Michael Nevin advanced to the last 16 of the World Elite Championships after a dominant performance in Ekaterinburg, Russia today.
The Portlaoise BC middleweight earned three 10-8 rounds en route to a unanimous decision – 30-26,30-27, 30-26, 30-27, 30-26 – over Lithuania's Vytautas Balsys.
Using his jab to create openings, Nevin delivered solid rights in all three rounds. Balsys looked in trouble near the end of the second after being staggered by two big rights.
Both men opened up in the final seconds of the third and final frame, but Nevin also got the better of those exchanges to seal his second win in Ekaterinburg.
The European Games bronze medallist will now meet Russia’s No 8 seed Gleb Bakshi in the last 16 on Monday.
Bakshi beat Azerbaijan’s Amind Kushkhov this afternoon in a bout refereed by Donegal’s Sadie Duffy.
Antrim’s European champion Kurt Walker and Dublin’s Kiril Afanasev box tomorrow in the last 32.
Number six seed Walker, who received a bye, meets Columbia’s Pan American bronze medallist David Avila and Afanasev is in against Bulgaria’s Radoslav Panaleev.
