By Johnny Walker
Veteran heavyweight Monte “Two Gunz” Barrett did most of the talking leading up to the fight, but Shane “Mountain Warrior” Cameron spoke loudly with his fists today when he blasted the American with a huge right hand to win the WBO Asia Pacific and Oriental heavyweight championships at the Sky City Convention Centre in Auckland, New Zealand.
The opening round was close, with Barrett (35-10-2, 20 KOs) trying to load up on a big right hand but missing the target. By the end of the round, Cameron (29-2-0, 22 KOs) had closed the distance with Barrett and was starting to land hard left jabs with regularity.
From there, it was Cameron’s fight all the way. The Kiwi rocked Barrett with a hard right hand in round two that saw the American veteran already on shaky legs. Barrett began to retreat, but Cameron scored again with a stinging left hand and easily won the round.
Round three saw Cameron—who trained for this fight in the UK with Barrett conqueror David Haye—continue his assault on the champion. Cameron’s hard left jab landed repeatedly in Barrett’s face, and after a succession of scoring blows, he connected with a powerful up-jab to Barrett’s chin that again stunned the American. Barrett went to the mat, but the referee ruled that Cameron had pushed the defending champion on the back of the head.
It seemed just a matter of time as round four began, and sure enough, 18 seconds into the round, Cameron connected with a huge hooked overhand right that crashed into Barrett’s chin, knocking him senseless. A count was unnecessary, and Cameron celebrated the huge win as Barrett lay on the mat, out cold.
“It was an amazing feeling, the end was spectacular,” Cameron said after the fight, before thanking David Haye “for the awesome sparring in the UK.”
“I knew the right hook was there and I just set it up – beautiful.”
A downcast Barrett explained that “I got caught with a big shot. It was one of those shots you never see coming.”
Barrett later said he was hoping for a rematch, but Cameron, who lost big to Kiwi hero David Tua in 2009, may now try to lure the retired heavyweight back to the ring.
Rumors that the recently divorced “Tuamanator” is planning a boxing comeback will only add to the speculation that Cameron-Tua II will soon be a reality.