Lewis Ritson will “come back better” and make detractors “eat their words”.
Seven days go, the Geordie suffered the heartbreak of losing in front of his beloved fans when Francesco Patera defeated him in a gripping contest for the vacant European lightweight title.
With the dust now settling on this painful set-back, coach Neil Fannan has told punch-lines that Team Ritson will return and return stronger from the experience and respond to critics by performances and results inside the ring.
“It will only help to motivate us, both me and Lewis,” said Fannan.
“There have been a few negative things said and I think we have a point to prove and make some of these people eat their words.
“There are things we know we need to put right, we will, and we’ll come back better.
“I’ve seen people say that Lewis isn’t as good as he’s been made out to be.
“But I know Lewis and he is better than people say he is.”
The split decision defeat to the Belgian at the Metro Radio Arena felt like the end of the world to the 25-year-old and his thousands of fans.
However, Fannan explained that it proved to be a “learning fight” and that, after a run of early stoppage triumphs that a bout like that was inevitable at some point.
“Lewis is all right now,” said the trainer. “He was a bit sick obviously, well, very sick.
“He reverted back to his old self [in the contest].
“After the fight he knew and on Sunday put out his statement to say that he didn’t stick to the game-plan.
“Something like this was always going to happen that there would be a day when he came up against a brick wall, an opponent that wasn’t going anywhere.
“I’d told him in the preparations that it was going to be a case of getting the rounds in the bank and grinding him down, at this level you are not going to walk through them.
“He’d set off in the right fashion but as the fight wore on he got himself in a rut and couldn’t get out of it.”
Fannan was full of praise for Patera and the 25-year-old’s performance but feels six fights inside a 13-month period had caught up with ‘The Sandman’.
“He didn’t have that sparkle,” said the Hartlepool trainer. “I’d seen the cracks in the build up and I’d said to Lewis, Davy [Ritson] and Jaffa [Phil Jeffries] that he needed a rest after this fight, whatever the result.
“I’d seen him looking flattish in camp.
“Some might say ‘you should have opened your mouth’ and maybe I should, but this was the top of the bill so your hands are tied.
“No-one wants to lose but, to be truthful, this was a good learning fight.
“Even if Lewis scraped through and won we knew there were things we needed to do.
“He only jabbed and moved his head when he was over our side of the ring when he could hear us shouting him.”
Fannan said there were a number of factors involved in the loss, but explained that he did not want anything to detract from the display of the new European champion.
“It wouldn’t have been fair to make excuses because Patera swam the channel on Saturday night with that performance,” he said. “Francesco was brilliant. He showed everything you want to see from your fighter.
“Lewis was slightly under par, didn’t follow the game-plan and all the pressure was on him and none on Patera.
“All were factors and after all that he probably only lost by a round or so.”
Ritson is likely to be back in the New Year with a fourth defence of his British lightweight title.
Words: Roy Kelly Pictures: Jennifer Charlton
