Tony Bellew Gets His Night of Glory at Goodison Park as David Price Returns
What can be better for a boxer than being crowned world champion? How about achieving the feat at the home of your favourite football club, in your home city, in front of a raucous crowd cheering your name?
For Tony Bellew, that dream became a reality on Sunday.
Having lost in his previous two attempts to claim a world title, Bellew won on his third go with a stunning knockout of Ilunga Makabu.
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The spectacular finish in Round 3 secured the popular cruiserweight the vacant WBC belt at Goodison Park, the home of his beloved Everton, in Liverpool, England.
As well as Bellew's big moment, there were wins on the undercard for three of the Smith brothers—Callum, Paul and Stephen—as well as a victorious return for heavyweight David Price.
Bleacher Report has picked out some of the key talking points from the Matchroom bill.
The Hollywood Script
In a way, Bellew had already experienced a world-title fight at Goodison Park.
Having played the part of "Pretty" Ricky Conlan in the motion picture Creed, the Englishman had previously taken on Adonis Johnson Creed at the famous football ground.
On Sunday, however, Bellew had his moment in the spotlight for real.
The cameras were there again. There was also a script, just no one knew quite how it would end. Bellew was the home favourite, but the dangerous Makabu was odds-on to win with the bookies.
What unfolded fit right in with the Rocky film series, albeit a shortened version.
The underdog was stunned at the end of Round 1 by a left hand that had him rolling backward on the canvas. As warning shots go, it was a pretty potent one:
However, as is the case with any Hollywood story, the hero has to overcome adversity to triumph.
After a cagey Round 2, Bellew produced a blistering spell at the start of the next. He hurt Makabu early, then threw caution to the wind in the hope of forcing a stoppage.
The moment briefly seemed like it might have gone, only for a huge left hand to knock his rival out. There were a couple of glancing blows to follow, but Makabu was already toppling like a chopped-down tree.
Bellew and his team rightly celebrated, although they quickly calmed down when there were concerns over his rival's health.
Thankfully, and most importantly of all, the only thing seriously damaged was Makabu's pride. To borrow a line from Top Gun (a well-known movie that Bellew definitely didn't appear in), the 28-year-old's ego was writing cheques his body couldn't cash.
As Ricky Conlan, Bellew played a supporting role in Creed. When it came to real life, he was the leading man at Goodison.
In a venue that already holds a special place in his heart, the 33-year-old Englishman produced a moment he will never forget; nor will the majority who were there to witness it unfold.
Bellew isn't likely to win an Oscar. His acting career may already be over. It doesn't matter, though, as the piece of gold he's always craved is now in his possession.
Just to repeat: Tony Bellew is the new WBC cruiserweight champion of the world. It's a fantastic story.
The End (or is it?).
The Many Sides to Tony
If you've ever met Bellew in person, you will know he is a down-to-earth individual who has time for anyone.
If you've ever heard Bellew working in the media, you will know he is a good talker who offers an interesting insight into the sport.
We've all probably seen Bellew the boxer in action by now. He is a completely different character when it comes to his day job, as if a switch is flicked to send him into fight mode.
He always seems on the brink of snapping, as if he needs his blood to boil at a certain temperature to focus his mind on the task in hand.
There have been press-conference run-ins too, particularly with archrival Nathan Cleverly and Adonis Stevenson, and some pre- and post-fight words that made you cringe when listening to them.
When you watched his in-ring interview with Sky Sports straight after the win over Makabu, you saw all the different sides of Bellew's character.
He spoke passionately about the presence of his family at ringside, per Gareth A Davies of the Telegraph: "My son has never been to a fight. He’s 7-years-old. I looked into his beautiful face out here at 7 p.m. tonight, and then I cried in my dressing room. I do all this for my wife Rachel, my sons, my father."
There were moments during the interview where he boiled up again, becoming the head cheerleader to start off songs as he shouted into the microphone.
There was talk about what might be next, too. Per Davies, Bellew bellowed out how he was now "the best cruiserweight in the world." The adrenalin was still pumping, that was for sure.
Potential future opponents were referenced in a rather disparaging way. He was still throwing shots well after the final bell had sounded, only now it was with his mouth, rather than his fists.
That, though, is Bellew in a nutshell. He is a powder keg who could go off at any time when he's switched into fight mode.
However, his motives are to be admired. He is focused on providing for his family and making his supporters proud. In beating Makabu, he achieved both of those goals.
Bellew is now Britain's 13th current world champion. BBC 5 live Sport tweeted the full list:
Price Check
It is hard to hide Price. At 6'8", the heavyweight is always going to stick out in a crowd.
On Sunday, in the early action on the card, the 32-year-old cautiously made his first appearance in a ring since suffering a damaging loss to Erkan Teper in July 2015.
That result has since been changed to a no-contest due to Teper failing a drugs test, but that doesn't immediately heal the mental scars of being knocked out.
Not so long ago, Price was Britain's biggest, brightest heavyweight hope. Now he is trying to rebuild his career under the guidance of a new trainer, David Coldwell.
The Liverpudlian, whose last appearance in his own backyard saw him lose a rematch with Tony Thompson in July 2013, flattened Vaclav Pejsar in Round 2.
"A nice KO for @DavidPrice_1 to get things off to a good start at Goodison Park tonight #Boxing https://t.co/zGvEtKrbTy
— 138.com (@138dotcom) May 29, 2016"
Prior to his comeback, Price told Chris McKenna of the Daily Star: "This time last year, I was [ranked] five with the IBF, and if I had just kept treading water, I'd have been in with a chance of fighting Anthony Joshua for the world title this June.
"So I've been robbed of a life-changing opportunity, and I've got a bee in my bonnet about it. I'm determined to make up for what happened to me."
Price has every right to be furious. However, he also has much to prove before he can contemplate fighting reigning IBF champion Joshua.
At least he has now taken the first step in his recovery. The heavyweight division is getting a little crowded right now, with David Allen, Dereck Chisora, David Haye and Dillian Whyte all around domestically, as well as Joshua of course.
However, there's always room for another to get into the mix. In fact, the more the merrier.
It will be fascinating to see who Price is matched against in the future.
Family Affairs
The Smiths were out in full force on Sunday, and not just to support former amateur team-mate Bellew.
While Liam—who defends his WBO super welterweight title on Saturday against Predrag Radosevic—had a watching brief, his three brothers were in action.
Paul, the eldest of the quartet, recorded a points win over Bartlomiej Grafka in a six-rounder, giving him his second win in the month of May.
Fellow super middleweight Callum kept himself busy ahead of a potential world-title challenge with a sixth-round TKO triumph over Cesar Hernan Reynoso.
Mundo had won his last two outings inside a round and might have fancied a hat-trick of early finishes when he dwarfed over Reynoso at the weigh-in.
However, Reynoso was both brave and busy. He was dropped twice early on, yet on each occasion he bounced up. Another knockdown occurred in Round 5, and he was eventually stopped in the next.
It was a casual performance from Callum in truth. He was too often caught by an opponent well below his level. Still, a few extra rounds of work won't do him any harm.
As for super featherweight Stephen, he picked up the vacant WBC Silver title with a stoppage triumph against Daniel Brizuela, an Argentinian fighter who previously lost to lightweights Tommy Coyle and Luke Campbell.
Swifty's success could open up the possibility for a second shot at a world title, having lost to IBF champion Jose Pedraza in April.
All the Smiths are actually in the waiting room right now.
While Paul would like one more big fight, Callum needs to find out just when he will get to challenge for the WBC strap. Badou Jack is the current holder of the belt, but he can swerve his mandatory challenger by agreeing to a unification clash with IBF champion James DeGale.
Stephen isn't quite yet guaranteed a place at the front of the queue for a tilt at the WBC title at 130 pounds, although the governing body will propel him up their rankings the next time they are updated.
Liam is the odd one out. While he isn't waiting for a chance at a title, he does crave a big defence. Beefy knows he needs to cash in on his current status.
The fighting family will hope the second half of the year will see positive developments in all of their careers.
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