Farrell given his first real test in pro ranks

Niall Farrell…made to dig deep by teak tough Mexican

BIRMINGHAM hope Niall Farrell was given his stiffest test to date by tough Mexican Ramiro Garcia Lopez, but still didn’t drop a round.

And on Scott Murray’s fine Sunday bill at the Premier  Suite – Cannock’s first open show for many a year – the man from Guadalajara also played his part in the most entertaining fight of lightweight Farrell’s unbeaten seven bout career.

For the first time, the former amateur star left the ring sporting the marks of battle. There was a welt under his right eye, bruising around the left and angry red blotches on his forehead.

Lopez, never stopped and coming to Staffordshire after plying his trade in Canada, made the 26-year-old work for his win. Referee Peter McCormack gave him a share of one round – 60-55 – after a pulsating six rounder.

After looking head and shoulders above the opposition he’s faced to date, this was the baptism of fire Farrell needed as he surges towards title fights.

Lopez, tall and rangy, had success with right hands, particularly, the uppercut. He came to win, threatened, but never looked like upsetting the party. He couldn’t cope with the Kingstanding prospect’s speed and accuracy. That was the bottom line.

Farrell and Lopez sportingly congratulate each other. Pic: Jack Perry

“He is very fast,” the visitor, who has now lost eight of 15, acknowledged through an interpreter.

Farrell is that. At times his hands were a blur as three punches combinations drilled home. Lopez took them all with a deadpan expression.

Dad and trainer Paddy said: “He listened to instructions. He listened and acted on what was said.”

Niall has yet to register a stoppage, but Paddy insisted they will come over longer distances.

“He is a consistent puncher,” he added. “And the stoppages will come when he has the time for those shots to cause real damage. What I don’t want to see is him loading up on punches.”

Manager Jon Pegg said: “He was up against a tough, hard Mexican and those are the fights you need as you step-up.”

Farrell (9st 13lbs like his opponent) landed rights to the pit of the stomach in the opener and blazed away with both hands in the second.

But he copped a right in the third and, by the end of the session, his flank was red from right hooks.

Niall peeled off a lightning fast three punch combination in the fifth, but Lopez simply refused to be subdued and continued to target the midriff.

Farrell ended with a flourish, finding another gear in the sixth as the Mexican’s workrate flagged and he connected with a big right in the dying seconds.

By the final bell, Niall knew he’d been in a scrap. For the first time as a pro, he failed to win every round.

Because of the man’s skill-base and amateur pedigree, previous bouts have been little more than walkovers. This was his first taste of warfare.