York Hall- Raven Chapman (8-0, 2 KO’s) and Lucie Sedlackova (15-2-1, 6 KO’s) put on a quality display as they did battle for the WBC International featherweight title. 

Sedlackova is an experienced fighter and quickly served notice that she was there to win, catching Chapman with a nice left hook. Chapman upped the tempo in the second, aiming to get closer to the taller Czech and let the punches go in bursts. Sedlackova was happy to wait for Chapman to close the distance and cried to catch her with long, straight punches as she made her way in but Chapman smartly kept her head moving as she stepped forward and landed the cleaner work inside.

That inside work was the key to Chapman’s success in the fourth. She was able to get inside Sedlackova’s long arms and work well up close and although clearly able, Sedlackova was being outhustled. 

Chapman was putting together the best performance of her career. She picked her shots well and displayed some excellent head movement, never allowing Sedlackova a clean shot. 

The Czech fighter didn’t cave in. She had her best round of the fight in the sixth, staying inside and answering back whenever Chapman landed. Chapman landed a hard, arcing right hand as Sedlackova backed to the ropes and then the pair engaged in a quality exchange in centre ring. 

The seventh round was a quality round of action, both enjoying success and having to answer questions. Chapman was just making sure that the majority of the fight was fought at the range she wanted it. She was defensively alert at distance and active to head and body inside but Sedlackova tried to go wIth her.

Sedlackova lost her way slightly in the eighth, finding it difficult to tame Chapman’s charges and just losing her rhythm and range. As the bell sounded, Chapman put an exclamation mark on a big round with a nice short right hook inside. 

That right hand caused some damage to Sedlackova’s nose and Chapman attempted to step on the gas and make life even more uncomfortable for her, landing some nice short uppercuts but the Czech fighter refused to buckle and found the mark with a couple of nice right hands. 

Chapman finished strongly. She landed her best punches of the fight in the final round and hurt Sedlackova with clean right hands, feeling her opponent weaken, Chapman pressed forward and found the mark with some well timed and well picked shots.

After ten rounds, Mark Lyson scored the fight 98-92, Jon Llona Fernandez had it 98-92 and Eddie Pappoe had it 97-93, all in Chapman’s favour. The 29 year old is really beginning to look the part. 

Umar Khan (8-0) easily outpointed Colombia’s Yin Caicedo (9-12-4, 3 KO’s) over six rounds at featherweight. 

Unbeaten Khan started out in his usual confident fashion, throwing quick combinations but just held his feet a split second too long and was stung by an overhand right by the switch-hitting Caicedo. The Colombian was unorthodox and untidy, falling into clinches and loading up with big shots and Khan wisely decided to step quickly out of range after letting his own punches go. Caicedo also showed out a couple of times. He paused and pointed to his head after a minor clash of heads and as the second round ended, he flinched and stepped away after Khan pushed him off with a forearm.

Khan’s tactics worked to perfection in the third, stepping away from a wild left hook and hurting Caicedo with a well timed right but Caicedo’s awkward style made it difficult to pin him down and follow up with anything significant. Caicedo’s workrate dropped in the fourth and he began to look a little disheartened. Khan began to hunt him down but didn’t disguise his attacks well enough and Caicedo would clinch at every opportunity. 

Khan closed the distance between the two in the fifth, making Caicedo work. Feeling little threat, he neglected his jab and stalked Caicedo, letting both hands go. He did absorb a right hand from Caicedo who got a serious warning for punching behind the head. Caicedo went into survival mode in the sixth, offering precious little in terms of offence and losing a point after letting another shot stray around the back of the head. With less than 30 seconds to go, Khan landed a clean right hand and Caicedo’s legs stiffened. The two got tangled up and Caicedo tumbled clumsily to the ground. Referee, Lee Every, decided to call it a knockdown. 

Ilford’s Khan was awarded a 60-52 decision but will feel that he allowed a golden opportunity to record his first stoppage victory slip through his fingers.