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Draw leads to call for rematch

28/ 4/2005

BRITISH title holder David Barnes, who boxes out of the Collyhurst and Moston Gym, was held to a draw by Ali Nuumbembe in a WBO Inter-Continental welterweight title fight in Barnsley.

Ali, from Shannon's Gym (Openshaw) was offered the fight as a late replacement and jumped at the chance.

It was something like a chess match as the fighters tried to fathom each other out, and it was Ali who landed the more telling punches.

At the final bell both fighters raised their arms and felt they had won, but the judges were unable to come up with a champion.

Barnes was clearly upset by the decision of a draw. But it seems he would like a rematch, something which Ali said he would again jump at.

The Collyhurst and Moston man later said: "Tell him he had better watch his chin that night because it will be a totally different fight."

Trainer Brian Hughes said: "Ali did very well. He was very tough and gave David a hard fight. But I had David winning clearly. There wasn't a mark on him.

"If I had thought he was losing I would have told him to go out and change the plan."

Bob Shannon countered: "I don't think David's camp could argue with the result."