MILLION $
He was forcing Crolla back and that
continued through the third, then in the
fourth Murray had his best round of the
night – hurting the Million Dollar man
with a solid right and raising the fervent
atmosphere in the arena as Crolla
covered up and looked to survive. But
survive he did and even whilst Murray
was on top Crolla had been catching him
with accurate shots, which he continued
with greater effect in round five as
Murray’s fire appeared to diminish.
Now Murray began to look less
controlled and his wild swings left him
off balance as Crolla continued to
pepper him with jabs, the fight seemingly
turning in the 27-year-old’s favour. But
this topsy-turvy encounter shifted back
into Murray’s direction and in the
seventh, the resurgent challenger
perhaps outworked Crolla to win the
round.
That proved to be merely a second wind
however, as Crolla dominated the eighth
and Murray, his face marked up and his
work becoming increasingly ragged,
began to wilt. Just six professional
rounds in two-and-a-half years can’t
have been great preparation for a
battle of this intensity and Crolla, who
had weathered the early storm, was now
coming on strong.
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