Bloodied, bruised, battered but still very much unbeaten

BERNARD DUNNE was left counting the cost of his most important victory to date as he returned to his California base yesterday.

The 24-year-old Irish featherweight prospect scored a unanimous points decision after 10 rounds with Mexican southpaw Adrian Valdez following a bruising and bloody encounter at the Aldrich Arena in Minnesota, and in front of fight fans across the US on the Showtime premium cable channel.

An inch taller and his first southpaw opponent in 14 unbeaten pro fights, switch-hitting Valdez had Dunne in trouble early on, opening a cut in the middle of his forehead in the first round during a clash of heads.

A vicious exchange in the ninth left Dunne with a cut below his left eye and though the Dubliner got the vote with scores of 97-93, 96-94, and 96-95 after an overall more aggressive performance, the stitches required in both wounds mean manager Brian Peters has had to cancel plans for a return to a Showtime card in October.

The Dunne corner, led by trainers Freddie Roach and Justin Fortune from the famous Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, Los Angeles, will have been pleased their man took his pro record to 14 and 0, including eight knockouts but Peters said: “It was a little bit of a humdinger and it turned in to a bit of a war.

“Valdez was a good fighter and Bernard was having difficulty getting the hang of him. He picked up a cut in the first round which was another new experience but it was really tough.”

“It was a good learning fight and now is the time when you need these fights. He needs these and he’s not going to be protected or mollycoddled. He learned more last night than he’s learned in his whole career.

“He showed great heart, great balls. He can box a lot better and he got into a bit of a war, but he came through it. It was close though and he certainly had to put his foot on the peddle in the last few rounds. But there’s no doubt about it, the kid he was in with was the best fighter he’s met to date.”

Peters had said it was Dunne’s chance to move up to boxing’s top-flight and a completely different test to anything he had faced so far.

The plan was that victory would see him headlining for Showtime again in October with a date in the new year on the televised undercard for a big heavyweight title fight in Las Vegas.

Peters, though, said Dunne’s cuts had changed those plans.

“He picked up a few stitches last night. He’s got five dead centre in his forehead and two under the left eye and two more above the right eye. So he’s nine stitches and to be honest that’s going to slow us down a little.

“So yes, October looks out of the question. I’m afraid man proposes and God disposes.”

Peters said there was an upside. The featherweight has been hampered by problems in his right hand, an occupational hazard of big-punching boxers.

“It might be an opportunity to give the hand a nice rest,” he said. “It’s come through OK, it’s good but it’s one of those things we have to deal with now.”