Paul Appleby became the new British featherweight champion with a hard-fought points win over John Simpson in Glasgow.
Young Scot gets the nod after entertaining 12 rounds at Kelvin Hall
Paul Appleby became Scotland's youngest ever British champion when he took the featherweight title from John Simpson in Glasgow.
The 20-year-old came through the toughest test of his career so far, recording a hard-fought points win at the Kelvin Hall to maintain his perfect record.
A knockdown in the fifth round proved crucial on the final scorecards, two judges giving it to the challenger by a 115-114 score, with the third awarding it 115-113.
Appleby - who had never been beyond eight rounds before as a professional - was delighted to have the Lonsdale belt in his grasp, stating that he was always confident he would be returning home with the spoils.
"I just fought to the game plan - throw loads of punches," he told
Sky Sports.
"I knew I was going to win, I told everyone I was going to win. But John Simpson - I take my hat off to him. He is tough."
Biggest occasion
A rising star on the domestic scene, Appleby seemed inspired by the big occasion as he got the better of the more experienced Simpson.
Crucially he scored the only knockdown that secured a 10-8 round that proved the difference between the two in the final reckoning.
The defending champion was put down by a good shot but recovered quickly to land some heavy punches of his own in the sixth, though it was not enough for him to record an 18th win that would have kept hold of the belt.
Instead that is now in the hands of Appleby, a boxer his promoter Tommy Gilmour - who felt the fight was too soon for the youngster - described afterwards as "an absolute gem".
"I think he proved that we have got a rough diamond that needs polishing up," he said.
"He's an absolute gem. If he'd have listened to me he'd have waited for six months but he didn't and he's proved me wrong."
