JOHN SIMPSON TKO8 (cut eye) PAUL TRUSCOTT

Note to readers: I'm away from base and in London until the middle of next week, so previews are temporarily on hold. Still, I thought I'd share my thoughts on Friday night's Commonwealth title bout in England.

Experience and physical strength triumphed when Scotland's John Simpson defeated Paul Truscott to win the Commonwealth featherweight title on his opponent's home ground in Middlesbrough.

The fight looked evenly poised after six rounds but Simpson clearly took over in the seventh, when Truscott suffered a cut over the right eye. With the eye also swollen and bruised underneath, Truscott was in trouble and there were too many rounds to go. I picked Truscott but even without the cut I think he would have lost, although a reader has pointed out that without two head clashes, one of which caused the cut, the other worsening it, the outcome might have been quite different.

Still, Simpson was able to walk through everything Truscott threw at him, and the local favourite, who was defending the title, was getting hit by too many hard, clean shots, with the Scot's body punching proving highly effective right from the start.

Truscott did some nice jabbing and put some punches together, but Simpson's blows were more damaging. That was the difference.