Huck Gets Decision Against Nakash

Marco Huck kept his WBO cruiserweight belt by way of unanimous decision today at Gerry Weber Stadium in Halle, Germany. Ran Nakash, the fourth Jewish boxer to fight for a world championship in the past year and a half, gave a good account of himself, but did not have the stamina to follow through.

Nakash (25-1, 18 KOs) constantly bolted forward throughout much of the fight. He managed to push Huck back into the ropes time and again. Nakash also worked the body. He landed a stunning overhand right in the fourth round. Nakash had thrown more, landed more, and connected on a higher percentage of his punches through the fourth round.

The fight turned in the fifth round. Huck (32-1, 23 KOs) found a flaw in Nakash's attack. As the Israeli challenger charged forward, he also leaned that way. Huck consistently capitalized by throwing uppercuts. That fifth round, Huck found his rhythm with that punch. He even worked off it as if it were a jab.

Nakash still managed to push Huck back to the ropes, but failed to make Huck pay while the champ was pinned. A welt grew under Nakash's left eye from the middle rounds on as he continued to eat uppercuts. It was nearly closed by the end of the bout. Nakash threw a left hook, straight right combination in the sixth that dramatically forced Huck backwards, but that was essentially the last serious bit of joy Nakash would find in the fight.

Huck took the eighth round easily. Nakash became exhausted in the ninth, but pushed forward. In the 12th, Huck fired a combination attempting to end the fight, but Nakash remained in front of him and ended the fight on his feet. The two American judges gave Huck the bout with 118-110 scores. The Swedish judge saw it as 116-112, probably a truer mark of what went on in the fight.

Nakash, who took the title shot on short notice and had never been more than ten rounds in a fight, displayed enormous heart in perpetually taking the fight to the taller, more accomplished champion. He said he was disappointed not to win and that Huck was a strong guy, though not a great boxer. When complimented on his titanium chin for eating all of those powerful uppercuts, Nakash simply smiled and indicated that he felt good.