Gabriel Gollaz Valenzuela picked up the biggest win of his career on his first trip outside Mexico as he claimed a majority points decision over Robbie Davies Jr at the SSE Arena, Wembley.

Valenzuela, who was unbeaten in his previous 20 fights, ultimately carried too much power for Davies. He found the Liverpudlian an easy target in the first four rounds, dropping him with a right hook in the third, and while Davies battled back in the middle rounds, Valenzuela closed the show in the final round when he looked close to forcing the stoppage.

Davies, 31, the former British and European super-lightweight champion, had hoped that a victory would see him back in title contention, but the heavy hands of Valenzuela always held the key, even though the decision was razor thin on the judges cards.

One judges, John Latham, scored it a draw, 94-94, while Ian John Lewis and Victor Loughlin both had it 96-95 for the Mexican.

Davies tried to pressure Valenzuela from the start, but left himself open when he missed. Davies spent the first round trying to rush the Mexican, but Valenzuela was timing him well, although he got a warning for ignoring the call to break.

The holes in Davies’s defence looked obvious in the second and a right hook caught him square and sent him falling back into the ropes. There was a more measured approach by Davies in the third, but he was caught by one hook that made him dip at the knees and then a right hook turned him around and dropped him on his knees for a count.

Valenzuela was looking very comfortable, although he got agitated when referee Mark Lyson issued another warning after the Mexican again kept punching on the break.

In the fifth, there were signs that Davies was finally getting a foothold in the fight, as he put Valenzuela under pressure and he had an excellent sixth, swarming all over Valenzuela and catching him repeatedly, while the Mexican’s punches were mostly out of range.

The momentum continued with Davies in the seventh, as he stood and traded and forced Valenzuela to hurry his work. Davies’s shorted punches were having plenty of success, but Valenzuela put his foot on the gas again in the eighth and Davies had to wear some heavy shots.

Three rights in a row had Davies in trouble on the ropes and Valenzuela, who had damage under his right eye, rocked Davies with a right hook at the end of the round.

Davies tried to turn the ride back his way in the ninth, but Valenzuela was boxing with a sense of authority now and offered Davies few openings. Davies tried to pick Valenzuela off in the last, as he backed away, but with a minute of go, Valenzuela closed the show, trapping Davies on the ropes and unloading.

The Liverpudlian tried to ride to ride out the storm but it was only his heart holding him up. Valenzuela caught him with heavy shot after heavy shot and, just as he seemed to have got through it, Davies was caught by a heavy left hook in the bell. 

Jordan Gill showed he has the engine to go a hard ten rounds, as he boxed his way to a unanimous points decision over Cesar Juarez, claiming the WBA’s international featherweight belt in the process.

When Gill boxed and move, he looked excellent, but Juarez gave him plenty to think about, as he pressured Gill throughout and gave him a couple of difficult rounds too, when Gill struggled to contain him.

The first round was little more than a scouting mission, although Juarez landed two thudding left hooks near the end.

Gill started lighting up the Mexican in the second round, landing well with the left hook and catching the slower Juarez with two body shots that caused him to drop his guard.

Juarez was basic, but he was starting to prove relentless. In the third round, Gill picked him off but in the fourth he was making the Englishman stand and trade. At the end of the fifth, Gill found himself trapped in Juarez’s corner as the Mexican unloaded, rocking Gill’s head back several times with meaty hooks before he could escape.

Gill did better in the sixth, as he beat Juarez to the punch, but the Mexican had a good seventh catching Gill with a body shot that made Gill wince.
The Mexican’s efforts were starting to show, though, and Gill had a strong eighth, moving well and catching the tiring Juarez.
Gill finished strongly too, showing some style in the last two rounds to pull clear and frank the victory.

Ian John-Lewis scored it 98-92, Victor Laughlin had it 98-93 and Mark Lyson scored it 96-94, all for Gill. John Latham was the referee.

Johnny Fisher, a 21-year-old heavyweight from East London, blasted his way to victory in his professional debut as he stopped Matt Gordon at 2:29 the first round.

Fisher wasted little time sizing Gordon up, as he pounded away at the first given opportunity. Midway through the round, a right hook to the side of the head bent Gordon over and the follow up sent him falling into the ropes, referee Ian John Lewis ruling it a knockdown.

He wasted no time finishing the job, as another clubbing right sent Gordon down on his haunches and, while he beat the count, the referee waved it off.

Ron Lewis is a senior writer for BoxingScene. He was Boxing Correspondent for The Times, where he worked from 2001-2019 - covering four Olympic Games and numerous world title fights across the globe. He has written about boxing for a wide variety of publications worldwide since the 1980s.