Where can i watch cleverly v bellew

Indeed, the opportunities to throw a combination were there at times as the aggressive Bellew left himself open at various points, but Cleverly hardly made an attempt with his right.

Instead, the year-old fighting out of Caerphilly, Wales, worked the jab as often as possible while putting in a solid defensive effort by dodging many of Bellew's shots aimed at his head. Bellew improved as the fight went on, although his accuracy still left much to be desired and both fighters were breathing heavily by the halfway point.

Rd 8 to one-handed Cleverly, who did land a decent right in the round. I have Bellew up After the eighth round, the fight clearly belonged to Bellew. Cleverly had very little left in the tank and did all he could to hold on against Bellew. It was somewhat disappointing to see the fight come to this and some observers may wonder how the year-old Liverpudlian couldn't be more decisive and land cleaner blows against his beleaguered opponent.

Bellew's growing advantage came to a head in 11th round. He forced Cleverly into the ropes for nearly the entire three-minute period, swinging away with all the strength he had left, although few blows landed cleanly. It was all Cleverly could due to fend off the ragged assault, as both fighters were clearly winded by this point after punching so wildly in the early rounds.

Cleverly eventually moved off the ropes, but he didn't appear to have much fight left in him, a disappointing development considering the hype coming into this contest. The final round was the same tired dance as the previous one.

Cleverly was unable to fight back with his right arm folded up against his side like a chicken's wing. Bellew pressed his advantage, and it was enough to convince at least two of the judges that he deserved a victory on Saturday night.

It will be interesting to see if a rubber match between these two comes to fruition. The fight lacked drama in the latter half, but the split decision might give Cleverly cause to think he can take Bellew on in a rematch and settle this fierce rivalry, as long as he uses his right hand. Enjoy our content? Join our newsletter to get the latest in sports news delivered straight to your inbox! Tony Barrett TonyBarrett Can't work out why maybe an injury?

What a shame after such an enthralling, acidic buildup, in which both fighters spat fury at each other and gave the sense that they genuinely despised each other. Most of the hate came from Bellew and it was difficult to judge why he was so angry, bar being stung by the first contest between this pair, at this same venue, in October That was also a close affair but Cleverly, in his first defence of the WBO light-heavyweight title he had secured five months earlier, was a deserved victor.

That did not happen despite a fast start from the scouser on scouse territory, who took the centre of the ring and looked to put his opponent from Wales on the back foot. The early rounds were marked by a series of thudding body shots from the year-old and, while Cleverly took the hits, he gave little back bar a shot that cut Bellew above the right eye in the second round.

The year-old appeared content to fight behind his jab and, after being pinned against the ropes in the fourth, took to swinging his arm over his shoulder in theatrical fashion. Cue boos from the raucous, partisan crowd. Bellew continued stepping into his opponent, clearly keen to show how his superior power could make the difference, and into the seventh he again had Cleverly leaning on the ropes, taking a barrage of shots to the midriff.

But the Welshman recovered and kept his opponent at bay with his jab. It was becoming a frustrating encounter with Bellew unable to land any critical bombs and Cleverly doing little to force the contest. He appeared at one stage incapable of throwing his right hand despite several openings, leading to suggestions he had injured it.

By the end of the ninth round both fighters looked exhausted, Bellew from pinning his opponent back with a series of punches to the body and head that were not making a telling blow and Cleverly from simply taking the punishment.