It was always going to be hard for Junior Witter. After all, he was the away fighter and battling against a member of the Don King stable, which isn't a desirable situation for any boxer.
However, his performance really was below par, and he let Alexander win this bout by not imposing himself on the young gun.
How Witter vs. Alexander Played Out
The first round was probably Witter's best round of the fight. As always, he employed his awkward switch hitting stance, and he landed a few good jabs.
Alexander began to take over in the second session though. He hurt Witter with a right hand, and Witter's big wild swings weren't connecting. Witter may have had his best punch of the fight this round - a left straight, but that wasn't enough to win him the round.
Alexander worked consistently and never let Witter set his feet. He rocked the Bradford man twice in the third round, but Witter stayed on his feet. It wasn't looking good for Witter though who usually starts well and flags towards the end of the bout, and the writing was possibly on the wall even at this point.
The fourth went in more or less the same way and in the fifth, Witter had to work very hard not to touch the canvas. Alexander hit him with a left hook while Witter was throwing a horrendously wide shot which may have been a whole foot away fom the head of the 22 year old American. If Witter was going to turn this fight around, he needed to do it soon.
Devon Alexander showed no sign of giving up on his dream of becoming world champion though and won the next round on workrate alone. He wasn't hitting Witter a lot, but Witter just didn't throw enough to nick the session.
If one was generous they could give Witter the seventh. He used his jab decently, and it seemed that Alexander was taking a rest in this round.
The eighth was also a fairly even round, and it seemed that Witter was clawing his way back into this fight, but after the round, Witter bizarrely quit on his stool.
Witter Quits On His Stool After the Eighth Round
In a post fight interview, Witter consistently mentioned that he "didn't feel good" in the ring, and stated that he thought he had injured his elbow. However, he seemed completely demoralised, and it sounded like he had maybe realised he old fire wasn't there.
When the finish to the fight came, Alexander couldn't believe his luck. He had no reason to think the fight was going to be stopped, and when it did he was delighted, as evidenced in his post fight interview.
Where Now For Witter and Alexander?
When asked if this would be his last fight, Junior Witter gave a one word answer - a resounding "no". However, if he does continue, he will have to move back down to domestic level, and at the age of 35, he won't be too keen on this idea. A fight against Ricky Hatton or Amir Khan is now out of the window, and in reality, it seems like the perfect time for Witter to retire.
As for Alexander, the sky is evidently the limit. At 22, he has plenty of time to establish himself as a major player in the light-welterweight division, and with Don King as his promoter, he can go as far as he wants.
Devon passed his first world level test, albeit against a poor Junior Witter, and with the WBC Super Lightweight Title around his waist, he will have big bargaining power for the bigger fights on the horizon in the future.
