If John Duddy gets his shot at Kelly Pavlik, the world middleweight champion, soon, he should thank two New York judges, or maybe he should blame them for putting him in danger.

Somehow Duddy, from Londonderry, won a majority points win over Walid Smichet, an unheralded Tunisian who boxes out of Canada, in the chief supporting contest at Madison Square Garden. It was supposed to be a straightforward warm-up bout for the unbeaten Duddy, but the Northern Irishman's lack of defence meant that he took heavy punches for most of the contest.

One judge, Frank Lombardi, scored it a draw, a verdict that was booed by the crowd, but John McKaie and Don Trella both scored it 98-92 for Duddy, meaning they believed that Smichet won only two rounds.

Bob Arum, Pavlik's promoter, had been planning to offer Duddy an attempt at the title in New York in June, although whether that is still viable despite the win remains to be seen.

Explore More Sport

• Athletics

• Boxing

• Cycling

• Sailing

• US Sport