By Tom Degun at York Hall in London

Andrew Selby York HallJanuary 17 - The British Lionhearts underlined their credentials for the World Series of Boxing (WSB) crown with a ruthless 5-0 win here over the USA Knockouts.


The tone was first with the first bout of the night, the middleweight contest between the Lionhearts' newest recruit, Estonia's Kaupo Arro, and the visitor's Jeffrey Camp.

The bout had a rather anti-climactic ending as Camp was cut above the right eye following an accidental clash of heads midway through the first round and with the ringside doctor unable to stop the bleeding in the second, the victory was awarded to Arro after he was leading on the judges' scorecards.

Next up for the Lionhearts was Ireland's London 2012 Olympic silver medallist John Joe Nevin who took on Beijing 2008 Olympic silver medallist Daouda Sow at lightweight.

It was a close encounter but the 23-year-old from County Westmeath proved too much for his opponent in the latter stages to take a unanimous decision and give the Lionhearts a 2-0 lead.

John Joe Nevin York HallThe British Lionhearts’ Olympic silver medallist John Joe Nevin (left) proved too strong for Daouda Sow (right) of the USA Knockouts

That soon became an unassailable 3-0 lead as Andrew Selby defeated the Knockouts' London 2012 Olympic bronze medal winner Michael Conlan of Ireland at bantamweight.

In the contest of the night, both fighters rocked each other with huge blows but it was Selby who ended the stronger to take a unanimous decision from the judges and extend his own unbeaten WSB record to 3-0.

"He is a really tough opponent and I knew it would be close like our previous bouts so it was great to get the win on all three scorecards," said Selby.

"It means I now have three wins from three in the world Series so am really enjoying the competition and settling into the new format."

In the light heavyweight contest, the Lionhearts' reigning European champion Joe Ward dominated the Knockouts' Croatian Marko Calic before Joseph Joyce eased to a comfortable points victory over the USA's Avery Gibson at heavyweight.

"To win all five bouts was an excellent performance by the team," said Lionhearts coach Dave Alloway.

"The boxers are continuing to adjust well to the different demands of World Series Boxing and means the team is well placed to get to the knockout stages of the competition."

The win leaves the Lionhearts close to a quarter-final spot in the WSB season while the USA's hopes look all but over.

The Lionhearts now travel to Italy to battle Docle & Gabbana Italia Thunder at the Palamaggio on February 2 while USA will be at home against Group B table-toppers Astana Arlans Kazakhstan at the Yost Theater two days earlier.

The Lionhearts will return to York Hall when they face the Astana Arlans Kazakhstan on February 7 and with another bout at the iconic venue against the Ukraine Otamans on March 1.

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