Abdullah Mason (20-0, 17 KOs) survived a 12-round war to defeat Sam Noakes (17-1, 15 KOs) by a unanimous decision to claim the vacant WBO lightweight title on Saturday night on November 22nd at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
(Credit: Queensberry/Leigh Dawney)
Mason Pushed to the Brink
It was not the easy fight that the 21-year-old Mason made it out to be afterward, as he took a lot of punishment from Noakes. He blamed the hard shots that he took on his fight with Noakes.
The reality was that Noakes was landing his best shots in the second half of the contest when Mason was on them, jabbing and trying his best to play keep away.
Scorecards Tell the Story
The scores were 115-113, 117-111, and 115-113. The two 115-113 scores were the more accurate ones, as Noakes appeared to get the better of Mason in many of the second-half rounds.
Coming into tonight’s fight, Abdullah wasn’t accustomed to fighting beyond six rounds, because he’d knocked out most of his opponents quickly in two or three rounds. When Noakes was still standing there by the halfway point, Mason didn’t have the gas tank that he’d had earlier.
Punch Stats Breakdown
- Abdullah Mason – 214 of 566 punches for 38%
- Sam Noakes – 156 of 613 for 25%
Abdullah’s Odd Post-Fight Spin
“I wouldn’t say he was tougher than I expected. I fought his fight. That’s what made it what it was,” said Abdullah Mason to Ring Magazine, downplaying the problems that Sam Noakes gave him with his pressure in their fight on Saturday night in Riyadh.
Mason tried his best to keep Noakes on the outside, but he did an excellent job of cutting off the ring and landing his power shots. Abdullah made it easier by backing away much of the time and standing straight up, making his head an easy target.
“Whatever they got coming, I’m prepared for. That’s as hard as it gets, fighting somebody else’s fight. Me fighting my fight would have made it that much easier. But we got the job done. I’m excited for what comes next. The main thing was he was pretty sturdy,” said Mason, giving an odd answer to the question. ‘How was his power?’
Mason took the shots from Noakes, but one could tell that he was bothered by them. If Noakes had hit him with some of the punches that he narrowly missed, he might have knocked him out.
“Everything I landed, he was still standing there waiting on me. I had to stay locked in for all 12. Yeah, for sure,” said Abdullah when asked if this is the ‘start of the belt collection season.’