Frazer Clarke and Caroline Dubois victorious in Bournemouth on undercard of Chris Billam-Smith vs Isaac Chamberlain

July 30, 2022

Olympic bronze medallist Frazer Clarke and Tokyo Games team-mate Caroline Dubois both took the next steps in their professional careers at the Bournemouth International Centre on Saturday.

Clarke took less than two rounds to dispatch Ariel Esteban Bracamonte, while Dubois was not far behind as she stopped Tanzania's Happy Daudi inside three.

Clarke had a fiery confrontation with huge opponent Bracamonte at the previous day's weigh-in when the 309lb Argentine leant in with his head and Clarke had to shove him away.

A smattering of boos welcomed Bracamonte as he trundled to the ring. Clarke came in singing along to his entrance music, 'Don't Stop Me Now,' and the crowd heartily followed.

But he quickly assumed serious focus. He expected Bracamonte to give him a real fight.

The Argentine scooped his right over and with 300lbs or so behind it, it wouldn't have been a light shot. Clarke, though, worked jabs and sent a cluster of hooks into the wide target that was Bracamonte's body.

Soon Clarke was outboxing him, stepping back from a Bracamonte lunge while working the body and snapping his right hook to the head.

In the second round Bracamonte complained of a blow to the back of the head. It elicited little sympathy from the crowd and even less from Clarke. The Burton heavyweight shot out his right, cracked a left up into the body and uncorked an almighty left hook to send Bracamonte crashing down to the canvas.

The Argentine rose unsteadily and referee John Lathan waved the contest off with three seconds left in the round.

The crowd erupted into cheers and even Bracamonte had to applaud when Clarke had his arm raised.

Clarke had taken a quick and all too easy win in his pro debut back in February. He's been out of action since then recovering from a hand injury but is now back firmly on course.

Dubois continued her progression as she overwhelmed Daudi.

Dubois took the measure of Daudi from the start, peppering her with quick jabs before the London southpaw started to vary punishing attacks to the body and the head.

She placed her lead right hook into Daudi's side - a sickening shot - and soon the visitor had lost track of where blows were raining in from. One moment Dubois' right hook was hitting the head, the next her left cross slammed into the body.

Daudi tried to reach for Dubois with wild swings, but could only disrupt her for the briefest of moments.

In the second round Daudi was trying to retreat, looking to find breathing room and some safety.

But Dubois was too quick. She sustained her combinations of punches. At the start of the third round Dubois unleashed an assault with her opponent trapped on the ropes and clubbed Daudi down to the canvas. She kept up an unrelenting attack and referee John Latham had to save Daudi 46 seconds into the round.

Dubois will next box on the historic Claressa Shields vs Savannah Marshall bill at the O2 Arena on September 10.

"It's a mad card. It's got great fighters coming over. It's not just great female fighters, just great fighters in general, and anyone that loves boxing needs to tune in," Dubois said.

Hassan Azim, the hard-punching brother of hot prospect Adam Azim, had a test for his fourth pro fight against Jacob Quinn.

Slough's Azim stormed into Quinn from the first bell. A solid right slammed into the man from Huddersfield and Azim closed in to blast Quinn off his feet. Even when his opponent rose quickly, Azim took it as an invitation to unleash rapid hooks and heavy crosses. He was finding the mark and landing hard punches. Quinn had little option but to hold his guard high and try to weather the onslaught.

Azim though had put a lot of energy into the opening three minutes and in the second round Quinn began to move on his feet and sling his left over when he came forward.

Quinn showed exceptional toughness to shrug off those hits. He circled away from Azim and even clipped him with his own left hook.

By the fourth round they were trading in the centre of the ring. Azim still had the edge in power and he wisely began to take heavy shots to the body, working up close as Quinn swung gamely back.

The Huddersfield man finished with swollen eye, a cut trickling blood but had asked questions of Azim. Fighting through the sixth and last round Azim did confirm his ascendancy, stunning Quinn with another right cross and taking a 59-55 points win.

There were early knockouts on the undercard. Stephen McKenna opened the show as he walked through Facundo Alberto Rojas, flooring and stopping the Argentine in the second round.

Crispulo Javier Andino took advantage of a careless opening to clip Mikael Lawal in the first round. But, much the larger man, Lawal cut him down with a left hook to the body in the second round.

The quick finish set up Lawal to take on Deion Jumah for the vacant British cruiserweight title later this year.

A taster of the atmosphere to come in the Chris Billam-Smith vs Isaac Chamberlain main event came in the raucous reception that greeted hometown fighter Lee Cutler when he took on Meshack Mwankemwa. Cutler outpointed the Tanzania 58-56 after six rounds.

The biggest fight in the history of women's boxing - Claressa Shields vs Savannah Marshall - is live on Sky Sports on Saturday, September 10. Be part of history and buy tickets for the London showdown here.

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