Tommy Ward is back. Not that he has ever really been away.
But you know what punch-lines means.
The 27-year-old won for the 30th occasion as a professional against Mexican champion Edy Valencia Mercado and for the first time since deciding to move up to featherweight.
Having won 29 fights in a row, it would be a little harsh to say Ward was under the microscope after a bloody draw last time out against Thomas Essomba.
But there was an element of pressure for the Neil Fannan and Dave Garside star to deliver at the Vertu Motors Arena, where his 10-rounder provided the chief support to Lewis Ritson’s IBF world light-welterweight final eliminator with Jeremias Ponce.
And, how Ward delivered, producing a performance full of sparkle to clinch a unanimous decision from the three judges, Ron Kearney (97-93), Steve Gray and Victor Loughlin (98-92).
“I was over the moon with Tommy,” trainer Fannan told punch-lines.
“I never try to make any excuses because we are fighting men but it’s not been easy for Tommy.
“He’d been out for a year before fighting Thomas Essomba, then that was a bad performance with a bad cut and it was another eight months out.
“He’s not been able to get any momentum going and then after we trained for an orthodox opponent we get a southpaw!
“Tommy took a few too many shots than I would like, but I was well pleased with how he performed.
“But the best thing for me was you could see how much he enjoyed it and he showed a lot of class too.”
For someone whose ring time has hardly been extensive over the last couple of years, there was some beautiful movement from the start by Ward, head, body and feet, plus some rapid, accurate jabs and nice combinations.
Some of the combination work was exquisite in round two, which ended with two big misses by the southpaw.
Ward’s early rounds were a joy to watch which made it all the surprising to see the NE Security-sponsored boxer take a first taste of the canvas in round five. It looked a stumble but referee Howard Foster deemed otherwise.
Tommy was straight up but it had enthused Edy who had the bit between his teeth though the zip was soon very much in evidence again for the Hartlepool fighter.
You could see why Mercado has enjoyed such a good career as he came forward with determination in the second half of the fight, but he struggled to land and the quality work belonged to the Co Durham man.
Hopefully, that quality will translate into a ranking with the four main governing bodies and Ward can get his crack at a world title.
Words: Roy Kelly Picture: Jennifer Charlton
