Tony Thompson Upsets David Price in Liverpool, Wins TKO2

David Price is edging his way up the ladder, collecting bigger name scalps as the months pass. The Brit heavy looked to collect the top name of his career,Tony Thompson, at Echo Arena in Liverpool, England on Saturday night.

Or maybe it’s better to say “was”…

Pundits wondered if Tony was coming to win when he stepped on the scale Friday and weighed 262 pounds, whereas he was 247 and 244 when meeting Wladimir Klitschko in 2008 and last year.

The answer came in round two, when Thompson hurled a right hook which dropped Price, who stood up, but on compromised legs. The ref, at 2:17, stopped the contest, and Price had the first L of his career attached to his record.

The 41 year old Thompson (36-3 entering; living in DC), a lefty, was in against a man his promoter, Frank Maloney, hopes can follow in the footsteps of Lennox Lewis. That’s a tall order, but in this era of heavyweights, he could be two steps lessser than that and still make noise and money. Price (age 29; 15-0 entering; 6-8; living in Liverpool) had about three inches on Tony. Now, we wonder if he’s three steps lesser than Lennox. “We got caught, this is heavyweight boxing,” Price said after. Thompson said he was psyched when the fans booed the American anthem. He said he wanted Price to run into shots, stay patient and smart. He was asked about his weight. He said he stopped worrying about his weight a long time ago, and just wanted to be in shape. “I’m not going to have the impressive body Price has but I have an impressive mind,” he said. He wants Tyson Fury next. Price could stand to gain some weight, to get sturdier, he said.

In the first, neither man went balls out. Price was slightly more aggressive, but he wasn’t fully warmed up. Tony was the mover, looking to be more mobile, so Price couldn’t get his feet set to land a bomb. Price landed heavy body shots when he trapped Tony in a corner, but the vet stayed calm. In fact, he countered Price, who went down in a heap. He got up, but his legs were bad and the ref stopped it.

The shot was a right hook, to the side of the head/ear, and it took away his balance.