A NIGHT AT THE FIGHTS
FEAT. HERBIE HIDE AND THE REAL CLASS OF 2002
By Adeyinka Makinde
29.05 - Mick Hennessy is a truly new breed of promoter.
It is Hennessy's concept to market a set of young, promising
professional fighters known as the Real
Class of 2002, in manner that binds them all together
as if all were inextricably bonded in one, common destiny.
They share the same trainer, Robert McCracken, are jointly
promoted and advertised in grandiosely constructed posters
while most, and occasionally all in the stable tend
to fight on the same date. But Hennessy is innovative
in another more fundamentally critical manner. This
is in the manner of the selection of the opponents for
his fighters. The part scientific, part esoteric exercise
of the promoter-manager in 'bringing along' their promising
charges at the right pace is one that involves a complex
interplay of skill, pragmatism and opportunism. In boxing,
what ever its cultural jurisdiction, the emphasis has
traditionally been on safety first. The fighter is not
allowed to 'bite the bullet' until those critical junctures
are reached in his career. Too many hard fights or tough
opposition in the nascent stage of a career, and the
fighter is in placed in the dangerous position of suffering
unnecessary losses. A loss may be acceptable if the
fighter is educated in the process but is dangerous
when he is overmatched; suffering in consequence possible
lasting physical and psychological damage that may destabilise
the construction of a successful career. It was to a
national boxing journal that one reader recently wrote
to point out his view that the fighters belonging to
the Real Class of 2002 have tended to face opposition
of the sort that is not merely credible but is positively
dangerous. This point was reiterated by a pundit during
the television broadcast of an intriguing and often
times exciting series of bouts staged by Hennessy promotions
on Tuesday 27 May 2003 at the Goresbrook Leisure Centre
in Dagenham, an industrial town based on the eastern
fringes of the Greater London region.
The
inaugural bout between Matthew Thirwell and the perennially
substituting-bout-filling-journeyman-human-punch-bag,
that is Leigh Wicks, was a simple work out predicated
on keeping Thirwell, fresh from his revenge points victory
over one Gary Beardsley, in shape until his next valid
challenge. The point's victory proved nothing for or
against the progression made in the professional ranks
by this former ABA middleweight champion. The next fight
featured Lenny Dawes. Fresh from his professional debut
last month, in which he scored a spectacular second
round stoppage, Dawes, a gangly elfin featured twenty-four
year old light-welterweight repeated the trick against
Ben 'Catweasle' Hudson, a tough fighter already settled
into the journeyman mode but who presents a more formidable
challenge than a Leigh Wicks. For a fighter embarking
on only his second professional encounter, this was
a risky venture whatever the successes of Dawes' amateur
career. Right from bells sounding Hudson, short and
stocky exploded at Dawes, calculating that such a strategy
would be likely to cause great anxiety in the putative
novice and unravel his defences. Refusing to be unnerved,
Dawes reacted with admirable cool and poise, weathering
the onslaught with consummate professionalism. He covered
up before picking Hudson off with his arms forming arc's
to throw powerful hooks at the head and body of Hudson.
This proved a far preferable option to using his longer
reach to box from a safer distance since the thick necked
Hudson would surely have proved more resilient to jabs
than to blows delivered from a short distance. And what
power he did display, rocking Hudson a number of times
in the second round before the cumulative effect of
the punches began to take their toll on the rapidly
fading Hudson at which point the referee felt compelled
to jump in and bring a halt to the proceedings.
When Nigerian Light-Welterweight Silence Saheed (record
one win, one draw) opened a large gash around Irishman,
Francis Barrett's eye, the stunned reaction of the crowd
was summed up by the comments of one onlooker's exclamatory
"This wasn't in the fucking script, was it?"
Saheed had entered the ring with calm and confidence
writ all over him, indeed during the interregnum, as
a large video screen played highlights of Barrett's
career, he danced loose African constructed dance steps
to the beat provided by British rock act Cold Play.
Barretts injury, the consequence of torrid right hook,
occurred in the midst of a violent interplay of punches.
The wound was exacerbated by Barretts decision to go
for broke and try to end it by scoring a knock out.
However, this only succeeded in providing Saheed with
openings, one of his punches landing directly on the
cut and causing an explosive gust of meandering red
blood corpuscles to litter the far reaches of the ring.
During a rare pause after both came out of a clinch,
the referee visibly stilled to closely scrutinize Barretts
features and promptly called a halt to the bout after
two minutes and fifty-five seconds. Saheed calmly took
to victory, gentle weaving his wiry frame from side
to side in quiet celebration. It all reminded one of
the West African originated proverb appropriated as
a maxim by US President Theodore Roosevelt, which is
to "Speak softly and carry a big stick and you
will go far." BBC Television viewers unfortunately
were not given the opportunity of garnering Saheeds
thoughts as no offer of an interview was granted to
him.
The other Hennessy promoted fighter to become unhinged
was Billy Corcoran, who dropped a six round decision
to Walsall based Jimmy Beech in the next bout. Although
Beech dropped him in the third and he suffered a heavy
nosebleed for much of the duration of the fight, it
was a decidedly unpopular verdict, as he appeared to
outwork Beech in the majority of the rounds. Yet there
was cause for much celebrating within the Hennessy camp
when David Walker, challenging John 'Boy' Humphrey for
the Southern Area Light Middleweight title, scored an
emphatic victory by stopping Humphrey in the second
after unloading a fusillade of punches from which his
opponent literally collapsed and failed to beat the
referee's count. It was a redemption of sorts for the
man monikered 'Kid Dynamite' who after his resounding
defeat to veteran Jimmy Vincent last December, attributed
his loss to difficulties in making the weight at Welterweight.
He set about acclimating to the heavier division by
taking on two bouts against journeyman opposition in
March and April before taking the bout against Humphrey.
Herbie Hide, like Howard Eastman, an already established
performer signed by Hennessy, was out for revenge against
the South African based Zambian John Chingangu. Chingangu,
of course, is the heavyweight who knocked Hide out in
two rounds in 2001 and thus precipitated Hide's initial
decision to retire from the sport. Fighting Chingangu,
and beating him in a sort of 'cleansing of the spirit'
exercise would serve as a prelude to offering a challenge
to the likes of Danny Williams and Audley Harrison.
Hide had reason enough to be confident of doing this.
First, he blamed the decisive blow that debilitated
him and set him up for a stoppage loss, on a late punch
delivered by Chingangu after the referee had called
for a break. Secondly, the win over Hide appeared not
to fire up an ambitious spirit in the Zambian who went
on to lose three of his subsequent bouts. Indeed, such
was Hide's confidence, that he eschewed his trademark
jabbing and dancing style to adapt a power laced two-fisted
attacking modus that succeeded in toppling over his
opponent in the opening seconds of the first round.
In this ruthless frame of mind, Hide hit the Zambian
while he was still on the canvas. For this, Hide was
severely reprimanded but did not have any points deducted.
Chingangu rose to his feet in a rage, although by the
time he had assumed a standing position, Hide had been
sent to a far corner of the ring. When the fight resumed,
Hide continued to lunge at the Zambian who willingly
exchanged blows with him. Many called for Hide to exercise
caution as the behemoth, if laggardly Chingangu, posed
a latent threat to Hide's notoriously glass laced chin.
Half way through the bout, Hide evaded a hook thrown
by Chingangu and came up with a right uppercut, which
put the Zambian down. He rose mid count only to be pinned
against the ropes by Hide whose right put Chingangu
down for the last time.
His message to Audley Harrison: "What's he waiting
for? Lets get it on!"
Ade Makinde can be reached at
adeyinkamakinde
@aol.com
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