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Nick Parkinson
Abdullah Mason became boxing’s current youngest men’s world champion, when the 21-year-old unanimously outpointed Sam Noakes in a brutal encounter to win the vacant WBO world lightweight title in Saudi Arabia on Saturday.
Mason (20-0, 17 KOs), from Cleveland, was taken past six rounds for the first time in his career to win by scores of 117-111, 115-113 and 115-113 over his English opponent for the vacant belt.
Noakes (17-1, 15 KOs) from Maidstone in Kent, England, gave Mason some difficult moments in an entertaining encounter that the younger fighter deservedly won.
Noakes, 28, started aggressively by unloading hooks in the first round but Round 2 belonged to Mason, as the southpaw established his jab. In Round 3, Mason dazed Noakes with a quick combination and left uppercut.
Noakes was also left with a nasty cut above his left eye caused by a clash of heads in Round 3, but he had a better fourth round and caught Mason with a good counter right hand.
Noakes landed his best punch, a right hand, in Round 5, while Mason continued to get through with left uppercuts.
It suited Noakes that Mason chose to brawl with him in Rounds 4 and 5, but the American got back to his jab in the sixth to regain control of the fight. Noakes responded with a big Round 7 and hurt Mason with a body shot before landing some hooks later in the round.
Mason, who was recently ranked No. 6 in ESPN’s Top 25 Under 25 in boxing, pressed Noakes in Round 8, and he targeted the body in Round 10. Later in the 10th, Noakes was left in real trouble and was wobbled from a left hand before both boxers landed big shots amid a slugfest in Round 11.
They went toe to toe in the final round of a brilliant contest that launches Mason toward some potentially big fights versus Shakur Stevenson, Keyshawn Davis, Gervonta Davis and Floyd Schofield.
