Adonis Stevenson vs Tony Bellew

A right to the body prepared the opening, and Adonis Stevenson’s left hand settled the contest. The champion knocked Tony Bellew down in the sixth round, then pursued him into a corner and forced referee Michael Griffin to intervene at 1:50. Stevenson retained his WBC light heavyweight championship before 8,540 spectators at the Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City on November 30, 2013. It was his second successful defence and his fourth victory inside the distance that year. Bellew, fighting on his 31st birthday, suffered the first stoppage defeat of his professional career.

The GYM promotion brought together a champion whose left hand had already accounted for Chad Dawson and Tavoris Cloud and a challenger making his second attempt at a world championship. Stevenson had taken the title from Dawson in 76 seconds in June and defended it against Cloud in September. Bellew’s previous championship challenge had ended in a majority decision defeat by Nathan Cleverly in 2011. A draw and subsequent victory over Isaac Chilemba had secured another opportunity. Both men weighed 175 pounds. Their preparations ended in an angry confrontation at the weigh-in, but Bellew began the fight cautiously, determined to avoid giving the southpaw champion an early opening.

The opening round consisted largely of feints and attempts to establish distance. Bellew used his greater height and reach, moving around the ring and looking to answer Stevenson’s advances with the right hand. The champion pressed without committing himself recklessly, attacking the body and bringing the left towards the head when Bellew stepped within range. In the second, the challenger found counters and worked downstairs, but Stevenson continued to seek openings with his power hand. Bellew’s movement prevented the champion from setting his feet for prolonged attacks, although it also limited the challenger’s own output. He was avoiding some dangerous punches without doing enough sustained scoring to take command.

Stevenson began closing the distance more effectively in the third. He varied his approach between head and body and brought straight lefts through as Bellew retreated. The challenger bloodied Stevenson’s nose during the early rounds, but the champion’s heavier replies increasingly interrupted his work. In the fourth, a brief exchange ended with Stevenson falling to the canvas. Griffin ruled a slip after the fighters’ feet became entangled. Bellew attacked with greater confidence afterwards, only for Stevenson to answer with straight lefts and resume his pursuit. By the fifth, the challenger was spending more time near the ropes, watching for the left and offering too few replies to discourage the champion.

The finish came when Stevenson varied the attack again in the sixth. A right to the ribs preceded the heavy left that dropped Bellew. The challenger rose and took Griffin’s count, but Stevenson immediately followed him, landing another left that drove him towards a corner. Further punches arrived before Bellew could regain a sound defensive position. He remained upright, but was no longer answering effectively when Griffin stepped between them. There was no dispute about the need to stop the contest. Through 5 completed rounds, Frank Garza and Rey Danseco had Stevenson ahead 50, 45, while Jack Woodburn scored 49, 46. The champion’s superiority had become decisive before the knockdown.

Stevenson improved to 23 wins, 1 loss and 20 knockouts. Bellew left with 20 wins, 2 losses, 1 draw and 12 knockouts. The challenger acknowledged that the better man had won, while Stevenson credited his patience and his success in cutting off the ring. Earlier on the same HBO programme, Sergey Kovalev had retained the WBO light heavyweight title by knocking out Ismayl Sillakh in the second round. Their victories increased interest in a meeting between the champions, although Stevenson also spoke of Bernard Hopkins and Carl Froch as possible opponents. For Bellew, the immediate conclusion was simpler: his movement had delayed Stevenson’s strongest attacks, but he had been unable to keep the champion at a safe distance or land enough in return.

I thought Bellew’s cautious approach made sense after what Stevenson had done to Dawson and Cloud. He moved well enough early, but wasn’t landing enough to discourage the pursuit. Stevenson deserves credit for cutting off the ring and varying his attack. The right downstairs helped open the way for the left that dropped Bellew. Once Tony rose, he couldn’t escape or answer effectively, and the stoppage was right. Courage wasn’t the issue. Stevenson’s timing and power were simply beyond what Bellew could handle that night.