Ritson vs. Ponce

Lewis Ritson has shared his thoughts following his battle with Jeremias Ponce on Saturday – thanking his fans for their support shown during and after the fight.

Ritson gave it everything, but Ponce came out on top in the IBF super-lightweight title final eliminator as he earned a 10th round stoppage win at the Vertu Motors Arena.

The Newcastle hero has now looked back on the contest, revealing he has no problem with the referee throwing the towel back out, and also how he’s excited about some potential future fights.

Ritson said: “I just want to say a massive thank you to the messages, support and to the fans last night. The noise was unbelievable. It felt like there was 10,000 in the arena, not 1000.

“We try to push ourselves in boxing and to the highest level we can. I’m honest and a realist and that next level seems a step to far for me. We’ll keep banging on the door and there’s loads of great fights out there for me.

“Truth be told I shouldn’t have even made it out of the first round and it took everything in me to do that. I kept fighting until the end. The corner told me I had one more round to change things or the towel was going in.

“I told Owen under no circumstances throw the towel in, and I have no problem with the referee throwing it out, he could have knocked me down 100 times and I would have got back up!

“I’ve tried to reach the level everyone dreams of and get a world title fight, and sadly we’ve tried and failed and aren’t at the level to get there, but being back home with my family is all that matters in the world to me.

“I’ve got my daughter and partner and another little girl on the way. Some family and time then the next move and next fight, I already have a few names given and I’m very excited!”

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Lewis Ritson vs. Jeremias Ponce

Vertu Motors Arena, Newcastle, England 12/6/21

‘Jere’ plots Ritson’s downfall

Jeremias Ponce says he will look to secure a “dream” World Title fight with Undisputed Super-Lightweight king Josh Taylor but knocking out Geordie favourite Lewis Ritson in front of his home crowd at the Vertu Motors Arena, Newcastle this Saturday, live on Sky Sports in the UK and on DAZN in the US and more than 200 countries and territories.

‘Jere’ arrives in the UK for the first time sporting an impressive record of 27 wins and no losses – with 17 of those win coming by way of knockout – and has two notable wins ‘on the road’ against Rico Mueller for the IBO World Title in Germany and Francesco Lomasto for the IBF Intercontinental Title in Italy.

The undefeated 24-year-old from from Buenos Aires, Argentina says the return of Ritson’s fanatical Newcastle support will only serve to spur him on as he looks to become the latest South American to spring an upset against a Brit.

“I go all out for the win,” said Ponce. “I try and leave nothing to chance. I always look for the knockout. This is a huge opportunity for me, if not the biggest in my career. I’ve trained with that mindset, thinking about this being the biggest moment in my career.

“I think it’s a dream for any boxer to go on and win a World Title, and to face a fighter like Josh Taylor would be a dream come true. I’m 100% confident that I can add myself to the list of South Americans that have caused upsets in the UK. I’m going to go all out to win.

“I think Lewis Ritson is a very good boxer. He’s very quick and he has a very high output. We’ve worked hard looking for ways to counter that. I think we’ll be able to do that. Both styles will definitely clash which will mean it will be a great fight.

“I think the Miguel Vazquez fight was just a really bad night for him. I have also had bad nights before. I don’t think it takes anything away from him. I think he’s still a really good boxer and it will be a very tough night for the both of us.

“Having a crowd in the arena will motivate me even more. I’m used to these types of fights and being the away fighter. I’ve been the away fighter in Germany when the whole of the crowd was against me. I was the away fighter in Naples, Italy when all the fans were against me. I’m used to that and it really will spur me on even more.”

Ritson vs. Ponce tops a big night of action in Newcastle as fans return in the North East, West Rainton’s Thomas Patrick Ward (29-0-1, 4 KOs) takes on Mexico’s Edy Valencia Mercado (17-5-6, 5 KOs) in a ten round Featherweight clash, Former Team GB standout Cyrus Pattinson makes his professional debut in a six round Super-Welterweight clash with Bulgaria’s Yoncho Markov (4-2, 2 KOs), Croatian Heavyweight sensation Alen Babic (6-0, 6 KOs) returns to action against Damian Chambers (11-1, 7 KOs) following a shoulder injury, Catford Super-Bantamweight Ellie Scotney (2-0) meets Spain’s Vanesa Caballero (4-9-3) over eight rounds, Birmingham Heavyweight Solomon Dacres (1-0) clashes with Spain’s Alvaro Terrero (5-11-2, 3 KOs) over six rounds, Benwell Welterweight Joe Laws (9-1, 5 KOs) fights Chris Adaway (10-69-4, 1 KO) over six rounds and Wallsend Welterweight April Hunter (3-0) meets Hungary’s Klaudia Vigh (3-27-1, 2 KOs).

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Lewis Ritson vs. Jeremias Ponce

Vertu Motors Arena, Newcastle 12/6/21

Lewis Ritson says the return of fans will help push him on to a vital win when he meets undefeated Argentinian Jeremias Ponce in a Final Eliminator for the IBF Super-Lightweight World Title at the Vertu Motors Arena, Newcastle on Saturday June 12, live on Sky Sports in the UK and on DAZN in the US and more than 200 countries and territories.

‘The Sandman’ (21-1, 12 KOs) struggled without the backing of his fanatical Geordie support last time out as he battled to a controversial split decision win against Mexico’s Miguel Vazquez behind closed doors at the East of England Arena in Peterborough – an experience the 27-year-old says he has learnt from.

“I haven’t really watched it back but a couple of days later I went to my dad’s house and asked him if he’d watched the fight,” Ritson recalled. “He said yes, and I asked him to be truthful about what he thought of it. He was honest and said we got the rub of the green, we got very lucky and we got gifted a decision, but that it is up to me whether to dwell on it or improve on it.

“That’s what we’ve done, we’ve gone away and made a few changes in camp. It was just a clash of styles. I think I was probably Vazquez’ best performance in a few years and it was one of my worst to be fair. You live and you learn, there was maybe a few things that we could have done differently in that fight. We know that now and we’ve got the experience in the bank.”

Ritson made the decision to part ways with Neill Fannan and return home to Forest Hall to train with his father Dave following the disappointment of the Vazquez performance – a move that he is confident will turn out to be the right one as he closes in on a dream World Title shot in the 140lbs division.

“I’m back with my old man. I had a little bit of thinking to do after my last fight. I half hinted that I wanted to come home, and my dad half hinted that he wanted to be back training me. It was the right move for me and we’ve been flying in camp. A happy fighter is a dangerous fighter, it’s probably the first time in a while that I’ve been quite happy.

“I’ve got a little girl and I was sick of being away from her in the end. I was down there stuck in a flat, training twice a day and then nothing else to do, especially with the lockdown. I could have been back home with my little girl. I’ve got another little girl on the way so that definitely played a part in it. I can’t wait for fight night now and to show people that the Vazquez fight was a bit of a slip up. I’m going to be back better and stronger.”

In his last fight in front of his Newcastle faithful, Ritson produced a career-best performance to beat bitter rival Robbie Davies Jr in an enthralling Fight of the Year candidate. A fight with the newly-crowned Undisputed Super-Lightweight ruler Josh Taylor could await Ritson if he earns another memorable win this weekend.

“It’s just a buzz to be back, especially with the crowds. Even with 1,000 in there, the place will be jumping for the ring walk. That’s what I need to get me up for these fights. I can’t wait for the fans to be back shouting and cheering. Before the Vazquez fight I was saying that it wouldn’t make much of a difference, but you actually don’t really know that until you get in there. I missed my fans massively, so I’m glad that they’ll be back. They’ll give me that extra push.

“I’m fully focused on Ponce. We’ve got to make sure that we beat him and beat him well. We know what he’s coming to do and he’s coming to win. He’s coming to have a go. Stylistically he’s a bit like me – good jab, throws to the body and stands in front of you. If it goes like we think, then it’s going to be a very crowd-pleasing fight and a hard night.

“He could be one of those undiscovered gems out of Argentina. We’re not taking him lightly, we’ve seen the South Americans come over, one beat my mate Robbie, there’s a few that have upset the applecart, so we’ve got to make sure that we’re on the ball and it doesn’t happen to us.

“I’m only 27 but I feel like I’m a bit of a veteran now, I’ve had like 12 fights on Sky and with Matchroom. I’m still young and I’m still fresh. I haven’t really taken any punishment and I’ve still got a lot to give. The journey is still young – win this next fight and then hopefully the next fight after that will be what every young boy dreams of.

“If you’d have told me I’d be fighting for a World Title one day at the start of my career, I wouldn’t have believed you. We’re in a very good place and we’re one win away. We’ve grown into the weight now. For a while I was up at Light-Welter but still in a Lightweight’s body. Now I’m a fully-fledged Light-Welter. I’m bang on 10 stone, fit and strong. You’re going to see a bit more explosiveness in the punches.”

Ritson vs. Ponce tops a big night of action in Newcastle as fans return in the North East, West Rainton’s Thomas Patrick Ward (29-0-1, 4 KOs) takes on Mexico’s Edy Valencia Mercado (17-5-6, 5 KOs) in a ten round Featherweight clash, Former Team GB standout Cyrus Pattinson makes his professional debut in a six round Super-Welterweight clash with Bulgaria’s Yoncho Markov (4-2, 2 KOs), Croatian Heavyweight sensation Alen Babic (6-0, 6 KOs) returns to action following a shoulder injury, Catford Super-Bantamweight Ellie Scotney (2-0) meets Spain’s Vanesa Caballero (4-9-3) over eight rounds, Birmingham Heavyweight Solomon Dacres (1-0) clashes with Spain’s Alvaro Terrero (5-11-2, 3 KOs) over six rounds, Benwell Welterweight Joe Laws (9-1, 5 KOs) fights Nestor Maradiaga (9-10-2, 5 KOs) over six rounds and Wallsend Welterweight April Hunter (3-0) meets Hungary’s Klaudia Vigh (3-27-1, 2 KOs).

For the list of boxing events we will cover live with and with unofficial scorecard (main event), click the following link > Live Boxing Results & Events<

Lewis Ritson vs. Jeremias Ponce

Vertu Motors Arena in Newcastle on Saturday 12/6/21

Lewis Ritson says having the chance to once again fight in front of his passionate fans will make a big difference ahead of his IBF super-lightweight title final eliminator against Jeremias Ponce this weekend.

The pair will clash on a Matchroom Boxing event at the Vertu Motors Arena in Newcastle on Saturday, with the event broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK and on DAZN in the US and more than 200 countries and territories.

Ritson (21-1, 12 KOs) put in a mixed performance during his last outing where he had to fight behind closed, and he feels having the Newcastle faithful back in attendance will give him the extra edge against Ponce (27-0, 17 KOs).

Ritson said: “It’s just a buzz to be back, especially with the crowds. Even with 1,000 in there, the place will be jumping for the ring walk. That’s what I need to get me up for these fights. I can’t wait for the fans to be back shouting and cheering. Before the Vazquez fight I was saying that it wouldn’t make much of a difference, but you actually don’t really know that until you get in there. I missed my fans massively, so I’m glad that they’ll be back. They’ll give me that extra push.

“I’m fully focused on Ponce. We’ve got to make sure that we beat him and beat him well. We know what he’s coming to do and he’s coming to win. He’s coming to have a go. Stylistically he’s a bit like me – good jab, throws to the body and stands in front of you. If it goes like we think, then it’s going to be a very crowd-pleasing fight and a hard night.

“He could be one of those undiscovered gems out of Argentina. We’re not taking him lightly, we’ve seen the South Americans come over, one beat my mate Robbie, there’s a few that have upset the applecart, so we’ve got to make sure that we’re on the ball and it doesn’t happen to us.

“I haven’t really watched my last fight back but a couple of days later I went to my dad’s house and asked him if he’d watched the fight. He said yes, and I asked him to be truthful about what he thought of it. He was honest and said we got the rub of the green, we got very lucky and we got gifted a decision, but that it is up to me whether to dwell on it or improve on it.

“That’s what we’ve done, we’ve gone away and made a few changes in camp. It was just a clash of styles. I think I was probably Vazquez’ best performance in a few years and it was one of my worst to be fair. You live and you learn, there was maybe a few things that we could have done differently in that fight. We know that now and we’ve got the experience in the bank.

“I’m back with my old man. I had a little bit of thinking to do after my last fight. I half hinted that I wanted to come home, and my dad half hinted that he wanted to be back training me. It was the right move for me and we’ve been flying in camp. A happy fighter is a dangerous fighter, it’s probably the first time in a while that I’ve been quite happy.

“I’ve got a little girl and I was sick of being away from her in the end. I was down there stuck in a flat, training twice a day and then nothing else to do, especially with the lockdown. I could have been back home with my little girl. I’ve got another little girl on the way so that definitely played a part in it. I can’t wait for fight night now and to show people that the Vazquez fight was a bit of a slip up. I’m going to be back better and stronger.

“I’m only 27 but I feel like I’m a bit of a veteran now, I’ve had like 12 fights on Sky and with Matchroom. I’m still young and I’m still fresh. I haven’t really taken any punishment and I’ve still got a lot to give. The journey is still young – win this next fight and then hopefully the next fight after that will be what every young boy dreams of.

“If you’d have told me I’d be fighting for a world title one day at the start of my career, I wouldn’t have believed you. We’re in a very good place and we’re one win away. We’ve grown into the weight now. For a while I was up at light-welter but still in a lightweight’s body. Now I’m a fully-fledged light-welter. I’m bang on 10 stone, fit and strong. You’re going to see a bit more explosiveness in the punches.”

Elsewhere on Saturday’s bill, undefeated Thomas Patrick Ward returns against Edy Valencia Mercado, while fan favourite Joe Laws takes on Nestor Maradiagia.

For the list of boxing events we will cover live with and with unofficial scorecard (main event), click the following link > Live Boxing Results & Events<

LEWIS RITSON vs. JEREMIAS PONCE

Vertu Motors Arena, Newcastle, England 12/6/21

Lewis Ritson will face Jeremias Ponce in a Final Eliminator for the IBF Super-Lightweight World Title at the Vertu Motors Arena, Newcastle on Saturday June 12, live on Sky Sports in the UK and on DAZN in the US and more than 200 countries and territories.

‘The Sandman’ won a controversial split decision against Miguel Vazquez behind closed doors at the East of England Arena in Peterborough last time out in October to claim the vacant WBA Intercontinental Super-Lightweight Title and improve his record to 21-1 (12 KOs).

In his last fight in front of his Newcastle faithful, Ritson produced a career-best performance to beat bitter rival Robbie Davies Jr in an enthralling Fight of the Year candidate, and the 27-year-old says he can’t wait to get back in front of his fanatical support against undefeated Argentinian Ponce.

The 24-year-old, from Buenos Aires, won the South American Title in 2019 by outpointing fellow Argentine Leonardo Amitrano, and became IBO Champion later that year with a points win in Berlin over Germany’s Rico Muller on his debut outside the Americas.

He boxed twice in late 2020, both all-Argentinian confrontations, firstly stopping Ruben Lopez in 90 seconds before being pushed all the way by southpaw Jonathan Eniz over 10 tough rounds, and heads into his showdown with Geordie favourite Ritson on the back of a 27-fight winning streak.

“It was a strange experience behind closed doors last time so I’m thrilled fans will be returning, it’s always loud in Newcastle and I’m proud to have them behind me cheering me on,” said Ritson.

“Ponce likes to come forward, throw a few good body shots and he’s got a decent jab. We’re expecting and have prepared for a tough fight and it should be given what’s at stake.

“I’m one or two fights away from being World Champion now, that’s the dream for any boxer and to be in touching distance now is spurring me on with this Final Eliminator locked in.”

“I’m really looking forward to the fight,” said Ponce. “I’ve already become World Champion in Europe when I won the IBO crown against Rico Mueller and after my win against Ritson on June 12 I am aiming to win another World Title. I’m ready to box anyone in my weight class.”

“This is a huge fight for Lewis Ritson, he is one fight away from a shot at the undisputed championship,” said Matchroom Sport Chairman Eddie Hearn. “We should be having the full 9,000 in Newcastle but right now 1,000 is going to feel like a full house and I can’t wait to see the fans again in Newcastle – I expect this main event to be a war.”

A limited number of tickets will be made available for this event and further details will be released on Thursday May 27.

Subscribe to our new YouTube Channel starting soon with the latest boxing news and results, gossip and information from around the world. Just click the image link below:

For the list of boxing events we will cover live with and with unofficial scorecard (main event), click the following link > Live Boxing Results & Events<