Huck beats Nakash; Helenius destroys Peter:
WBO Cruiserweight Champion Marco “Captain” Huck (32-1, 23 KOs) made his sixth successful title defence on Saturday night in Halle, Germany when he defeated brave challenger Ran Nakash on points. Fighting in front of 5,300 fans at the Gerry Weber Stadion, Huck was ahead 118-110, 118-110 and 116-112 after twelve hard-fought rounds. An aggressive Nakash moved forward from the first bell on, with Huck trying to get off his powerful combinations.
From the fifth round onwards, Huck stamped his authority on the fight, landing hard uppercuts that bruised the face of his opponent. The crowd roared every time Huck launched one of his trademark assaults, but Nakash remained active and refused to go down. “He was a very dangerous opponent and I had to be on alert until the very end,” Huck said. “My uppercuts did the damage tonight. It was great to be in the ring in front of my home fans and give them an exciting fight.”
Huck handed Nakash (25-1, 18 KOs) the first loss of his career. “Huck is a strong guy, but I came here to win the title, so I am very disappointed,” he stated. Coach Ulli Wegner lauded both man for putting on “a Teutonic battle” in which “Huck held the upper hand.”
In the co-featured main event, Robert Helenius clinched his 15th victory in as many fights (15-0, 10 KOs), claiming the scalp of former world champion Sam Peter (34-5, 27 KOs). The “Nordic Nightmare” knocked his opponent down in the ninth with a huge left to the head. Peter got back up but went down again when Helenius connected with another huge left hook for the referee to wave the bout off. “I was convinced I would beat him,” Helenius said. “I needed some time to get going but then I found my rhythm. Peter was a tough opponent. This is a very big win for me.” Said Peter: “He hit me with two big shots that I did not see coming. He has a great future ahead.”
