22.10.03 – It is no longer appropriate to refer to Hennessy Sport’s Gilbert Eastman as the dark horse of the domestic light middleweight division. The 30-year-old’s devastating fourth-round knockout victory over Spencer Fearon at the Alexandra Palace last month not only captured him the Southern Area Title, but also alerted everyone to his undoubted potential.
Round the corner: British and Commonwealth Titles.
First, however, the hard-hitting younger brother of European middleweight champion Howard wants to right a wrong.
“Before I beat Fearon I said that I needed a challenge to focus myself,” began Gilbert. “I proved that with my performance and now I am looking forward to bigger things.
“First, however, I need to set the record straight.
“I can live with the first loss of my career against Kofi Jantuah; it happened over four years ago and in only my eleventh fight, I shouldn’t have been in the ring with a world-class fighter at that stage of my career anyway.
“But what happened in my fight against Andrew Facey earlier this year irritates me, it won’t go away.
“Even though I admit I got caught as I let my concentration slip – that goes back to what I was saying about focussing better in big fights – I should never have been stopped by the referee.
“I wont even acknowledge it as a defeat. I was well able to carry on and would have made amends there and then. I wasn’t given that chance, so I am calling for it now.
“Facey is fighting Matthew Macklin for the English title in November and I want to fight the winner.
“I say the winner as opposed to just Facey, because if he loses he will be on a downward spiral and I don’t want to take any steps backwards; I am on fire at the moment.
“Trust me, my concentration won’t ever slip again.
“I just want to beat the man, or the man who beat the man, who was so lucky against me, so that I know in my mind that I have put what happened behind me.
“That is why I am challenging the winner and have already asked my promoter Mick Hennessy if he can get me a fight against whoever comes through. Then I can get on with the business of claiming more titles.”