Will Tomlinson outscores game Hero Tito in return fight

 
WILL Tomlinson’s resurgence as a lightweight continued with a decision win over a lively Hero Tito.

 
Tomlinson (now 25-2-1, 13 KOs) proved to be far more mobile than in previous fights and showed an ability to be effective on the back foot, timing Tito (now 21-12-2, 7 KOs) with stiff jabs as well as right-hand counters.

 
The 32-year-old visitor was far from your typical import, implementing a style that is typically associated with Japanese fighters. The Indonesian was heavily dependant on his jab and had a deceptively quick lead uppercut.

 
Tito’s best moments came in the opening half of the fight, where he found a home for his left-hook, which more often than not, followed his right-uppercut. Tomlinson made him miss frequently, but chose only to attack in spots.

 
The Melburnian’s patient attacking display gained momentum later in the fight, where he eventually took over.

 
In the fights closing stages, particular the ninth and tenth rounds, Tomlinson would fire off authoritative one-two combinations, which would halt the forward-walking Tito, who grew discouraged as the fight wore on.

 
In the end, Tito was absorbing more punches than at any other point, which signalled Tomlinson’s takeover.

 
“Overall, we’re happy with the result and I showed up to do a lot of things,” said Tomlinson in an interview with Aus-Boxing. “I tightened up on a lot things this time around and I’ll get better for the next fight.”

 
The ten-round regional title fight was Tomlinson’s first appearance in nine months, his second longest layoff.

 
When asked if he felt any form of ring rust, Tomlinson believed any effects he may have felt were not physical.

 
“Its hard to say,” he quipped. “Cause you’re doing so much sparring in the lead up to the fight,”

 
“It’s not the factor of actually fighting, but walking out to a crowd and being up on show. To be honest, I didn’t feel like it was a factor and I felt comfortable throughout the fight. I was very happy to fight in front of my people,”

 
“I haven’t had that in a while. To fight in front of my genuine followers, it felt good,”

 
“End of the day, I thrive off the crowd and hearing everyone cheering and screaming my name. Things like that motivate me to dig deep and throw punches – even when I’m tired – and try and put on a good performance,”

 
Tomlinson, 29, is happy to have secured the win and was full of praise for his late replacement opponent.

 
“He had a good chin and he would’ve been glad to start trading with me,” he continued. “But I feel like I followed my corners instructions, which was to keep using my jab until the opportunity arose, and I did that.”

 
“I went in with the mindset that I had to control the distance, as he was reckless in the footage I’ve seen.”

 
The former IBO titleholder will take a short break and celebrate his 30th birthday before resuming training.

 
“I’m going to take a week off,” he concluded. “I’ll let my body relax and enjoy living a normal life,”

 
“I’ll get back into training after that, not with the same intensity, but readying myself for training camp.”

 
 
Photo: Damian Brierty/Visual Delight