Groves gets it going

Hayemaker protege starts with landslide win

Last updated: 7th November 2009

Groves: seven out of seven

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George Groves got Hayemaker's night off to a winning start in Nuremberg.

The precocious Londoner dominated journeyman Konstantin Makhankov for the entire eight rounds, although he could not find the finish.

There was no doubting the decision was his and all three judges scored an 80-72 shut-out for the former amateur star now boxing out of David Haye's promotinal stable.

It was only Groves' seventh professional outing and will go down as an invaluable lesson. Like his bitter rival James DeGale - who he beat in the amatuers - he has had little trouble winning, but must now find a way to break down experienced foes.

Time and again he teed off on Makhankov but the Belarrusian managed to close up and keep him at bay. A badly swollen left eye showed that Groves did get through, his right usually doing the damage.

The first two rounds were lively but scrappy as Groves went on the offensive only to find himself wrapped up in clinches with the referee as busy as either fighter.

By the third, Groves had found his range and throwing punches from all angles, not least a lovely right uppercut that got through in the middle of the round.

The same punch rocked Makhankov in the fifth and suggested he might finally succumb but again, he rode the storm and saw out the round.

The last two followed the same pattern to leave Groves celebrating a seventh straight win and glad to have been given a workout over the distance.

"This evening was about coming out here and working on the stuff we did in the gym," he told Sky Sports.

"They found me a durable opponent, a good fighter, so it was never my intention to try and load up and take him out tonoght.

"I've been out here all week with David, got involved in a bit of the hype, but the main thing was not to get caught up in it all because it's new to me."