Ringside Report: Nicola Hopewell Defeats Kate Radomska in Sheffield

Ringside Report: Nicola Hopewell Defeats Kate Radomska in Sheffield

It ended somewhat in anticlimactic fashion, but Nicola Hopewell kept her winning run going in Sheffield on Saturday night with a bloody technical decision over the tough and rugged Kate Radomska in their non-title fight.

An accidental clash of heads in the 6th round left Radomska nursing a horrific cut over her right eye, and despite the referee allowing a brief return to action, the fight was always then set for a premature ending. It came as no surprise when the ringside Doctor had a second look at the eye when the blood started to flow even more profusely, and the referee this time waved the fight off, and Hopewell was declared the winner with forty-three seconds left in the round. The Worksop fighter got the nod courtesy of a 58-57 scorecard from the referee. From ringside, I saw it the exact same way.

After a difficult opening three rounds, where Hopewell struggled to assert any real control, the reigning Commonwealth flyweight champion finally showed her class in the following two rounds. Hopewell looked to be coming on, as Radomska was seemingly going the other way.

Radomska is a better fighter than her now 4-6 resume would suggest, and she made it extremely difficult for Hopewell at times. Radomska had a full training camp for this fight, and she clearly ‘fancied it’ as they say. Radomska bounced into the ring full of confidence. She made it rough all fight long, although I thought the referee was at times a little harsh on her with repeated warnings for constant holding.

Maisey Rose Courtney had a tough night in 2023 with Radomska, and I thought Hopewell was having a similar experience. Radomska seems to have the ability to drag her opponents into her type of fight. Hopewell looked as though she was making the same mistakes as Courtney did two years ago.

I thought in the opening six minutes, Radomska was in with a shout of causing the upset. But Hopewell was the fighter who was growing into the fight. Rounds four and five were clear Hopewell rounds. Radomska had success. But Hopewell was now finding more of it. Her work was the cleaner of the two fighters. It wasn’t the cleanest of fights. It was beyond scrappy at times, which suited Radomska more than Hopewell. Some kind of facial damage always seemed extremely likely. After suffering bad cuts in recent fights herself, Hopewell would have been relieved to escape more of the same on Saturday night.

I’ve seen Hopewell box far better than what she gave us against Radomska, and she conceded in the post-fight interview that it wasn’t her best performance. But sometimes you have to give the opponent credit. Radomska came with a certain game plan, and it was more than working in the early stages. Hopewell seemed hesitant at times, and she did seem to smother her work up close. I thought she could have made better use of her jab, especially in the early rounds. But I do think Hopewell was solving the puzzle in front of her as the fight was progressing. She seemed to have found her groove and was likely on her way to a far more conclusive victory.

“I thought it was very scrappy, but that’s kind of what I expected, and I felt she was spoiling my work by grabbing me,” Hopewell told FightPost after her latest win. “I tried to work on the inside when I was tied up. But I felt I was settling more into the fight as the rounds went on.”

Despite the manner of how the fight ended, Hopewell walks away with a win and a little more experience in the memory bank. Another fight with lessons learned. The fights any fighter needs.

It was one of those fights where Hopewell had nothing to gain and everything to lose. There might have been a touch of relief at the end. The kind of fight where you take the win and just move on.

Hopewell’s promoter Dennis Hobson has gone down the IBO route before with fighters under his guidance, and that could be where he takes Hopewell next. Marie Connan is the current IBO flyweight bauble holder. The French fighter is a live possibility unless someone else gets their first. Connan, you sense will be in demand for the likes of Maisey Rose Courtney and others. I’m not a fan of the IBO ‘world title’ label, simply because it isn’t a genuine world title, although I do accept at times it does serve a purpose. Gabriela Fundora is the undisputed flyweight champion of the world. Undisputed is the key word. Suggestions of someone else having claims to being a world flyweight champion are frankly absurd. But a fight with Connan with or without the IBO belt on the line seems a sensible option for Hopewell. The fight makes sense. The IBO bauble far less so.

Chloe Watson defends her European flyweight title against Jasmina Zapotoczna on the Boxxer all-female extravaganza at the Royal Albert Hall this coming weekend. Both have mentioned Hopewell as a possible future opponent.

Nicola Hopewell (7-1) has recovered extremely well since losing her unbeaten record to Emma Dolan in 2023. Hopewell has won all her four fights since, including beating Gemma Ruegg to win the Commonwealth title last year. At 33, Hopewell seems ready for a big fight. There are enough options around that should guarantee that happens.