Williams a winner

Danny Williams easily won his bout against Marcus McGee on the Clinton Woods-Antonio Tarver undercard in Tampa, Florida. Williams scored two knockdowns and won a unanimous decision (60-52 on all three scorecards) but was unhappy with his performance.

"I felt terribly jet-lagged,” Williams, who flew to the US on Tuesday, said. “It was only in the fifth and sixth rounds that I felt myself getting into it. Sometimes when you warm up you know you are going to be bad and I just felt terrible.”

The building had only just opened as the boxers were introduced and the first fans were just making their way to their seats when the first bell sounded. It seemed for a time that Williams would get the bout over in a matter of seconds. Almost the first shots he threw, a left hook followed by a right cross, had McGee on the floor.

But he let his good start slide as McGee backed off and Williams declined to go after him. There could even be a case made that McGee won round two. Williams got more aggressive at the start of the fourth and a left hook to the body had him over again, although McGee got some extra recovery time when the referee interrupted the count as Williams had not gone to a neutral corner.

The body punching of Williams had a dispiriting affect on McGee, although a very low punch from Williams earned him a rebuke and McGee a rest on his stool. The best round for Williams was the last, as he set a high pace a hurt McGee several times, although he did not look close to forcing a stoppage.

Williams does not know what his next step will be. "I would like to keep active and box in the next couple of weeks," he said. "I think I will face the winner of John McDermott and Pele Reid (who box on Friday at York Hall). One more win would mean I would break Henry Cooper's record of British and Commonwealth title wins."

Another option could be a third match with Audley Harrison, who boxes in Las Vegas next weekend on the Joe Calzaghe-Bernard Hopkins bill, but he does not think David Haye should face him as he looks to move up the heavyweight ladder.

"I'd love to face him, but I think he is a league above any of the British heavyweights," he said. "It would be a big step back to face any of us. He should face someone like Hasim Rahman or John Ruiz."

Comments

[Cpt El Nino]

I always find Danny Williams comments humble and honest. His comment on David Haye ‘being a league above’ the other British heavyweights displays a frankness that is often lacking from today’s boxers.