James Slater

James Slater has been a leading voice at Boxing247.com (East Side Boxing) for more than two decades. His expertise lies in writing news, detailed historical articles, and conducting interviews with fighters across the globe. Over his career, Slater has spoken with world champions, prospects, and legends, bringing unique insights to both current events and boxing’s rich history. Slater’s long-standing commitment to the sport has made him a trusted source for fans who want context, reliability, and passion in their boxing news.

Mayweather-Pacquiao disappoints, “Money” too clever, defensively skilled; Pac-Man thinks he won!

05/03/201505/03/2015 James Slater

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In truth, there was no way the so called “Fight of The Century” between Floyd Mayweather Junior and Manny Pacquiao was ever going to live up to the huge hype the welterweight showdown enjoyed. And last night inside a packed but ultimately deflated MGM Grand, the fight came absolutely nowhere near close to delivering in the action stakes.

Mayweather, way too fast, clever, defensively skilled and also so much the bigger man physically, won, really, with some ease; in “second gear,” as super-middleweight king Carl Froch put it. Pac-Man, nowhere near the explosive, relentless dynamo he once was, had fleeting moments of success but they were far too few to make the fight just that, a fight.

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Official: Sky will show Mayweather-Pacquiao in UK – fee £19.95

03/25/201503/24/2015 James Slater

It’s official: Sky Sports will exclusively televise the May 2nd mega-fight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao on Box Office, with Sky today announcing how they have been awarded exclusive live T.V rights in the U.K.

After a fierce bidding war between Sky, BoxNation and BT Sports, Sky have emerged victorious and they promise a lengthy series of build-up shows to further wet the appetite of fight fans in the days and weeks preceding the welterweight title showdown.

Now, to the biggest question the fans have been asking: how much will it cost to watch the fight in the comfort of one’s armchair? Sky have announced how the fight will be priced at £19.95, which is only a small amount above their regular Box Office fee of £17.95. This is sure to please a lot of people, especially after there had been rumours the fight would carry with it a pay-per-view price tag of anywhere from £30 to £49.99.

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Mayweather-Pacquiao “Fight of The Century” looks set to be televised live in U.K on SKY

03/21/2015 James Slater

(Photo credit: Ester Lin/Showtime) Dubbed by many as “The Fight of The Century,” the fast approaching Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao super-fight looks set to go out on Sky Sports in the U.K. British fans have been wondering where they will be able to view the richest fight in boxing and, according to Jeff Powell of The Mail, Sky Sports will exclusively show the fight in the early hours of May 3rd U.K time.

According to The Mail’s article, Frank Warren, head of boxing channel BoxNation, put in a higher upfront fee to the promoters of Pacquiao-Mayweather, but Sky has offered the promoters a substantial fee AND a share of the pay-per-view cash they will rake in from the fans. It remains to bee seen how much Sky will charge fight fans to be able to tune into the most heavily hyped boxing match of all-time, but most fans seem to be expecting the fee to be substantially more than Sky’s usual £17.99.

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Iran Barkley speaks about his epic fight with Roberto Duran, over 25-years on

02/25/201502/24/2015 James Slater

On this day 26 years ago, inside a packed Trump Plaza in Atlantic City, New Jersey, two bitter middleweight rivals went to war over 12 absolutely thrilling rounds.

Outside, snow covered the ground thanks to a blizzard, yet inside the arena the heat was scorching. WBC middleweight ruler Iran Barkley fought a thought to be faded legend in Roberto Duran and the fans in attendance witnessed both a modern day classic and a renaissance.

For all 12 ‘don’t-blink’ rounds, the 28-year-old and the 37-year-old went to war, with a number of unforgettable highlights and a ton of terrific action on display through the 36-minutes. In the end, old “Hands of Stone” prevailed via a somewhat controversial upset split decision, relieving “The Blade” of his green belt.

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Remembering a classic: Kevin Kelley and Troy Dorsey go to war in featherweight showdown

02/18/201502/18/2015 James Slater

On this day in 1992, two featherweights met in New York and engaged in a fierce fight that severely tested the mettle of both men. In fact, both Kevin Kelley of Flushing in New York and Troy Dorsey of Mansfield, Texas threw so much leather, fans could have been forgiven for thinking it was going out of fashion.

Entering the bout, Dorsey, the former IBF featherweight ruler and a natural warrior who had cut his teeth as a world class kick boxer, was the older man by five years at age 29. Sporting a 12-4-4 record, Dorsey was to be the 26-0 Kelley’s first big test. And how the teak-tough Texan tested the slick southpaw from Queens.

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2014’s Fight of The Year? Juanma Lopez and Daniel Ponce de Leon gave us a mini-classic back in March

01/02/201512/31/2014 James Slater

Maybe the short and sweet, not to mention terrifically entertaining battle 130-pounders Juan Manuel Lopez and Daniel Ponce de Leon gave us this year should win the slugfest of the year distinction. Both men, their careers quite literally on the line, swapped leather, and traded knockdowns, in a manner befitting two prizefighters with everything on the line.

You may have other fights in mind as your choice or choices for 2014’s FOTY, but lovers of a dramatic, hi-octane rumble with swiftly shifting momentums and a ton of fierce leather exchanged in just a handful of minutes will show as much affection and appreciation to this one as I do.

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Andy Lee produces the “feel good” moment during an action packed night of boxing

12/20/201412/15/2014 James Slater

There was plenty going on in the world of boxing over the weekend; what with British star Amir Khan turning in a near perfect display against Devon Alexander, in doing so winning his must-win fight in brilliant style. We also saw Tim Bradley go to war with Diego Chaves over 12 eventful rounds, after which apparent winner Bradley had a badly swollen left side of his face and a controversial draw to show for it.

We also heard, over and over again, Floyd Mayweather Junior calling out Manny Pacquiao – even if the bold and committed words Mayweather bellowed into the Showtime microphone have come at least five years later than they should have done (and there are still many doubters who are yet to be convinced the fight will go ahead, yawn!). And we saw hotshot welterweight and Mayweather wannabe opponent Keith Thurman put on a perfectly commanding yet roundly booed showing against another tough nut in Leonard Bundu. Indeed, it was one interesting, not to mention long, night in Vegas.

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On This Day: Mike Tyson obliterates Alex Stewart inside a round

12/08/201412/08/2014 James Slater

A number of years ago, when speaking with the superb KO Magazine, heavyweight icon Mike Tyson spoke about when he may have been at his blistering peak. Many times, Tyson had heard “experts” say he was at his very best when blasting out the previously unbeaten Michael Spinks, in a mere 91-seconds, in 1988. However, when asked by KO when he was at his very best, “Iron” Mike responded by saying he was “pretty good the night I beat Alex Stewart.”

By the time of the fight that took place on this very day in 1990, Tyson had lost his cloak of invincibility at the hands of one James Douglas. But was Tyson, as fast, as compact and as ruthlessly determined to prove the loss in Tokyo was a mere fluke, indeed at his very best the night he blitzed through power-hitter Stewart?

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Billy Joe Saunders wins tough split decision win over Chris Eubank Junior

11/30/201411/29/2014 James Slater

Tonight in London, in one of the most heavily hyped and intriguing British middleweight clashes of recent years, Billy Joe Saunders ultimately proved too tough, too skilful and too experienced for a game and always dangerous Chris Eubank Junior.

At the end of 12 hard rounds, southpaw Saunders retained his unbeaten record and his European, British and Commonwealth titles. The scores were 115-114 for Saunders, 116-113 for Eubank and 115-113 for Saunders.

Thanks mostly to his famous father, there was plenty expected of Eubank Jr in the lead-up to this fight. “He beats [Gennady] Golovkin now,” Senior stated of his son. And, “He will be better than Floyd Mayweather Junior.” Such talk now looks foolish, if it didn’t before Saunders took away Junior’s unbeaten pro ledger. Still, Eubank Jr did display real grit, determination and a good chin. Sadly for those fans who hoped the young Eubank would achieve the great heights his father did, tonight’s challenger also displayed certain moves to rival those of a rank amateur, as well as a game-plan that saw him all but give away the early rounds.

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Manny Pacquiao’s great ring career may be close to an end; Pac-Man says he may retire and run for senator in 2016

08/01/201408/01/2014 James Slater

Superstar and all-time great Manny Pacquiao may not have too much time left in the boxing ring. Pac-Man, for a while now having been heavily and passionately involved in politics, has gone on record stating how he is thinking of quitting the squared circle and running for senator in 2016.

Speaking with DZMM, the 35-year-old icon and hero to millions had the following to say:

“There’s a big possibility that I will run for senator. UNA asked me to join its slate and I am grateful they picked me.”

Boxing fans do not want Pacquiao’s fantastically entertaining career to end, yet the political world wants Manny and it seems there could be just a few fights left for the southpaw dynamo who has already achieved so much as a fighter. The first thing many fans may think of with regards to how long Pacquiao has left in the ring is, will a clash with Floyd Mayweather – the only serious rival to Pac-Man’s dominance as this era’s finest pound-for-pound boxer – ever happen. Of course, so many of us gave up on that match-up ever taking place a long time ago. Still, how sad and disappointing would it be if the two megastars both exited the ring having never tested themselves against one another?

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