Conor Benn has his first outing of 2024 at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas, and he went twelve competitive rounds before taking a points win against Pete Dobson in their welterweight contest.
Benn (23-0, 14 KOs) was continuing a rebuild in the USA, having had a prolonged battle with the British Boxing Board of Control over an adverse test in 2022, and he was out of action for nearly 18 months, returning in Orlando last September at super welterweight to outscore Rodolfo Orozco over ten rounds. Although unbeaten, Dobson (16-1, 9 KOs) wasn’t expected to represent a real threat to ‘The Destroyer’, having not fought much previously past eight round level.
Benn went on the attack from the opening bell, using speed and power to rough Dobson up in a dominant opening round, and the American was showing little, with a big right hand landing for Benn in the second.
Dobson was in survival mode, and couldn’t mount a meaningful attack, but he did land a decent right hand in the fourth, as he belatedly began to come out of his shell.
The New Yorker was seemingly warming to his task, landing with more right hands in round five, and Benn was looking fatigued as Dobson grew in confidence as the contest reached halfway. Benn was having to work hard to keep his nose in front, and it was becoming a real war of attrition as the fight reached the championship rounds.
We’ve got a 𝐅𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 🔥#BennDobson | https://t.co/FoiaUucafv pic.twitter.com/ZzgJU3gBgd
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) February 3, 2024
The two continued to take turns to go on the attack, and rounds were close and tough to score, and as the bout went to the final round, Benn had to be switched on to clinch victory.
The pair both went for broke in the last frame, and each had their moments in a frantic three minutes, with the fight going the distance, and to the scorecards.
Dobson’s industry wasn’t really rewarded by the judges as Benn received the nod by two scores of 118-110, and a third at 119-109.
Ammo fires hot, early finish for Coe and other undercard action
Elsewhere, Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams (16-0, 11 KOs) made a slow start, but eventually took out Armel Mbumba-Yassa (10-1, 7 KOs) with a single shot as he remained unbeaten. Mbumba was down in the sixth round, and the ending came one round later, as Williams let go of a massive left hand down the pipe that flattened the visitor, and the fight was over.
Khalil Coe (8-0-1, 6 KOs) wasted little time in taking the unbeaten record of Juan Gerardo Osuna (20-1, 18 KOs), as the New Jersey native dropped the Mexican three times by body shots en route to taking victory in the second round of their clash set for eight rounds at light heavyweight.
There was plenty of British interest on the card, and Johnny Fisher (11-0, 10 KOs) made a successful USA debut by hammering Dmytro Bezus (10-2, 5 KOs) to a first round defeat in their heavyweight contest set for eight. Fisher launched a two-fiated assault with Bezus on the ropes, and the referee had no choice but to step in.
THE RAGING ROMFORD BULL 🐂😤@JohnnyFisherBox takes out Dmytro Bezus in round 1 🧨
Bosh Vegas 🙌#FisherBezus #BennDobson pic.twitter.com/1enIqRHEHe
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) February 3, 2024
George Liddard (6-0, 3 KOs) also debuted in America, and won all six rounds of his middleweight contest against Andrew Buchanan (3-1-1, 2 KOs).
Jimmy Sains (3-0, 3 KOs) blasted away Alejandro Avalos (1-3, 0 Kos) inside a round of their four rounder at middleweight. Sains uncorked a massive right hand that flattened Avalos, and the fight was waved off.
