Sunday 22 February 2015 10:13, UK
Paul Smith's second attempt to win a world title ended in another defeat as Arthur Abraham defended his WBO super-middleweight title with a deserved decision win.
Controversy surrounded the scoring of the first fight, but there was no argument about the verdict on this occasion, with Abraham controlling many of the rounds to take the win with two scores of 117-111 and one of 116-112.
Smith snapped out a swift jab in the opening minute, immediately forcing the champion onto the back foot, and quickly found the range with his straight right hand. Abraham answered with a decent left of his own, but the confident challenger appeared to take the opener with his steady work-rate.
Spurred into action, Abraham showed more urgency in the second, rapping hooks into the ribs of Smith, who was briefly forced into reverse as the champion unloaded clubbing punches.
Both men exchanged jabs in the third, with Smith slipping in a crunching body shot, but Abraham was gradually finding his foe with hammer-like hooks.
For the first time, Smith was troubled by another mauling attack in the fourth, and his legs buckled as Abraham piled on more punches. The Merseysider stubbornly replied with shots of his own, but it was a brief respite and he was pinned on the ropes before the bell spared him more punches.
Trying to stem the charge, Smith rattled in body shots in the fifth, but Abraham beckoned him in, wearing a smile of defiance, and unleashed crunching punches from close quarters.
Abraham’s grin quickly disappeared in the sixth amidst a sustained body attack from Smith, and yet another punch under the elbow stopped ‘King Arthur’ in his tracks.
A punishing battle really caught fire in the seventh as Abraham bullied his man to the ropes, prompting a ferocious rally from Smith, who again targeted his opponent’s belt line. But he was tagged by a right hand that left him on unsteady legs just before the bell.
Abraham stepped up his assault in the next couple of rounds, scattering the defences of Smith, who somehow withstood a huge right hand in the ninth.
Drifting far behind on the scorecards, Smith started the 11th on his toes and stabbed out a string of jabs, but Abraham brushed them off and thrust a big right through his foe's guard.
Into the last, the Liverpudlian produced a determined late stand, shrugging off a succession of hooks and then pumping out punches until the final bell.
