Bute decisions Bika!

15.06.07 - By Scott Frake: Super middleweight Lucien Bute (20-0, 16 KO’s) defeated Sakio Bika (22-3-2, 14 KO’s), winning an easy 12-round decision tonight in an IBF eliminator tonight at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada. Early on, Bika, 28, proved to be a tough opponent for Bute, as he pressured him constantly, using rough house tactics - mostly holding and hitting, headbutts and rabbit punches - on the inside as he had done against Joe Calzaghe in their bout in October 2006.

However, Bute, 27, kept his composure, avoiding getting lulled into brawling with the tough Bika, instead firing jabs and combinations from the outside and using his superior boxing skills to outwit the slower Bika.

Bika, in turn, was limited to one shot a time, and as the rounds progressed, those opportunities became fewer and fewer as Bute stayed out of range. Not surprisingly, Bika was penalized for a headbutt in the 10th round. The final judges’ scores were 116-111, 118-109, and 118-109, all for Bute. With this win, Bute captures a shot at the International Boxing Federation champion Alejandro Berrio (26-4, 25 KO’s).