Frankie Gavin edges Bradley Skeete, now British and Commonwealth champion

Frankie Gavin may have saved his career with a close win today over Bradley Skeete, unifying his British welterweight title with the vacant Commonwealth belt. Gavin won the fight on scores of 116-112, 116-113, and 116-113. BLH had it for Skeete, 115-113, with several debatable rounds in the slow-paced, tactical fight.

Gavin (21-1, 13 KO) had lost a European title challenge to Leonard Bundu in August, and came back with a tune-up win in October. Skeete (18-1, 7 KO) was taking a pretty big step up in competition here, but didn't fight any worse than he has in the past. It was a tentative fight, as many expected, a "chess match," if you will. It wasn't very exciting, in other words, as neither fighter has a habit of being particularly fan friendly, and neither is a real risk-taker in the ring.

This is a big win for Gavin and keeps him moving forward, while for Skeete it's a setback, but hardly disastrous. He lost against a solid opponent. It may have revealed his ultimate ceiling, but he's really in no worse a place career-wise than he was before.

How did you score the fight?