The Good, The Bad and the Unfair: A Week in the Life of Boxing

The Good, The Bad and the Unfair: A Week in the Life of Boxing

The events of the past week have been a microcosm of the world of boxing, the good, the bad and the downright unfair unfolding before us. All of the events, euphoric, frustrating and heartbreaking in equal measure, the greatest and yet cruelest of sports ever perceived in full view once more.

The Good

When Andy Lee entered the ring against unbeaten former World Amateur champion, Matt Korobov, he did so as a huge underdog. Korobov was the house fighter and champion elect, primed for big things by his promoter Top Rank at least. Whereas Lee was a fringe world level fighter beaten twice, by Brian Vera in ’08 (a defeat he avenged in ‘11) and Julio Cesar Chavez Jnr in a ridiculous weight mismatch in ‘12.

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Prizefighter – Ward v Hughes & The Undercard – Ringside Review

Prizefighter – Ward v Hughes & The Undercard – Ringside Review

Martin J Ward D10 Maxi Hughes – (10 x 3 – Super Featherweight British Title Eliminator)

It wasn’t just the gallant Prizefighter lightweights that York Hall was treated to this Saturday night in the hallowed ballroom in the heart of Bethnal Green. Essex based traveller and lightweight prospect Martin J Ward 10-0-1 (5KO’s) was thrust into his first bona fide test against the once beaten and very capable Yorkshireman Maxi Hughes 13-1-1 (2KO’s) a man with his own designs on progression.

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Prizefighter – Lightweights III – Ringside Report

Prizefighter – Lightweights III – Ringside Report

It may not be for the purists and Matchroom and Sky Sports might have bigger fish to fry going forward, but when Prizefighter delivers, it delivers in spades. Tonight was one such occasion when 8 men with nothing to lose and everything to gain stepped through the ropes to provide passion-drenched non-stop action, which brought the historic York Hall to its feet. In the process providing a timely reminder of what made Prizefighter great, knockouts, all out wars, controversial decisions aplenty, not to mention the emergence of a potential star.

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Prizefighter Returns Saturday Night

Prizefighter Returns Saturday Night

Prizefighter returns to home on Saturday as the York Hall, Bethnal Green plays host to the 34th edition of a format showing signs of decline and in its 7th year in desperate need of a big night. The event will mark only the 2nd Prizefighter show of the year; a promotion that has averaged 5 shows a year since its inception in 2008.

Hoping to provide the fireworks will be our third installment of lightweights, hoping to lay their hands on the prizefighter trophy, ugly though it is, and more importantly the £32,000 prize money. Previously, there was a time when the winner would move onto the next level with a British title fight a very real possibility. Unfortunately for those on show this is a carrot that has been withdrawn as the Matchroom stable has grown over the past three years in particular, especially in the saturated domestic lightweight scene.

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Cleverly v Bellew II – Undercard Review

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On a night where the main event failed to deliver on the fireworks promised Cleverly v Bellew II was ably propped up by an undercard featuring some of Britain’s brightest talents. Both current and future world champions sharpened their tools ahead of bigger nights to come.

Anthony Joshua KO1 Michael Sprott (10 x 3 mins British Heavyweight title eliminator)

When Anthony Joshua arrived in the ring at 11pm he did so with menace sporting a Tyson like get-up of solid black and like the erstwhile baddest man on the planet, the 2012 Olympian wasn’t in the mood to hang around.

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Cleverly v Bellew II – Main Event Review

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Tony Bellew gained sweet revenge this evening with a split decision victory over bitter rival Nathan Cleverly in his hometown of Liverpool. In doing so, Bellew (who moves on to 23-2) established himself as mandatory challenger to the WBO Cruiserweight World Champion Marco ‘Captain’ Huck.

It’s often the case that rematches just fail to deliver on their promise of a repeat of what had gone before. Tonight the Liverpool Echo Arena bore witness to one such occasion, when Nathan Cleverly and Tony Bellew met for the second time to settle their long-standing bitter feud, in the full view of the PPV cameras.

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Cleverly v Bellew II – Main Event Preview

Cleverly v Bellew II – Main Event Preview

The talk, the hype, the bravado, it all stops today for Nathan Cleverly and Tony Bellew as the time to set the record straight finally arrives. The magnitude of the occasion will have dawned on the fighters the moment they opened their eyes; failure is not an option at this stage of either career. And, if the weigh-in is anything to go by no stone has been left unturned, both men looked great tipping the scales at 14st 3lbs, ready to deliver as they did 3 and half years ago.

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Cleverly v Bellew II – Undercard Preview

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The moment has finally arrived to put an end once and for all to a bitter domestic rivalry that stretches back to before the first time Nathan Cleverly stood in the opposite corner to Tony Bellew in Liverpool’s Echo Arena in May 2011.

We return to the same venue, but this time under Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom banner, who has once more delivered one of deepest undercards in recent British boxing memory in support of one of the most eagerly anticipated fights of the year.

Here we will take a look at the mouthwatering list assembled that has boxing fans licking their lips.

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The Art of Delusion

The Art of Delusion

Delusional, that’s a word you’ll have heard regularly within the world of boxing in the modern era and one you will hear more and more as we approach a series of grudge matches that has lit a fire beneath British boxing that is likely to see the levels of bluster reach fever pitch. It’s a word that has always interested me, simply because despite its negative connotations it is such a crucial weapon in the armory of a professional fighter.

The manifestations of such behavior is of course dictated by an individuals personality, but believe me, to a man, every boxer, journeyman aside, have convinced themselves completely that they have the beating of their opponent. To me, the only difference between these assertions being considered delusion rather than belief is the manner in which you choose to state it. In an era when self-promotion is as important to a fighters earning potential as skill, delusion has become somewhat of an art form and three of its chief exponents will benefit in the coming weeks.

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Return of the Mack – Preview: The time is now for Matthew Macklin

Return of the Mack – Preview: The time is now for Matthew Macklin

The time is now for Matthew Macklin. That final window of opportunity to realise his dreams of being crowned a world champion has opened in the form of a makeable fight with the winner the Matt Korobov/ Andy Lee WBO World Middleweight title fight in December.

There can be no mistakes from here on in.

This won’t be the first time the courageous Birmingham man has heard such assertions, but I have a feeling it will be the last should he fail to dispose of Jorge Sebastian Heiland on Saturday night in Dublin. Failure, however, is not something the 32 year old is entertaining, admitting openly this week that retirement beckons should the unthinkable happen.

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