Ellis body shot stops Sinclair

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Jerome Ellis, 11-4-1 (10 KOs), Bahamas, 150 ½, came from behind to stop one-time title challenger Neil Sinclair, 28-5 (21 KOs), Northern Ireland, 148 ¼, with a single body shot in the 6th round of a scheduled 10 round main event.

A steady, conventional Sinclair pulled ahead of Ellis after 5 rounds, scoring with crisp left hooks and jabs at the in-and-out Bahamian.

Sinclair clearly won the opener with a basic attack, but Ellis showed in round two that his speedy hands and willingness to throw with abandon would spell trouble later in the bout for the Irishman.

In rounds 3 and 4, Sinclair appeared to pull away in the lead as Ellis slowed his attack. As Ellis jumped in, he was met with a mix of hooks and right hands from Sinclair.

Ellis began landing more consistently in round 5 with fast hooks of his own, though Sinclair continued to have success, catching Ellis as he charged forward.

JEBoxing had Sinclair ahead 48-47 after 5 rounds.

The 6th round began with more even trading until a sharp Ellis left-hook to the right side of Sinclair’s body crumpled his opponent to the canvas for a full count. Sinclair was in obvious pain and he made no attempt to beat the count.

Now trained by former Olympic gold medal winner Howard Davis Jr., Ellis showed enough flashes of talent to move on to tougher opposition. Some defensive gaps will require the 27 year-old to sharpen his game if he is to survive the upper tier of the junior middleweight division.

Time of the knockout was 1:49.