Cristobal Lorente secured himself a crack at WBC featherweight champion Bruce Carrington by defeating Nathaniel Collins in Glasgow’s SSE Hydro Arena last night.
The final verdict was a bizarre split decision, made even stranger by Italian judge Giovanni Poggi’s 116-111 card in favour of the Scottish fighter.
Thankfully, it was overruled by America’s Barry Lindenman and Victor Loughlin, who both totalled 115-112 in favour of the Barcelona visitor. Lorente appeared to be a clear winner after 12 hard rematch rounds.
These two met last October, engaging in a solid scrap that ended in a draw. Following a promising start in Glasgow’s Braehead Arena, Collins faded a little down the stretch, allowing the sprightly Spaniard to come on strong.
In the end, much to the disappointment of Collins and fans, the fight was declared a draw. Retaining the European featherweight title (since dropped and won by Liam Davies last month), Lorente was only marginally happier, believing he had done enough to win.
Fast-forward six months and they were at it again, this time contesting a world title eliminator for the right to fight Bruce Carrington. Lorente started faster than last time, pumping out the left jab early on.
The Spaniard was doing a good job of letting Collins lead off and counter him with flashy combinations. Collins forced a knockdown in the sixth, landing a cuffing right hand. Lorente responded with a final 45 seconds of work that left the Scot temporarily ruffled and covering up.
Boxing at the same pace throughout, Collins lacked an extra gear. While he was setting his feet to land the right shots, Lorente was working to the head, and especially to the body.
His engine kicked in down the stretch and a run from the eighth round to the 11th felt like a sweep for the Spanish fighter, 30, who had Sandor Martin in the corner doling out pellets of advice. Those words of wisdom helped him maintain the awkward potshots and ferocious output as Collins grew tired in his attempts to turn things around.
Understandably grinning during his interview with DAZN’s Dev Sahni, Lorente, 21-0-3 (8 KOs), now has a WBC Silver title around his shoulder and, more importantly, an expected world title crack in the near future.
Collins, who exited the ring at the fight’s conclusion, falls to 17-1-1 (8 KOs), suffering his first pro loss. This good value 11-fight card kicked off a weekend of British boxing that continues with Ben Whittaker versus Braian Suarez in Liverpool on Saturday evening.
Target the body and avoid a scrap were Lorente’s keys to victory
“All this work is thanks to this man, my coach, the only man who believes in me my whole life,” said the winner via Sandor Martin, interpreting.
“I feel nervous with the knockdown, but my team say to me in the corner, don’t change the gameplan, continue, win the rounds to get the victory and I did this.
“The plan of the fight was to stay with the body shots, don’t enter in the fight.”
A thrilling round six saw Lorente dropped before roaring back to dominate the final portion.
“In round six of all my important fights, something happens!” chuckled the winner.
“I fight. I need to win for me and my family, it is for the future of my family,” concluded the winner who is now keen on the Carrington clash.
Collins vs. Lorente Full Card Results
Cristobal Lorente Won Pts (split) 12 Nathaniel Collins
Royston Barney-Smith Won TKO 2 Conor McIntosh
Dylan Arbuckle Won RTD 4 Nico Leivars
Aston Brown Lost TKO 5 Sam Gilley
Marcus Sutherland Lost Pts 8 Lateef Bayo Alabi
Reese Lynch Won TKO 3 Matthew King
Alex Arthur Jr. Won KO 1 Owen Kirk
Drew Limond Won Pts 4 Ryan Frost
Stephen Newns Won TKO 3 Tariq Davis
John Thomson Won TKO 3 Kasey Bradnum
John Joe Carrigan Won KO 1 Harley Hodgetts
More Fighters Weekly News
- KSW 117: Pawlak vs. Khalidov free live fight results & highlights
- Whittaker vs Suarez puts British star in spotlight ahead of USA debut
- Eddie Hall vs. Tommy Fury: Strongman looks deadly in latest fight footage
- 6 fighters set for UFC debuts at UFC Winnipeg this weekend
Follow Fighters Weekly on Instagram, Facebook, and X.
