Beyer shocks Green, retains WBC title by decision
By Anthony Cocks, Site Editor (March 13, 2005) 
Markus Beyer
Markus Beyer retained his WBC super middleweight title by majority decision with a polished display of counter-boxing against hard-hitting Australian Danny Green at Stadthalle in Zwickau, Germany on Saturday night.

Beyer showed marked improvement from his August 2003 fight against Green, when he was floored three times before the Australian was controversially disqualified for head-butting in the fifth round.

After a close opening two rounds it was obvious this was going to be a strategic battle of opposing styles. Green, the short priced favourite going in to the bout, stalked the shorter Beyer behind an occasional jab as he attempted to land his vaunted hooks and straight right hands. Beyer seemed to surprise Green with his defence, movement and even power.

The third round was a big one for Beyer as he mixed up his punches well, landing a solid left hook to Green's body that visibly hurt the 32-year-old visitor. Green looked increasingly frustrated as the fight wore on, lunging in to land his power shots, but the crafty 33-year-old southpaw continued to time Green on the way in, using lateral movement to land his deceptively hard straight left hand on the easy-to-hit Australian.

Green started the sixth round fast and at that stage it was easily his best three minutes of the fight. The left uppercut was particularly effective early in the round, while straight right hands kept him in control late in the stanza.

The stocky German regained control in the seventh, again targeting the right side on Green's body with digging left hooks. Late in the round a right hook, left hook combination sent Green's mouthpiece flying across the ring.

Again Green came out fast to start the eighth, but Beyer stood his ground and either blocked most of Green's punches on the gloves or slipped out of range. Accurate counter punching and superior ring generalship pinched the round for Beyer.

By the ninth Beyer appeared to be in full control of the fight, boxing skilfully from the outside with well-timed counters and using his superior footwork to land his short chopping punches from angles. Green appeared increasingly desperate, loading up on single shots while Beyer picked him off with sharp, heavy counters.

Beyer continued to dictate the pace in the tenth and eleventh rounds, making Green miss and countering him accurate single shots and occasional combinations.

Clearly behind on the scorecards, Green came out in the twelfth determined to steal a come-from-behind victory. Unleashing a big right hand just after the bell rang to start the round, Green sent Beyer reeling across the ring and ran after him, launching a follow-up barrage that sent Beyer to the canvas. After an eight count Green continued his two-fisted assault, but the loss of Green's mouthpiece gave Beyer a much needed reprieve. Beyer used his vast experience to clinch, block and dance his way out of trouble, surviving the round and cementing the decision on the judges’ scorecards.

Anek Hongtongkam and Marty Denkin both awarded the bout to Beyer by margins of 114-113 and 115-112 respectively. Massimo Barrovecchio saw the bout as a draw, 114-114. Doghouse Boxing scored it a little wider in favour of the champion, 116-112.

All credit must go to Markus Beyer, whose timing, defence and power has improved dramatically. The left hook to the body was a particularly successful weapon for Beyer, who used it effectively throughout the fight to slow Green down.

With the loss Green finds himself in limbo in the suddenly talent rich 168-pound division. As the interim WBC titleholder he remains unranked by the other major sanctioning bodies and a mooted 2005 match-up with arch rival Anthony Mundine now seems further away than ever.

It will be interesting to see where the vastly popular 'Green Machine' goes from here.

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