BEATEN but never defeated, Ricky Burns still struggled out a winced smile through the swelling and pain.
A camouflage green zipper drawn up to his neck, wet hair matted to his head, the harsh reality of what had just taken place was smeared across his cheek like pound-shop blusher, the flush crimson bursting its way to the surface.
Somehow, Burns began to speak, words and sentences flowed not of a man who had just endured 12 gruelling rounds in front of millions in the biggest fight of his career only to come up way short, but of a pragmatist filled with measure and consideration.
“I’m devastated to lose my title but the better man won,” were the words he squeezed out less than an hour after his Super Lightweight unification fight against Julius Indongo got away from him. “He was a lot better and a lot more awkward than we thought he would be.
“The first few rounds we wanted to play it safe, keep a high guard and stay out of the way. He could punch, by the way, my head’s thumping.
“I tried to force the pace in the second half of the fight but I had to be careful because he could bang. If he caught me with that left he would have taken me out. I’m gutted.”
It was a shot of glory that was always a precarious one for Burns.
The unbeaten Indongo arrived in Glasgow having floored Eduard Troyanovsky in Moscow back in December with a hammer blow to the jaw to leave the Russian on the canvas. But, with the Namibian being a bit of an unknown quantity, just what would Burns be up against as he attempted to protect his WBA belt?
He found out soon enough. From the start of the fight the southpaw Indongo was on the front foot, the man who normally counter-punches set out from the start to silence the 8000 behind the man in the camouflage shorts.
There was no hiding from the reality that this just wasn’t the right fight for Burns, though.
Where he goes from here is unclear. Now 34, the three-weight world champion has nothing left to prove in the sport, but the ambition to better himself still shines through the beaming cheeks and aching arms.
“I’ll fight anyone. I’m not afraid to lose,” was the promise from the typically honest and frank man who has hauled Scottish boxing forward more than anyone else in the modern era.
The dream of going back to America is still a top priority for Burns, with promotor Eddie Hearn insisting this stumble does not make it a forlorn hope.
Despite the proclamation about his willingness to face anyone, though, one man Burns insists is not on his radar is the very person tipped to pick up that saltire and run with it when the time comes, whenever that may be, to hang up his gloves – Josh Taylor.
The 26-year-old from Edinburgh is just nine battles into his professional career since the Commonwealth Games but has won all nine – including eight knock-outs – and is now the Commonwealth Super Lightweight champion. Still, it is not a match-up Burns believes Taylor, or he, is ready for.
“I’m not entertaining that fight. Josh is a cracking fighter. I get on well with him,” he said. “He’s the Commonwealth champion, but how many fights has he had?
“There are a lot of far bigger fights out there for me. I don’t think it’s Josh who wants the fight. He would obviously take it if it was offered to him. But I think it’s more Barry McGuigan pushing his name out there. The amount of people who call me out on social media and stuff. There’s guys like Ohara Davies. Fight him first and see how they do with him. I guarantee they wouldn’t get by him.”
It wasn’t a great night at the SSE Hydro for Scotland’s biggest representatives. While Joe Ham was crowned Celtic super bantamweight champion, Charlie Flynn hit out at opponent Ryan Collins after a “head butt” cost them both a shot at the Celtic lightweight title.
The stoppage came in the third round, meaning the result didn’t go to a scorecard and was called a tie. Collins has since said he is targeting an autumn rematch with the Motherwell man, but a frustrated Flynn pointed the finger at his opponent for the incident and the subsequent 25 stitches to his brow.
“We know Ryan Collins. We’ve watched him. His last fight got stopped because of a head butt, the one before got stopped with a head butt. He’s renowned for it,” explained Flynn.
“We spoke to the ref before the fight and told him ‘head butts, make sure he doesn’t fall in with his head. Blah blah blah’. Then the third round came and I made him miss and he just fell in. Bang. Head butt. I don’t even need a rematch. If I get one it’ll probably happen again because it happens in around 80 per cent of his fights.
“That’s the last thing I need.”
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