McCaughran masters Liverpool to retain title
Evolution Boxing Club’s Zoe McCaughran returned to Liverpool on Saturday night to make the first defence of her WCU Promotions title, coming through a tough five round contest against Welsh challenger Samantha Mapp-Jones on Notorious TV.
McCaughran, who boxes out of Evolution Boxing Club under head coach Iain Mahood, has continued to make a name for herself in the sport while also balancing her boxing career with her work as a classroom assistant at Sunnylands Primary School.
The Carrickfergus fighter faced a determined challenger looking to apply pressure from the opening bell. Zoe started cautiously, using her footwork and movement through the opening two rounds to frustrate Mapp-Jones and avoid being drawn into the type of stand and trade battle the Welshwoman was looking for.
From the third round onwards, however, McCaughran began to stamp her authority on the contest. McCaughran started to press the action, timing her opponent with a stiff jab before following up with powerful right hands and heavy shots to the body. As the rounds progressed, McCaughran’s accuracy and volume began to tell, with her experience showing as she consistently found the target and controlled the exchanges.
The pressure continued into the fifth and final round, where McCaughran dropped Mapp-Jones with a heavy shot to the body, putting the finishing touch on an increasingly dominant performance.
When the final bell sounded, there was no doubt in the judges’ minds, with McCaughran awarded a unanimous decision victory to successfully retain her WCU Promotions title.
It was a mature performance from the champion, who showed patience early on before stepping up the pressure when the opportunity presented itself and demonstrademg why she is champion
Also appearing on the Liverpool card was Evolution Boxing Club’s Jack Quinn, who contested a three round bout against a local fighter in what proved to be one of the most entertaining contests of the night.
It was a high paced performance in a bout that had all the ingredients of a potential Fight of the Night, but unfortunately came up short on a closely contested split decision against the home boxer.
Despite the result, Quinn’s performance showed plenty of heart, skill and determination and he can take significant positives from a hard-fought contest away from home.
For Evolution Boxing Clubs Iain Mahood, it was another successful night, with McCaughran returning home with her title firmly secured and Quinn gaining valuable experience from a highly competitive contest.