NORTH-EAST boxing has another British champion to savour after Jon Lewis Dickinson took the vacant cruiserweight title in Liverpool on Saturday night.

The Birtley boxer never really got going in a scrappy contest but that will not matter to him this morning when he wakes up with the belt he has craved.

Dickinson claimed a unanimous points victory over Nottinghamshire’s Shane McPhilbin, who was looking to reclaim the crown he lost to Enzo Maccarinelli in March.

Judges James Davies (118- 110), Phil Edwards (117-111) and Howard John Foster (118- 110) all agreed heavily in the Tynesider’s favour at the Echo Arena on Merseyside.

Both of the boxers’ best work was smothered for much of the contest in a pretty unexciting affair.

Despite Dickinson’s comfortable triumph, it was one achieved even though he was penalised in the tenth round after catching McPhilbin low in the third, ninth and tenth rounds.

It was always Dickinson looking to force the fight and as the fight wore on his Bulwell opponent was the one who tended to lose his focus.

McPhilbin did push on in the last round in the hope of springing a punch to overturn the result, but Dickinson held on to clinch the British belt.