WBO middleweight champion Andy Lee and Peter Quillin fought to a split draw Saturday night at the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn, New York.
Quillin put Lee down to the canvas twice early, in the first and third rounds with two great looping right hooks. The fight couldn’t have started any better for the undefeated Quillin but the persistent Irishman fought back and got his way back into the match.
Due to Quillin failing to make weight, Lee’s title was not on the line, however, but Quillin’s undefeated record was as he looked determined on making a statement with his performance in the first few rounds.
Lee had previously won 19 out of last 20 bouts. His record remains at 34-2 and 24 KO and will be satisfied with his fight back after falling behind earlier. Lee knew he was behind and spent most of the rounds after getting knocked down trying to recover from the heavy blows that opened a cut above his left eye.
Quillin came into the fight with a record of 31-0 with 22 KO and his first fight since April 19th of last year. An overhead left and right cross combination from Lee with seconds left in the seventh round saw Quillin hit the floor for the first time in his career. ‘Kid Chocolate’ was visibly tiring as Lee began to get the upper hand in the latter rounds.
“It was a hard fight to score. He had the knockdowns, but I boxed consistently, especially down the stretch,” Lee explained of his performance.
Both fighters looked exhausted in the later rounds after some big exchanges from both fighters landing big blows. The fight got scrappy with both sides trying to catch their breath and waiting on the opponent to make a move which drew boos from the Brooklyn crowd.
It went the judges’ desk after both men failed to knock the other out. Each man was awarded a score of 113-112 apiece as the third official ruled the fight at 113-113 split draw.
Lee’s first official title defence is expected to take place against another undefeated boxer in Englishman Billy Joe Saunders (21-0-0).