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Ionut Baluta has etched a split decision win against Brad Strand with varying scorecards. Strand vs. Baluta was featured on the undercard of Nick Ball vs. TJ Doheny: Hard Days Night. The fighters had a slight history due to Baluta holding a win against Strand's teammate, Andrew Cain.
The first few rounds were dominated by Strand's sharp jab and footwork, preventing Baluta from closing the distance.
Rounds five and six started to become a little messy with several sloppy clinches, an accidental clash of heads forcing a cut above Strand's eye, and a timeout due to Baluta's mouthpiece falling out.
Baluta built momentum in the second half of the fight. Strand bounced back with a solid eighth round, which the commentators believed solidified him a decision win.
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Controversy struck in the ninth round, as the referee scored a knockdown for Baluta. The replay later showed that Baluta stepped on Strand's foot, which should not have been a knockdown.
The scorecards were all over the place, with Baluta securing a split decision win (98-91, 96-94, and 93-97) for the vacant WBO European super bantamweight title.
Strand's professional boxing record drops to 12-2, with this loss being his second in his last three fights.
Meanwhile, Bauta bounced back from a loss against Dennis McCann in July 2024 and pushed his record to 17-5-1.
Brad Strand vs. Ionut Baluta Video Highlights
Tonight's headlining boxer, Nick Ball, sat ringside with promoter Frank Warren to watch his teammate, Brad Strand.
Nick Ball shouts to Strand as the latter starts building momentum against Ionut Baluta.
Strand suffered a cut above his eye due to an accidental clash of heads in the sixth round.
Nick Ball and Frank Warren cheer on Strand.
Controversy struck in the ninth round! Strand slips on Baluta's foot and falls back. The referee surprisingly scores the sequence as a knockdown.
The replay shows that Marcus McDonald made a mistake by awarding Baluta a knockdown.
Ionut Baluta has his hand raised due to a split decision (98-91, 96-94, and 93-97).
Nick Ball and Frank Warren are visibly surprised by the decision.
