Shabaz Masoud was so good against Liam Davies even the judges weren’t able to rob him

Save for being knocked out in round one, or badly injured, there aren’t many worse ways to lose than the way Liam Davies lost against Shabaz Masoud last night (November 2) in Birmingham. It wasn’t that the defeat was particularly punishing, or that Davies was humiliated, but more that the disparity in skill between the two unbeaten rivals throughout the 12 rounds they shared left Davies with more questions than answers. Wounds, of course, can be licked and will in time heal. But doubt, especially in one so confident, is sometimes the far greater affliction. 

Even the split decision three ringside judges somehow managed to produce at the end of it all will neither console Davies nor allow him to forget how he felt in there with Masoud. That, as a token gift, will serve only to paper over the cracks.

Some defeats, like knockouts, leave ample room for delusion. One can, in the instance of a knockout, blame it on a mistake, or a shot from the gods, or some other detail easy to rectify if they could only do it all over again. Here, though, with Davies and Masoud, there was no doubt about the winner of this fight either at the end of it or, in truth, from the halfway mark. In fact, the only question, which Masoud answered unequivocally, was whether it would be possible for Masoud to sustain the great form he showed in the first half of the fight into the second half of the fight. Beyond that, this was very much a case of one round resembling both the previous and the next, with Masoud almost always in control. 

One could argue, given the fact both were unbeaten and Davies entered the bout as favourite, Masoud’s performance ranks up there with the best we have seen in a British ring this year. For not only did he beat Davies last night in Birmingham but he did so in a manner so comprehensive the interest in these two fighting again, at least immediately, would be minimal – yes, despite the split decision verdict. To even entertain this, as an idea, before the fight would have seemed ridiculous, particularly in light of how well-matched these two super bantamweights were and how few were certain of a winner. Yet now, having watched them spend 36 minutes in a ring together, one can only assume that a rematch would go the same way as the first fight, with Masoud in control and Davies growing increasingly frustrated. 

Which is why, when focusing once more on that split decision verdict, it is so maddening to reach the end of a performance like Masoud’s against Davies and still not be totally sure he would be rewarded for his brilliance. Chief culprit last night, by the way, was Marco Morales, who somehow scored the fight 115-113 in favour of Davies. Yet Morales was not alone. Even the scorecard of Jean Marie Natus, which had Masoud winning but only by two rounds (115-113), seemed completely inconsistent with what everybody else had watched unfold. The third card, meanwhile, which was delivered by Terry O’Connor and had Masoud winning by 116-112, was, to my mind, about as far as you could stretch your generosity to Davies without either your eyesight or morals being called into question. 

It is true, we should never let the poor work of judges detract from the fine work of a fighter, but still it is hard not to feel for Masoud, someone whose dominance should have been reflected at the end of it all. Now, because it was not reflected in the scores, people will see him edging Davies on a split decision and if yet to watch the fight will presume the fight was as close as many anticipated it would be going in. 

However, the beauty of Masoud’s performance last night was that he confounded these expectations and made Davies, someone who has looked so good in the last couple of years, appear at least a level or two beneath him. It started right from the outset, too, when Masoud instantly found his range and timing and repeated a prescription of left crosses from a southpaw stance whenever Davies advanced. Time and time again this shot pinged back the Telford man’s head and each time it did he became ragged, clumsy, and even more likely to find himself hit with it again. 

In round two, Davies got busier, sensing already the need for urgency, but Masoud remained calm, content to pick him off on the way in. By now the fight very much had the look of bull versus matador and Masoud, armed with gloves rather than a sword, moved superbly on the back foot, making Davies miss before spearing him with that sharp counter left whenever he sniffed an opening. 

The third, a round in which Davies threw Masoud to the floor in frustration, was a far messier one. Davies, stalking, couldn’t get off with anything clean, and would often smother his own work, while Masoud, happy to just throw the left hand, was now varying the trajectory of this punch; sometimes shooting it high, and sometimes stabbing it towards the Davies body. 

More frustration followed in rounds four and five for Davies. In the fourth he picked up a cut by his right eye, the result of so many left crosses hitting that area, and then, in the fifth, he was warned by a pernickety referee, Marcus McDonnell, for aiming his punches too low. He clearly wanted to be able to work up close, yet even in moments when it did become an inside battle it was always Masoud who came out on top, often using his right hook to catch Davies in the pocket. 

Any success Davies did have arrived in round six, the round in which he landed a solid right hand, his best shot so far, and rallied after it with a combination. It was all a bit frantic, of course, for he knew he was behind, but at least in the sixth he managed to slow Masoud down and keep him still, even if in the final 20 seconds of the round Davies found himself nailed by yet another big left hand.  

Which is to say, any fear of Masoud flagging or undoing his earlier good work disappeared no sooner than it emerged. By round seven, in fact, normal order had resumed and Masoud, so composed, was back in control. In the eighth, too, he began the round by landing a lovely one-two on Davies as he ambled forward, after which Davies, again in frustration, banged his gloves together and beckoned him forward for more. 

As for the ninth, this was a better round for Davies and one you could perhaps give him if wanting the fight to appear closer than it was. In this round he landed a left hook which seemed to momentarily unsettle Masoud and he also tried even harder to rough him up and move him around physically. This then led to an exciting 10th round, which featured the best exchange of the fight and Davies, coming on strong, throwing everything he had at Masoud. That left him open to counters and Masoud, always cool under fire, needed no second invitation, catching Davies with increasing regularity whenever he let loose.

Desperation remained the theme in rounds 11 and 12, with Davies even told before the 12th by his coach, Errol Johnson, “You’ve got to stop him, son.” In fairness, he tried. He really did. Yet so smart was Masoud, and so quick and accurate was his back hand, the more Davies tried, the more he put himself in danger of being punished for both encroaching and thinking this fight would generate anything other than a Masoud victory. 

By the end all he could hope was that three ringside judges would be able to take the play away from Masoud on his behalf. 

Sadly, two of them nearly did. 

“This has been a long time coming,” said Masoud, now 14-0 (4), in the aftermath. “Everyone doubted me for years and said I wasn’t good enough. But this is my moment. Liam had his. He is a great fighter and I respect him as a fighter. But today is my day. Last time was his day. There’s big respect between both of us. We’re two fighting men.”

“I don’t think the cut helped but well done to Shabaz,” said Davies, now 16-1 (8). “I want him to enjoy his moment. He’s done it tonight and fair play to him. Tonight’s Shabaz’s night. I’ll be back. I’ll take it on the chin. It’s hard to take, but I’m happy, I’m healthy, and I’m going home. It could be worse. This isn’t the end of me. I’m 28 years old and I’ll be back.”

One can only pray the opposite is true of Marco Morales, the judge who saw Davies as a winner in last night’s fight and in turn failed to recognise the mastery of the man in the opposite corner.