Terry Flanagan makes history with WBO lightweight crown

Terry Flanagan was crowned WBO lightweight champion on Saturday night after Jose Zepeda succumbed to a shoulder injury during their fight at Manchester’s Velodrome.

But it did not play out as Flanagan had planned, as the Californian suffered a painful dislocation of his shoulder in the second round and was unable to continue.

For Zepeda (23-1, 20 KO), it’s an absolutely very bad way to lose any fight, let alone one at this level that would have given him a big push forward in his career.

Flanagan is now the first ever English boxer in history to win a world title in the lightweight division and Manchester’s first world champion since Ricky Hatton. He was then a scrawny 15-year-old kid, who had sneaked his way into the arena without even having a ticket. I’m just soaking it all in and the support I have been given is fantastic.

Despite Flanagan having hometown advantage, the first round was evenly contested before the Briton caught his opponent with a left hook to the body in the second.

Terry Flanagan may not have gotten the win the way he wanted, but he can call himself world champion.

“I’m not bothered, me, I’m still world champion”.

“Now I’m world champion I can start believing in myself”, added Flanagan, whose boxing hero Hatton was ringside to watch a fellow Mancunian enter into local boxing folklore.

Rising star Liam Walsh will also be out as he aims to make it 19 wins when he battles Isaias Santos Sampaio for the vacant WBO Intercontinental lightweight title.

“Turbo”, however, is unconcerned at facing someone who is a notoriously quick starter, with 19 of Zepeda’s knockouts coming within the first three rounds.