Hopley becomes Fight Centre’s latest state champion

ROBERT Hopley is Bendigo Fight Centre’s latest state champion after he scored a unaminous points verdict in last Sunday’s bout for the Victorian Amateur Boxing League’s super lightweight division.

The 16-year-old won every round in a contest of four by two-minute rounds at The Pavilion in Flemington.

Hopley’s success capped a great day for BFC after Raul Salisbury dominated in the super flyweight class on the undercard.

It was the first matches of the year for Hopley and Salisbury.

Bendigo Fight Centre trainer Lucas Allen said Hopley faced a tough opponent in the 63.5 kilogram division.

“A key focus for Robert in preparation and in the match was control,” Allen said.

“He did that incredibly well and used his reach to land some scoring punches and to keep his opponent at distance.”

Hopley may fight at Queensland’s Golden Gloves in late May.

It was a unaminous decision for Salisbury who is two-nil in his amateur boxing career.

A series of punches by Salisbury led to a standing-eight count on his opponent in the first and second rounds.

“Raul put a lot of pressure on from the start,” Allen said of the match in the 52.5 kilogram class.

“Raul has quick feet, hands, and for his size has a lot of power.”

It was a different build-up to Salisbury’s match.

“We did a lot of sprints on Eaglehawk’s Heartbreak Hill the previous Sunday,” Allen said.

“Raul was sore after that, so there was no training at the gym for the week.

“Being fit and healthy for his match was important.”

A scheduled contest for Ryan Polglaise for the state super middleweight belt did not go ahead.

“We will work toward Ryan being able to fight for the belt at The Pavilion or Lilydale across the next month,” said Allen.