Ferocious Lewison too much for Dallas at the York Hall

[boxrec]

Brixton heavy Ian 'Lay 'em Out' Lewison (8-2-1) lived up to his name and bulldozed his way through Chatham's Tom 'The Bomb' Dallas (17-4) in two brutal rounds at the York Hall last night to bag the Southern Area heavyweight title.

Lewison, at 17st 9lbs 4oz, was a fair bit lighter than his last outing back in February - a Prizefighter semi-final loss which many thought he deserved against American Derric Rossy. For Dallas (16st 9lbs 8oz), attempting to claw his way back into the heavyweight mix, this was a tough assignment. Since his own Prizefighter semi final exit over a year ago to eventual winner Tor Hamer, Dallas had a points win over Czech Tomas Mrazel in July, but seemed withdrawn and nervous as the pair squared up to receive instructions from Jeff Hinds.

Dallas tried to use his reach to repel the ferocious, oncoming storm of Lewison, but the scrap that topped Goodwin Promotions' mammoth 13 fight 'Brawl in the Hall' card quickly lived up to it's name. The first bludgeoning attack that came in from the Brixton heavy had Dallas in trouble on the ropes, then after a tangle of arms and wildly thrown shots, the Chatham fighter turned the tables and appeared to gain control briefly, before a big overhead right as part of Lewison's next wave caught him flush and forced him to hold on.

Another right hand landed and sprayed claret from Dallas's nose across the York Hall, causing him to go down in the corner. The Chatham heavy rose, well-bloodied, at eight, and tried to box on the back foot. Lewison was now swinging wildly and wide open to counters. Dallas was pushed back to the ropes, and despite finishing the round by landing a jab, he looked dejected in his corner after the bell, and had only just survived a fierce opening round.

Some thought opportunity might knock for Dallas if he managed to take the fight past the first few rounds, but it wasn't to be. He did cause Lewison to stumble from a combination as the Brixton fighter waded in, but the response landed and threw Dallas back - he protested the next count after touching down at the end of a full-on trade-up. He was taken down again by a swinging right, and got up, but the next right that Dallas absorbed caused Jeff Hinds to wave it off at 1.18 with Dallas still on his feet. He'd taken a dangerous amount of punishment and was far too open to the wild shots coming in from Lewison.

It was must win fight for both. Lewison has under-achieved thus far in his professional career, but slight improvements in speed and fitness have been witnessed under trainer Don Charles. For Dallas, it's surely time again to consider his professional boxing future. He can still be a gatekeeper of sorts, and will be able to get plenty of work as a jobbing heavyweight, but one wonders if that's the road he is content to travel down.

 

 

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