GLORY: Davies celebrates his win over Joe Hughes in March
Photo: ACTION IMAGES/ LEE SMITH
L EWIS RITSON never featured in the plans originally devised by Robbie Davies Jnr and his team. Two summers ago, inside a poorly attended Wembley Arena, Davies, protecting an undefeated record and lofty superlightweight ranking with the WBA, threatened years of hard work when he was brutally stopped in the final session by the marauding Michael Syrowatka. Davies’ work in the fight was impressive enough at the start, but an alarming drop in output gave the Pole a confidence that had been absent in the fight’s early stages. Davies, stricken and stumbling, was rescued by his trainer, Dave Tonks, with seconds remaining.
Hospital tests in the immediate aftermath offered some respite for Davies as an issue with his kidney baffled doctors analysing him; they were unsure how he was able to perform to such a level against Syrowatka with the problem. But even the reassurances from medical professionals that his condition had contributed massively to his downfall, Davies’ dreams – ambitions he’d held since he was a young boy – were temporarily put on hold as a rebuilding process ensued.