-Huck stops Godfrey, Helenius TKOs Tony-
Marco Huck (30-1, 23 KOs) defended his WBO Cruiserweight Title with a spectacular fifth-round TKO victory over Matt Godfrey (20-2, 10 KOs). Fighting in front of a wild crowd of 4,500 fans in Erfurt, Huck dusted his opponent three times before the referee waved the bout off. “I am happy to have crowned the anniversary 100th ARD broadcast of a Sauerland show with a big victory,” Huck said. “I have tremendous punching power in both hands which I showed again today. Now I am ready to unify the titles. I can´t wait for the Super Six tournament to start.”
Huck used his trademark aggressiveness and explosiveness to wear Godfrey down. He dusted him with a big right at the end of the second and then again with another straight right early in the fifth. Another series sent Godfrey down and through the ropes, and when he was under pressure again, the referee stepped in. “He is very strong and has a lot of power,” Godfrey said. “He fires so many punches from very awkward angles. I should have moved more after avoiding the first punches but my mistake was that I just stood in front of him. He is very powerful.”
Manager Wilfried Sauerland revealed he hopes to finalise the Cruiserweight Super Six at the end of September or early October. “We are in ongoing negotiations and hope to have a very strong line-up,” he said. “The plan is for Marco to kick off the tournament with a unification in December. We are very pleased with Marco´s development – once he is firing in his powerful punches, there is no stopping him. The fans love to see his power and aggressiveness.”
In the co-featured main event, Robert Helenius (13-0, 8 KOs) clinched the vacant EU Heavyweight Title with a sixth-round TKO victory over Gregory Tony (12-1, 10 KOs). The “Nordic Nightmare” knocked down his opponent four times – in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth round – to win the first belt of his professional career. Tony did well to recover from the first three knock-downs but after 39 seconds in the sixth round the referee decided he had taken enough punishment. “It feels great to be a champion,” Helenius said. “Winning the first title is a big step for me. I am very happy with my performance. Ulli Wegner is the best coach in the world and I want to thank him for everything he has taught me. We are a great team.”
Wegner praised Helenius for a strong performance. “I have promised Robert´s home fans that he would be a world champion by the end of next year and today everybody could see why I rate him so highly. He is very strong and has great punching power. He keeps progressing and improving and winning the EU title will give him another lift.” Added Wilfried Sauerland: “We are thrilled to have Robert on our team. He has great potential and he will make lot of noise in the heavyweight division. That was a big win and if he keeps improving the sky is the limit for him.”
Godfrey vs. Huck Results: Pictures
