Liverpool has a new world champion after James Metcalf wrote his name into the boxing history books with a huge win over Dennis Hogan in Dublin.
The son of former WBU world light-welterweight champion Shea Neary, Metcalf got his hands on the IBO super-welterweight crown after 12 rounds of boxing at the 3Arena. In a sport where families form rich legacies, with Chris Eubank Jr and Conor Benn already established elite pros in their own right, Metcalf went one step better by becoming a world champion.
Several fighters have buckled under the pressure of trying to match their fathers’ achievements in the ring, but Metcalf produced the performance of his career to come out on top against the experienced Hogan. After an impressive start, Metcalf erupted with punches to open up the third and seemed to rattle Hogan, who had struggled to land any big shouts of his own in the opening rounds of the fight.
