Craig Anthony Evans (born 18 September 1989[1]) is a Welsh professional boxer who challenged for the British lightweight title in 2015.

Craig Evans
Born (1989-09-18) 18 September 1989 (age 35)
Blackwood, Wales
Statistics
Weight(s)
Height5 ft 8 in (173 cm)[1]
StanceSouthpaw[1]
Boxing record[2]
Total fights25
Wins20
Wins by KO3
Losses3
Draws2

Professional career

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Evans made his professional debut on 15 May 2010, scoring a first-round technical knockout (TKO) over Dan Carr at Upton Park in London, England.[3]

After winning his first 14 fights, three by stoppage, he fought Scott Cardle for the vacant British lightweight title on 30 May 2015 at The O2 Arena in London. The bout was part of the undercard of Kell Brook's IBF world title defence against Frankie Gavin. Evans suffered the first defeat of his career via unanimous decision (UD), with all three judges scoring the bout 116–112.[4]

Following defeat to Cardle, he faced 2012 Olympian Tom Stalker for the vacant WBO European lightweight title on 10 October 2015 at the Manchester Arena. The bout was scored a split draw (SD), with one judge scoring it 96–94 in favour of Evans, another scoring it 97–93 to Stalker while the third judge scored it even at 95–95.[5] The pair had a rematch two months later on 19 December at the same venue, again for the vacant WBO European title. The bout was once again scored a SD, with one judge scoring it 96–94 for Evans, another scoring it 96–94 for Stalker and the third scoring it even at 95–95.[6] After securing a points decision (PTS) victory against Jordan Ellison in July 2016,[7] Evans and Stalker agreed to settle the score once and for all in a trilogy fight on 26 November 2016 at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, Wales, with the WBO European title being on the line yet again, although this time the title was in Stalker's possession. Evans defeated Stalker via majority decision (MD) to capture his first professional title. Two judges scored the bout 98–92 and 96–94 in favour of Evans, while the third scored it even at 95–95.[8]

He successfully defended his title against Stephen Ormond in June 2017[9] before facing undefeated Roman Andreev on 3 February 2018 at the Bolshoy Ice Dome in Sochi, Russia. Evans suffered the second defeat of his career, losing his WBO European title via ninth-round TKO. At the time of the stoppage, Evans was ahead on all three judges' scorecards with 77–75 and 76–75 twice.[10]

He bounced back from defeat with a PTS victory in a rematch with Jordan Ellison in September 2018[11] before challenging for the vacant WBO European title once again, this time against Boy Jones Jr. on 19 November 2018 at the Hilton Hotel in London. Evans captured the title for a second time, defeating Jones Jr. via UD. One judge scored the bout 98–92 and the other two scored it 97–93.[12] He successfully defended the title in a rematch with Stephen Ormond in June 2019,[13] before facing James Tennyson five months later in a non-title fight on 23 November at the M&S Bank Arena (formerly Echo Arena) in Liverpool. Evans was dropped in the first round en route to an eleventh-round TKO defeat.[14]

Professional boxing record

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25 fights 20 wins 3 losses
By knockout 3 2
By decision 17 1
Draws 2
No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
25 Loss 20–3–2 James Tennyson TKO 11 (12), 2:00 23 Nov 2019 M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool, England
24 Win 20–2–2 Stephen Ormond UD 10 2 Jun 2019 Vale Sports Arena, Cardiff, Wales Retained WBO European lightweight title
23 Win 19–2–2 Boy Jones Jr. UD 10 19 Nov 2018 Hilton Hotel, London, England Won vacant WBO European lightweight title
22 Win 18–2–2 Jordan Ellison PTS 6 7 Sep 2018 Vale Sports Arena, Cardiff, Wales
21 Loss 17–2–2 Roman Andreev TKO 9 (12), 1:19 3 Feb 2018 Bolshoy Ice Dome, Sochi, Russia Lost WBO European lightweight title
20 Win 17–1–2 Stephen Ormond UD 10 17 Jun 2017 Waterfront Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland Retained WBO European lightweight title
19 Win 16–1–2 Tom Stalker MD 10 26 Nov 2016 Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff, Wales Won WBO European lightweight title
18 Win 15–1–2 Jordan Ellison PTS 8 16 Jul 2016 Ice Arena, Cardiff, Wales
17 Draw 14–1–2 Tom Stalker SD 10 19 Dec 2015 Manchester Arena, Manchester, England For vacant WBO European lightweight title
16 Draw 14–1–1 Tom Stalker SD 10 10 Oct 2015 Manchester Arena, Manchester, England For vacant WBO European lightweight title
15 Loss 14–1 Scott Cardle UD 12 30 May 2015 The O2 Arena, London, England For vacant British lightweight title
14 Win 14–0 Jacek Wylezol PTS 8 14 Feb 2015 Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, England
13 Win 13–0 Ronnie Clark PTS 10 24 Nov 2014 Hilton Hotel, London, England
12 Win 12–0 Dame Seck PTS 8 10 May 2014 Olympia, Liverpool, England
11 Win 11–0 Andoni Alonso PTS 8 7 Dec 2013 Echo Arena, Liverpool, England
10 Win 10–0 Youssef al-Hamidi PTS 8 17 Aug 2013 Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff, Wales
9 Win 9–0 Billy Smith PTS 4 31 May 2013 Town Hall, Walsall, England
8 Win 8–0 Ideh Ochuko PTS 6 1 Nov 2012 York Hall, London, England
7 Win 7–0 Dougie Curran RTD 1 (6), 2:21 25 May 2012 Newport Centre, Newport, Wales
6 Win 6–0 Marc Callaghan RTD 1 (6), 3:00 25 Feb 2012 Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff, Wales
5 Win 5–0 Ibrar Riyaz PTS 6 15 Oct 2011 Echo Arena, Liverpool, England
4 Win 4–0 Scott Moises TD 5 (6) 16 Jul 2011 Echo Arena, Liverpool, England TD after Moises injured from accidental head clash
3 Win 3–0 Sid Razak PTS 4 12 Mar 2011 Braehead Arena, Glasgow, Scotland
2 Win 2–0 Paddy McGarrity PTS 4 4 Dec 2010 Braehead Arena, Glasgow, Scotland
1 Win 1–0 Dan Carr TKO 1 (4), 0:39 15 May 2010 Upton Park, London, England

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Craig Evans Bio Information - PBC Boxing". FOX Sports. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  2. ^ "Boxing record for Craig Evans". BoxRec.
  3. ^ "BoxRec: Craig Evans vs. Dan Carr". boxrec.com. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  4. ^ "Scott Cardle wins British lightweight title by defeating Craig Evans on points". Sky Sports. 30 May 2015. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  5. ^ Graves, Steve (11 October 2015). "Thomas Stalker says Craig Evans draw shows he can prove himself at the top". liverpoolecho. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  6. ^ "BoxRec: Craig Evans vs. Tom Stalker II". boxrec.com. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  7. ^ "BoxRec: Craig Evans vs. Jordan Ellison". boxrec.com. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  8. ^ Foster, Elliot (26 November 2016). "Craig Evans Beats Stalker in Trilogy, Kid Galahad Gets KO Win". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
  9. ^ "Craig Evans beats Stephen Ormond by unanimous decision in Belfast". BBC Sport. 17 June 2017. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  10. ^ "BoxRec: Craig Evans vs. Roman Andreev". boxrec.com. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  11. ^ Foster, Elliot (7 September 2018). "Jacob Robinson Scores Scary KO, Moves To 3-0 In Wales". BoxingScene.com. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  12. ^ "BoxRec: Craig Evans vs. Boy Jones Jr". boxrec.com. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  13. ^ "Jay Harris Captures EBU Title, Decisions Angel Moreno". BoxingScene.com. 1 June 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  14. ^ Fullerton, Gareth (23 November 2019). "James Tennyson stops Craig Evans to secure British title shot". belfastlive. Retrieved 9 May 2020.