. And I texted him, I said, ‘Oh, great job.’
“watche would be better for fighting me only in his 7th fight because I am an old pro. I’ve been there. Seen it all, done it all, so you have to have a lot of respect for him in fighting.”
In the past few times Too many unnecessary and pointless rematches slowed down some of the weight divisions. But no one who watched the first fight would complain if Gwynne was immediately given the chance to score. Returning will also give Vuong a chance to show exactly what he learned from the 10 rounds of pressure he faced.
Quinn didn’t hold his breath to answer the call. But he believes Wong will only get credit if he decides to get back in the ring with him.
“I don’t think it will happen because his manager isn’t stupid,” he said about the match. “They were stupid enough to put him in the fight in the first place. But I don’t think he’ll get any credibility from another fight.”
“If he did (go in the other direction) they would all shout for him. Because if you go to social media or any other platform, 99.9 percent of people say I won the fight. Do you know what I mean? My sister walked up to me. Then she said that even fans in the bathroom came and said Gavin won.
“I don’t know (what will happen). You never know. It’s just one of them. Now it’s in my hands. There is nothing I can do about this. Of course, I let my team handle that. Everyone thinks I’m over it. And I have shown that I am far from it.
“That was one of my best performances. I think so far.”
Even though he skipped the competition But Quinn wouldn’t rely on it happening. If it doesn’t happen it won’t undermine the rest of his career.
Gwynn hopes his performance with Wong will remind everyone of what he can do. and opened another door for him. Although Saturday’s fight will be held at 139 pounds, he will be returning to the lightweight division. and want to be back in the title picture again
–No, it doesn’t bother me at all. To be honest, I fight for the love of the sport,” he said.
“Some of these boxers look great on social media and everything. I fight because I love fighting. I want the best box.
“Boxing with all these prospects – they say he is the next best thing to England. I just went and beat him. So what does it say?
“I think I deserved the title after that. Of course, now I’m back down in the rankings. They didn’t help me in that area. But everyone knows that I am ranked much higher than I am.
“My stock went up from there and his stock went down. As I said He won’t gain more credibility from that win. The only credibility he will gain is if he rematches.
“Good money fights too. Because they know I never have a dull fight. So I come and give it to you every time we quarrel. There was always a big struggle for me.
“But every fight now has to make sense to me. Financially, it has to be right.”
This fight was Gwynne’s first fight under Lockett. And even if they didn’t return to Wales with victory. But their partnership came to fruition. He eventually wore Emiliano, though. Marsili to win the European Championship in December 2023, but Gwynne did not fare well against the Italian veteran. And in March He suffered a serious eye injury during his loss to Mark. Chamberlain in injury time in the fourth round.
He came alive against Vuong and looks forward to seeing how much better he can be with Lockett in his corner.
“Gary told me he saw that sparkle back in my eyes,” he said. “You know what I mean? He said that if I didn’t perform in the gym he would have told me, he said ‘Listen Gavin, everyone says you’ve got a shot’ at the European Championship fight. You don’t look your best In your final battle, you were stopped by Mark Chamberlain. ePeople say you’re over the hill. But how you perform in the gym You’re better than before.’
“And that was our first fight together. Imagine our second We will improve even further.”
John Evans has contributed to a number of high-profile publications and websites for over a decade. You can follow John at @John_Evans79
