Zak Chelli TKO10 David Morrell.... Britain's Zak Chelli provided the biggest moment on the Fabio Wardley vs. Daniel Dubois undercard when he stopped light heavyweight contender David Morrell. The fight was arranged on a few weeks notice when Morrell's scheduled opponent, ex-champ and reigning interim titlist Callum Smith, got injured. Morrell dominated early on, but Chelli (17-3-2) gained confidence and beat the Cuban in the tenth and final round of their meeting in Manchester. Chelli, who is a school supply teacher, has produced one of, if not the biggest upset of the year thus far, and who knows what the future holds for the 28-year-old with such a significant victory. Morelli, a former interim titleholder as well, falls to 13-2 (including the World Series of Boxing). Morrell's prior defeat was in a very competitive war vs. David Benavidez, who is now an undefeated three-division champion.
Morrell looked to seize the initiative early in the southpaw stance, throwing his jab before targeting Chelli’s body. The Cuban’s punches had real spite behind them, but Chelli was not affected. In the third Morrell managed to pin Chelli into the corner, his shots missing by mere inches, but this spurred the Brit on who enjoyed a strong fourth session. In round five Chelli fired a straight right before Morrell continued his body assault with digging left hands. The seventh saw Chelli enjoy some ore success, clipping Morrell with a left before bringing his opponent in close and throwing short right hooks to the body.
The contest turned on its head in round nine. Chelli buzzed Morrell, and unloaded many combinations, luckily for Morrell the bell saved him. The tenth and final round saw Chelli produce a moment of magic. A left-right combination stopped Morrell with 35 seconds remaining with the Cuban out on his feet. Chelli joked that he did what Benavidez couldn’t do in the aftermath, but it’s performances like this that can change a fighter’s life, and for Chelli, he has hit the big time.
