Sussex have 3 national champions!
Thanos Katsadonis U81kg (U10 bts) of Hillcrest, Callum Knight U57kg junior (U10 bts) of Eastbourne, Joshua Pyle U80kg junior (U10 bouts) of Brighton and Hove.
Thanos, aka ‘T’ started fast in his final vs Dominic Hunt of Yorkshire based White Rose ABC, coach Richard ‘Tiny’ Evans recalls. “The second was closer which could have gone wither way, so we needed a big last round to close. T came out strong again. Hooking off the jab and sending a big backhand through, T connected hard to force a standing count.” A great performance, T winning on a unanimous points decision. Gary Emins of Whitehawk who started T from scratch, was there every step of the way to help him through to the title.
Eastbourne’s undefeated talent, Callum ‘Knighty’ Knight saw off Stratford’s strong and awkward Jason Johnson at U57ks to be crowned English champion. Callum the mush tidier on the inside, he was able to score to both body and head against is aggressive Midlands opponent. The 2nd round was tighter as Johnson scored with the some clear snappy jabs. Needing to cement the bout, Callum came out quick and created more space, stepping back and walking his taller oppoent on to the back hand to claim a split decision. Callum is now unbeaten in 9 outings.
Finally Brighton and Hove’s Joshua Pyle fended off Zak Heeland off Silverdale (Midlands) in a tough Light-heavyweight affair. Again the Sussex man starting fast to push his opponent back in the first, clearly winning after the first round. A similar pattern to his Sussex companions as the 2nd round became tighter. “Josh had to really dig in in the 3rd, he came out and really bit down. He kept it long and used the uppercut when needed. A great display of skill and heart from Josh” said coach Chris Craig. “He listens and is great to work with, I’m really happy for Josh.”
Well done to all Sussex clubs in the championships. There is some real talent coming through.
