LUDLOW boxer Craig Morris came through his latest assignment by completing a points victory over Chris Jenkinson, with his attention now turning to bigger challenges ahead.

The IBO Continental welterweight title holder was competing at the Willows Banqueting Suite in Willenhall last Saturday as he made a return to the ring for the first time since March.

Southpaw Morris negotiated his way through the six round super welterweight contest, overcoming the more experienced Jenkinson, who is almost ten years his senior and a veteran of over 65 fights in his long career.

However, going into the battle title holder Morris would have been confident, having only lost once in his career on points to Ryan Fields in a Midlands area title fight last year. Whereas his opponent Jenkinson was coming into the fight on the back of five straight losses, making his record ten wins and 53 losses.

The confidence wasn’t misplaced as Morris set about nullifying his opponent’s threat to see out what was an expected victory, but it was a useful exercise in preparation for the bigger fights expected on the horizon.

That could well include a rematch with Andy Keates. The two headlined at Birmingham’s Genting Arena in March but the much-anticipated contest was cut short through injury after Morris suffered a bad cut near the eye after an accidental clash of heads in the third round.

The fight doctor was called for at the end of the round and adjudged the damage to be too serious for the contest to continue and ruled it had to be brought to a close.

Rules dictated that there could be no result as the contest hadn’t passed four rounds so Morris retained the title he had won by defeating Swindon’s Ryan Martin in a bout just before Christmas last year. However, two-weight Midlands champion Keates, along with his team and supporters have been agitating for a rematch ever since but Morris has said that he is the one in control and will only agree to a rematch on his terms.

In the contest last Saturday evening, Morris was competing at the Emerging Stars boxing night in Willenhall, organised by Errol Johnson’s BCB promotions.

Top of the bill in an eventful night of boxing was the contest for the English Bantamweight title which saw Kyle Williams pick himself up off the canvas to take the title away from Thomas Essomba in an absorbing ten round contest.

The crowd was treated to an entertaining evening of boxing with seven fights across six weight divisions which included wins for female fighter Lauren Johnson at super welterweight, Connor Parker at super lightweight, the unbeaten Damian Kiwior at welterweight and Antony Woolery at cruiserweight.