Simon and Nelson triumph in Copenhagen!

by Murali Para

06.04 - It was a night of contrasting performances at the Cirkusbygningen in Copenhagen. What was lacking in the second main event, Johnny Nelson's WBO cruiserweight title fight against Ezra Sellers, was more than made up for in the main event. The clash between Swede Armand Krajnc and Namibia's Harry Simon, for the WBO belt at middleweight, provided superb entertainment. Not for nothing was it billed as "the Perfect Fight".

Nobody knew quite what to expect from the Nelson-Sellers bout. It was clear from Sellers's previous fights with Alex Stewart and Carl Thompson, that he was a hard-hitting southpaw who was also a bit 'chinny'. So would we be in for another slugfest? Or would Nelson's superior boxing skills and elusiveness stop this from happening?

It was clear from the outset that the Briton Nelson, who has a reputation for starting over-cautiously, was doing precisely that. As both fighters sized each other up in the opening rounds, the American Sellers was the only one even trying to fight, throwing a few shots with the odd one finding the target. Nelson was so negative that the crowd soon began to boo.

Sellers landed with several hard left hooks in the fourth, the last one putting Nelson down on the canvas for the first time in ten years. Visibly shaken, Nelson composed himself well to see out the round. But in spite of this Sellers continued to dominate, connecting mostly with good body shots. In the seventh, Nelson took so many hard shots that he looked close to being stopped.

Then, in a shocking turnaround, Nelson caught Sellers with a shot to his right eye in the eighth. Sellers sunk to the canvas in pain and the fight was stopped. So despite being behind on points, Nelson had managed to hang on to his title in what was, quite frankly, a poor performance. Later he admitted it had been "a rough ride" before the final blow was landed.

Thankfully though, the top of the bill was a much more intriguing affair. There is always a bit of added spice when two unbeaten fighters meet. Swede Armand Krajnc (26-0, 18) was making his fourth defence, fighting for the first time in his native Scandinavia. The crowd was fully behind him as he took on Namibian Harry Simon (22-0, 17), who had only recently moved up from light middleweight.

The difference in styles was striking immediately. Krajnc preferred to work behind the jab while Simon lunged forward with a range of sharp shots to both head and body. The exchanges were competitive, but while the champion did score well, especially with his uppercuts, it was the challenger's higher work-rate that was the decisive factor.

This very much set the pattern for the large part of the fight. Simon landed some good body shots in spite of Krajnc's effective guard. Krajnc was clearly very strong, durable and difficult to hurt. And Simon's power, so evident at light middleweight, was perhaps not the same force when he was faced with a naturally bigger man at the higher weight.

Each new round was as exciting as the last, Krajnc never looking like he would fold under pressure and, likewise, Simon never seeming to run out of steam. Krajnc continued to be successful with some hard single shots, as before with uppercuts in particular, but Simon too was a tough fighter who was never badly hurt by the bigger man's punches.

In the later rounds of the fight, Simon did finally seem to be shuffling forward, rather than charging at Krajnc, but the exchanges were as competitive as ever. Simon threw his favoured overhand right and body shots, while Krajnc covered up well and responded in kind with some good punches of his own. But as ever it was Simon's higher level of activity that was winning him rounds.

After twelve rounds of engaging battle, it was no surprise when the unanimous verdict was announced in favour of Harry Simon. But Armand Krajnc did himself no disservice in his performance. Both fighters were admirable and deserve high credit. Whether either of them would cope with Bernard Hopkins, though, is an entirely different matter. They may have some way to go before they reach that level.