By Ciaran McKinney: This bout came to be off the back of numerous delays and then the inevitable cancellation of Kell Brooks’ World Title bout versus Devon Alexander. The special one, in recent times has been ravaged by injury and on his own admission fell out of love with the sport. The first battle between these two, was expected to be a relatively easy step up in class for Brook, however, he got the scare of his life and a true gut-check.
So the two competitors made their way to the ring, Jones seemed enthusiastic whilst Brook had an determined, concentrated stare. It was clear he meant business. The 10-Round bout started with Brook on the offensive, startling Jones with a beautiful combination, then dominating the opening 3 minutes from ‘The Special One’.
In the second, Brook was relentless, a constant onslaught of combinations, putting Jones on the canvas, who was able to answer the 10-count. It was evident that this was a man who was using his opponent as a target on which to vent 10 months of frustration.
So onto the third round, Jones defenses were once again nowhere to be seen, Brook laying into his opponent with body shots. For all Jones claims that he wanted to finish what he started, he seemed like a novice at times, with Brook able to set about his purpose with a stinging vengeance.
Before the 4th round began, Jones could be overheard defiantly stating ‘I’m OK’, and in his defense, he was the aggressor in the fourth round with Brook choosing to soak up the pressure. This was a poor choice, allowing Jones to create some much neded momentum, catching Brook with some decent shots, by the time the bell sounded, this man from the Steel City had blood streaming from the nose.
Into the fifth round and Brook quickly claimed the center of the ring and the initiative after a few stern words from his corner. There was constant plodding forward from Jones, while all the quality came from Kell Brook, however from the opening three rounds, the work-rate had definitely dipped. The fight was beginning to show similiar characteristics of their previous encounter.
At the start of the 6th, Brook had Jones head going in all kinds of directions with his powerful jab, however the durable Oklahoma native took it on the chin, literally and metaphorically. Bar a few stamina worries, there weren’t any visible signs of ring rust after the halfway point of the fight from the favourite.
Into Round 7 and i doubt anyone could have any arguments about Brook claiming every round thus far. It was relatively cagey to begin before Brook took the battle to Jones after the latter had a promising spell. The least eventful round of the bout, and probably the first one that could be scored in favour of Jones.
The 8th round began frantically, Brook came out and caught Jones with flashing blows, and this led to a controversial second count, however no less than 30 seconds later, the fight was over. The referee waved the fight off and Jones was infuriated. Whilst he may feel hard done by with the stoppage, he was thoroughly outclassed and this was a convincing victory for Brook.
So the record has been set straight for Kell Brook, a massive confidence boost, but there must be a reality check, this is the start of the rebuilding process for Brook, Carson Jones is a valiant fighter, yet he is not in the league of Brook or many of the other major players in the division. A momentum building win? Certainly. The Special One? That remains to be seen
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