Matthew Macklin returned to light middleweight last night for the first time in nine years last. Having last boxed there in his now-famous clash with Jamie Moore, Macklin was involved in another war with Jason Welborn at the Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham.

The Tipperary Tornado was made to work for his win over the game Welborn who was the busier fighter. Macklin however landed the cleaner shots throughout and was a deserved winner after a close bout.

29 year old Welborn came flying out of the traps, attacking the body at a furious pace. Macklin however gradually grew into the fight and took some semblance of control.

In the fifth round Welborn was deducted a point after a blatant low blow, and was giving a stern warning a minute later after another, with Macklin requiring time to recover after both.

Unsurprisingly after his fast start, Welborn began to slow in the second half of the fight, and while he still out-threw Macklin, the difference in skill levels was more apparent, with Macklin scoring clean counters off the ropes.

The final scorecards read 96-94 x2 and 97-93 which was probably a fair reflection on the clash of styles.

After the bout, Macklin was somewhat disappointed with his performance, reasoning that “I shouldn’t have allowed it [Welborn’s aggressiveness] as much as I did. I was coming back with nice ones and twos. I was staying there [on the ropes] too long but that was one thing that I’ve been working on.”

With the win over the Wolverhampton man, 33 year old Macklin claimed the WBC International belt and improved his ranking with the organisation as he continues his quest for a fourth World title shot. The Irishman’s record now reads 34(22)-6(4). Welborn, who will have won many new fans with his all-action style, falls to 17(6)-4(3).