Sam “The Ghost” Goodman (17-0, 7 KOs) kept his unbeaten record intact with a 12-round unanimous decision victory over previously undefeated Chinese southpaw Zhong Liu (19-1, 7 KOs) at The Star in Sydney, Australia, on Friday night.

It wasn’t always pretty, but The Ring’s No. 6-ranked junior featherweight claimed the win by scores of 118-111, 119-109 and 120-108.

Liu, 32, proved to be cagey from the opening bell, using his footwork and lateral movement to provide an elusive target.

“What a puzzle he was to figure out; he was very tricky to pin down,” Goodman admitted in his post-fight interview.

“He was very awkward. I think people are sort of overlooking him; I certainly wasn’t. I pressed the fight, I went forward, I landed the cleaner shots and I tried to win the fight.”

After a feeling-out round, Goodman fought with more pressure in the second only to suffer a small nick over his left eyelid in the third. Liu targeted the cut with his right jab and an occasional lead left hand for the rest of the fight, but Goodman’s corner quickly had the bleeding under control.

Goodman was taking ownership of the fight by the fourth, but his corner still wanted more. His trainer, Joel Keegan, implored him not to be lazy on the way out.

The 25-year-old Goodman, of Albion Park in New South Wales, kept up the pressure in the middle rounds, attacking the body with more regularity in an effort to slow down Liu, who had settled into an off-beat rhythm. The jab to the head followed by a right hand downstairs proved to be an effective weapon for Goodman, but Liu had his own pockets of success through to the end of round eight.

With precious little video footage of Liu available it was hard for the Goodman camp to know what they were up against, but by the ninth round Goodman had his opponent figured out. Goodman’s feints set up eye-catching combinations in the last four rounds of what had otherwise been a slow-paced fight.

An ugly win is still a win.

Goodman, who is ranked No. 1 by both the WBO and the IBF at 122 pounds, will now turn his attention to the undisputed championship bout between The Ring’s No. 1- and No. 2-ranked junior featherweights, Naoya “Monster” Inoue (25-0, 22 KOs) and Marlon “Nightmare” Tapales (37-3, 19 KOs), in Tokyo on Boxing Day, with a desire to challenge the winner.

“A win is a win. I’m happy with it. It’s been a big year, four fights… World titles, line them up,” said Goodman.

“By the end of next year, I want to be a world champion.”