Plymouth boxing prodigy Constantin Ursu is now the number one mandatory contender for the Commonwealth welterweight title after demolishing challenger Basi Razaq in a Silver Commonwealth title clash on Saturday [April 27]. Ursu won by third-round knockout against the overwhelmed Razaq at the Brentwood Centre in Essex night to underline his growing status and put himself on course for an assault on a major title.
Already the Southern Area welterweight champion, Ursu has now stopped his last three opponents having floored all of them in one-sided contests, the latest of which headed a televised bill.
Razaq was forced into taking a knee in the opening seconds of the first round after Ursu landed a crunching left-hand body shot. But he was counted out altogether in round three after another searing body shot and a follow-up to the head.
The Moldova-born pugilist has lived in Plymouth for six years and made the city his home, even dubbing himself the ‘Dynamite Kid’ in homage to former British and Commonwealth champion Scott ‘Dynamite’ Dann. But the 24-year-old has the potential to go even further than former champion Dann, despite having to box in Essex due to a lack of shows in Plymouth.
His trainer Marlee Dann – cousin to former champ Scott – said Ursu was head and shoulders above his opponent on Saturday in terms of class, and after flooring him in round one, took less than a minute of the third round to leave Razaq out for the count.
He [Ursu] went out there and put him down in the first round, straightaway,” said his trainer. “But then he let him get through the round and come back [to the corner] and I said ‘you can get him out if you like’ and he said ‘no, the cameras are on and I want to get something nice’.
I told him he was there for the taking, but he said he had told his mate he would knock him out in the third round, so that’s what he was going to do. So in the third round he went out there with the intention of hammering him, and he hammered him.”
Trainer Dann said all of Ursu’s last three opponents have been unable to live with him in the ring, despite going into the bouts with winning records. He continued: “In terms of the last three opponents, Matthew King was training at Michael Ballingall’s gym, he was [WBO Global welterweight champion] Michael McKinson’s sparring partner and was mandatory for the Southern Area, and we went out and destroyed him in three rounds.
“Then we had Jordon Dujon, who had gone the distance with Harry Scarff in a 60-40 fight – and Harry Scarff is now the British and Commonwealth champion and his next fight is a world title eliminator so he could be fighting for a world title in two fights.
So he [Dujon] lost to Harry Scarff in a close and competitive fight, and Constantin absolutely destroyed him. He didn’t win a second of a round against Constantin, and Constantin floored him and then stopped him.
“Then this guy here, Constantin caught him with a body shot, played with him for a round and then got him out of there.” He added: “He [Razaq] was counted out – he was in no fit state to continue – he was down and didn’t want to get up.”
Ursu is a star in the making according to his trainer, and deserving of a shot at a bigger title. But he said boxing figures could not go on ignoring his star protege forever.
Constantin could go in there with anyone,” he said. “The British and Commonwealth champion I think Constantin beats, the European champion Jordy Weiss I think Constantin beats.
“It’s not the fact of getting him too big fights too soon because I think he will rise to the occasion. But he is 24 years old, he is 10 [wins] and 0 [defeats], has stopped his last three opponents, who all had winning records and who Constantin has destroyed.”
He added: “When I sit there and look at the overall picture, every fight that he doesn’t get for a big title is a mistake from others because he will only improve, he will only get better, he will only get more confident, his ability in the ring will grow much more – and sooner or later something will happen that will catapult him into stardom.”