By Ken Hissner: At the Palazzo Delo Sport, Verbania, Piemonte, in Italy Friday over DAZN Eddie Hearn (Matchroom Boxing) presented in the Main Event Italy’s Italian champion Ivan Zucco who stopped Serbia’s Marko Nikolic in two rounds for the vacant WBC International Super Middleweight title!
In the co-feature, Italy’s Mirko “Terminator” Natalizi defeated Germany’s Rico Mueller for the vacant WBC International Silver Super Welter title over ten rounds.
In the co-feature, southpaw Mirko “Terminator” Natalizi, 12-0 (7), #152 ¾, of Roma, Lazio, Italy, defeated former IBO Inter-Continental champ Rico “Pretty Boy” Mueller, 28-5-1 (19), #153 ¾, of Eberswalde, Brandenburg, Germany, for the WBC International Silver Super Middle title over ten rounds.
In the first five rounds, Mueller kept coming forward as the countering southpaw Natalizi kept him at bay with an effective jab making the face of Mueller reddened. In the eighth round, Natalizi purposely backed into a corner, but Mueller was too reluctant to go in after him.
In the ninth, tenth, and final rounds, Natalizi switched back and forth from southpaw to orthodox, finishing ten rounds of uneventful action.
Scores were 98-92 twice and 99-91.
In the Main Event, Italian champion Ivan Zucco, 16-0 (14), #166 ¾, of Verbania, Piemonte, Italy, stopped Marko Nikolic, 28-2 (12), #167 ¾, of Belgrade, Serbia, at 1:30 of the second round for the vacant WBC International Super Middle title.
At the end of the first round, Nikolic landed a solid right uppercut that brought blood from the nose of Zucco. In the second round, after a minute, a left from southpaw Zucco on the chin dropped Nikolic for an 8-count. Zucco went on the attack landing a right cross on the chin dropping Nikolic for a second time while Nikolic grabbed him to the canvas on the way down. When Nikolic beat the count, his corner stepped upon the apron, signaling the end.
Featherweight Francesco Grandelli, 16-1-2 (3), #127 ¾, of Cambiano, Piemonte, Italy, defeated Kane Baker, 17-9-1 (1), #129 ½, of Birmingham, West Midlands, UK, in 10 rounds.
In the first round, with a minute remaining, Grandelli landed a right on the chin, dropping Baker for an 8-count but managed to get through the round. In the second round, with a little more than a minute left, it was Baker landing an overhand right on the chin of Grandelli, dropping him for an 8-count. By the end of the round, Grandelli was back in control.
In the fifth round, Grandelli suffered a bloody nose but was able to continue to outbox Baker. In the eighth round, it was Baker chasing Grandelli, who was taking the round off. In the tenth and final round, Grandelli gave Baker a boxing lesson.
Scores were 98-90 twice and 96-92.
Super Welter Samuel Numomah, 17-0 (5), #155, of Lagos, Nigeria, and Novara, Piemonte, Italy, defeated Fouad “Desert Storm” El Massoudi, 17-18-1 (2), #156 ½, of Clermont-Ferrand, Puy-de-Dome, France, over eight rounds.
In the first four rounds, it was all Numomah with counter rights to the chin while El Massoudi landed several overhand rights to the head.
From the fifth through the eighth, what looked like a mismatch on paper ended up an interesting eight rounds with Numomah remaining unbeaten.
Scores were 78-73 twice and 77-72.
Featherweight southpaw Mauro Forte, 17-0-2 (7), #130, of Roma, Lazio, Italy, knocked out Joshua Ocampo, 8-4-4 (6), #128 ¼, of Cucuta, Colombia, in the sixth and final round.