Saturday night’s co-feature bout between Josh Buatsi and Willy Hutchinson on the Joshua vs. Dubois undercard turned out to be the fight of the night.
So much so that there are calls for an immediate rematch after the pair waged war for twelve rounds with the WBO interim title at stake.
Hutchinson survived two knockdowns and hurt Buatsi multiple times as the Shelly Finkel-managed Scot earned the decision with Judge Grzegorz Molenda 113-112. However, a Hutchinson triumph was overruled by Howard Foster and Salvador Salva, who carded 115-110 and 117-108 in favor of Buatsi.
The 113-112 score was made all the more contentious, though, adding in the fact Hutchinson had a point deducted in the seventh. Despite the doubted split verdict, Hutchinson proved he belongs at the world level and wouldn’t be out of place in a second fight with Buatsi topping its own card on merit.
CompuBox Stats read, “Buatsi landed 150 body punches on Hutchinson, while Hutchinson landed 18. 68% of Buatsi’s landed power punches were body shots. A flurry of body punches had Hutchinson doubled over on the canvas in the 6th round. He survived and attempted to mount a spirited comeback, only to be docked a point in the 7th round for leading with his head. Another body punch sent Hutchinson down to the canvas in the 9th round.”
That return plan does have one flaw. Buatsi is mandatory for the winner of Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol, and a lot will depend on whether Bivol prevails on October 12 in Saudi Arabia. Should the WBA ruler become undisputed, Canelo has expressed interest in the pair trading blows again in May.
Canelo wants the opportunity to become a two-weight undisputed champion and sees avenging the Bivol loss as a massive part of his legacy.
Should Canelo choose Bivol over Terence Crawford, Buasti will be free to battle Hutchinson again next spring, possibly headlining at the O2 Arena. This would be hard to argue with, especially given their exciting battle at Wembley, which enhanced both reputations.
Buatsi vs. Hutchinson II could be a standalone fight that sells out the venue with the correct accompaniments due to the exposure from Joshua vs. Dubois.
Read all articles and exclusive interviews by Phil Jay. Learn more about the author, experienced boxing writer, and World Boxing News Editor since 2010. Follow on Twitter @PhilJWBN.
