You little ripper! Josh Kelly in wonderland after making history in Newcastle

So, Josh Kelly is the latest world champion to hail from the United Kingdom - and the first of them to come from Sunderland too.

It wasn’t easy for the star. The climb was tough and beset with challenges. But now, the view from the top must make it all feel worth the pain. 

Since Pretty Boy’s cameo at Rio 2016, he has teased us with his rare speed and skills, yet never quite put it all together or lived up to the hype surrounding him as a pro.

Not until Saturday night, that is. There, he was slick and brave as he beat Bakhram Murtazaliev to claim the IBF light-middleweight title by majority decision in Newcastle,

The Ring

Kelly won with scores of 115-111 and 114-113, while one judge was unable to separate him from his foe at 113-113. But make no bones, this was no hometown decision.

The Wearside stylist earned every bit of that belt with a performance that was equal parts stylish and tenacious, built with verve and exuberance on a showpiece night.

He banked enough rounds in the first half to get the nod, showcased his mettle too. Some of his counterpunching was just delicious to behold.

After a torrid ninth round when he was dropped, he showed the cojones many thought he did not possess after the shellacking David Avanesyan handed him back in 2021.

Fair play must be paid after such a fine performance from the Englishman though, and with his win, Kelly has opened up plenty of doors - and the financial possibilities to match.

Xander Zayas – who boxed and won on the same night - is now WBA and WBO champion, while Sebastian Fundora is the WBC kingpin after beating Tim Tszyu in July last year. 

There are other options away from silverware that might swing too. Don’t be shocked if Kelly and a certain Conor Benn bump heads at some point in the next dozen months or so.

'The Destroyer' has no belt but is a big name with career-best stock in the bank after beating Chris Eubank Jr. A fight between the pair would make financial sense.  

However, what Kelly does next is not actually the main focus of this week’s column. The older I've become, I must confess I've grown more cynical, perhaps a bit misanthropic.

More things irritate me than they used to and one thing that rustles my jimmies in boxing is the phrase: “You don’t just beat the champion – you have to rip the title from him."

Alright, crash helmet on. I’m about to go feral. This is one of the absolute worst takes in boxing.

As soon as the decision was announced in favour of ‘Pretty Boy’ in Newcastle, lots of people on social media were trotting this phrase out verbatim or alluding to similar ideas.

It’s basically nonsense.  Murtazaliev was clearly hampered by more than a year of inactivity and struggled to find any rhythm on the night.

He spent far too long waiting rather than letting his hands go and pushing the pace, and found himself frequently peppered with shots all night.

While the punch stats favoured Murtazaliev at the final bell, they didn’t tell the full story, though let’s not also pretend Kelly was Sugar Ray Robinson in there either.

He was flat-out running at times, but the star mixed that up with some intelligent combinations from the outside, which helped score that flash knockdown himself in round four.

That seemed to give the home favourite some genuine belief to build on for the rest of the bout. His footwork was better all night and he was the man controlling the distance. 

It was never a clinic, but Kelly’s defence was excellent throughout, and he was hitting and not getting hit for the most part.

Their respective faces at the end – Murtazaliev marked up with bruises and bumps while the Englishman looked like he had just come back in off a run – also told a story. 

But hearing words to the effect that Kelly tore the title away just irritates me. Ripping is what foxes do to bin bags, not prizefighters to champions in the middle of the ring.

Some characters within the boxing industry trot this line out time and again like it is a moral law handed down on stone tablets by irascible duo Don King and Bob Arum.

It isn’t. If anything, it’s a bit of an oxymoron, in as much as fight fans hate corruption, they love this phrase. It’s nonsense. Pure nonsense.

Mark Robinson / Matchroom Boxing

Sorry, you fought beautifully, controlled the pace, neutralised the champ… but you didn’t do it with enough unbridled fury. Can’t give you the belt, I'm afraid. 

The saying suggests that being the champion gives you a head start, like in Mario Kart. It doesn’t.

Both fighters begin on equal terms when that first bell goes, and Kelly definitely did enough to shade it over a dozen rounds.

He did enough. What more do you want from him? A PowerPoint presentation between each three-minute burst?

For me that sentence has done more damage to boxing than bad judging, bad matchmaking, and whatever the hell that was on top of Jarrell Miller's head in New York

'Big Baby' – if you are reading this, my man - 24 hours to dry means 24 hours to dry.

I digress. Re: ripping the title from the champ, the challenger can win 7-5 and people will still say: "Yeah, but he didn’t take it."

Take it how? With a balaclava and a cosh? With a stern cease-and-desist letter? How about this? If you win the fight, you win the title.

For the good of boxing – and my own personal sanity - let’s put this phrase in the bin. 

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