European super bantamweight champion, Liam Davies, was determined not to box more than four rounds this year.
Having stopped the respected Jason Cunningham inside a round in a July grudge match, the confident 27 year old insisted that his European title defence against Vincenzo La Femina would be over and done with inside three rounds.
He may have missed his target but it wasn’t for the want of trying. Davies crammed 12 months’ worth of drama into the five round shootout he ended up getting involved in.
Davies (15-0, 7 KO’s) put the gutsy and previously unbeaten Italian challenger over in the third and fourth rounds but ended up with a small cut over his right eye and briefly found himself on the floor for the first time in his career before ending the fight with a sustained attack in the fifth.
Davies is only 15 fights into his professional career but has already won English, British and European titles and is one of British boxing’s most under appreciated and overlooked fighters.
He can now enjoy Christmas and will sit back with a turkey sandwich to watch the Boxing Day 122lb unification fight between WBC and WBO champion, Naoya Inoue, and WBA and IBF boss, Marlon Tapales, before plotting a route towards a world title.
Davies was in seek and destroy mood on Saturday and it made for a thrilling spectacle.
“That was always the plan. In my two fights where I went the twelve round distance, it was just about getting the job done.,” Davies told TNT after the fight.
“I put the work in. I dedicate my life to boxing and give it everything. I just said to Frank [Warren, his promoter] that the last great super bantamweight champion was Carl Frampton. Next up is Liam Davies. Trust me.
“For my Christmas present I want a world title in Telford so hopefully Uncle Frank [Warren, his promoter] can sort that out for us very soon.”
“We’ll keep him busy,” Warren said. “He’s not far off challenging for a world title and he’s doing it the traditional way. That was a fantastic win for him tonight against a very capable performer. He got clipped himself but controlled it, was very composed and did a brilliant job.”