Indongo Upends Burns in Glasgow, Unifying the 140-pound Titles

INDONGO UPSETS BURNS — Julius Indongo has fought only twice outside his native Namibia, but Indongo has become quite the road warrior. In December he burst on the international scene with a shocking one-punch knockout of previously undefeated Eduard Troyanovsky in Moscow. It took only 40 seconds for Indongo to claim the IBF junior welterweight title. On Saturday he ventured into hostile Glasgow where WBA titlist Ricky Burns was waiting.

This time Indongo was forced to go the distance, but in the opinion of many ringsiders he won every round. (The official tallies were 120-108, 118-110, and 116-112.) Fighting two days after his 34^th birthday, Burns (41-6-1) looked older than his 34-year-old opponent. A titlist in three weight classes, the Scotsman from Coatbridge showed the wear-and-tear of a lengthy pro career that included 15 fights contested for one title or another.

Where the 22-0 Indongo goes from here is an intriguing question. Terence Crawford holds the other two shares of the 140-pound title, but his calendar is booked and he’s hinted that he may move up. The guess is that Indongo will turn to one of the young guns, perhaps Sergei Lipinets, Ivan Baranchyk or Antonio Orozco.

Domestic Title Fights

In an upset, Robbie Barrett (15-2-1) overcame two knockdowns to score a 12-round majority decision over defending BBBofC British lightweight champion Scott Cardle. It was a bitter defeat for the previously undefeated Cardle, now 21-1-1, who was 2-0-1 in bouts with this sanction and thus one win removed from gaining permanent possession of a coveted Lonsdale belt.

Charlie Edwards (10-1) outpointed Ian Butcher (16-3) to claim the BBBofC British super flyweight title. Edwards was too quick for the Scotsman, winning every round on all three scorecards. This was Edwards first fight under the tutelage of the noted trainer Adam Booth.

Other Fights:

Middleweight Josh Kelly won his pro debut, cruising to a 6-round decision over Dublin’s Jay Byrne. A 2016 Olympian, Kelly will be back in action in two weeks on the Joshua-Klitschko undercard. Also, 6-foot-5 cruiserweight Lawrence Okolie, Kelly’s Olympic teammate, dismissed Polish trial horse Lakasz Rusiewicz in the opening round. It was the second straight first round stoppage for the former McDonald’s worker who won his pro debut in 20 seconds.

Check out more boxing news on video at The Boxing Channel.