21.02.07 – By James Slater: On March 2nd, on new British heavyweight champion Scott Gammer’s home turf of Wales, former title holder and world championship challenger Danny Williams attempts one final run for glory before he retires. Badly beaten in his last bout by the now apparently finished Audley Harrison, Danny is giving it one last go at British level against the younger man in Gammer. Scott, who won his title with a ninth round stoppage over Mark Krence last June and has made one successful defence – a points win over Mickey Steeds last time out – is unbeaten and wants to stay that way. Well aware of how he is the guy Danny is looking to use as a stepping stone back to the top (on domestic terms at least) Scott intends to let no such thing happen.
Massively ambitious in his own right, Gammer sees himself as nobody’s comeback opponent. Not a big puncher – only nine KO’s from his seventeen wins (one draw)- Scott has a high work-rate and more than capable boxing skills on which to rely.
As for Williams, we all know how frustratingly wanton he seems to be at blowing hot and cold:
He destroys what’s left of Mike Tyson, is then badly beaten by Vitali Klitschko, bounces back to beat both Audley Harrison and Matt Skelton – putting the only blemish on both men’s records as a result – and then loses back-to-back in rematches with Harrison and Skelton. Talk about mixed form. But it was his last fight that was the one that hurt Danny the most. Losing by KO in only three rounds to the man who has just been brutally exposed by Michael Sprott now looks an even worse result than it did when it occurred back in December last year. So, how much does the likeable Londoner have left? There are those who say the Harrison loss was as much due to his not having had adequate time in which to prepare, as Danny took the fight on very short notice. There is certainly at least a degree of truth in such thinking. However, the image of him being so easily manhandled by “A-Force” is one that is hard to expel from the memory banks. It is more than possible a fully fit Williams would have met the same fate.
One of the telling factors in the upcoming bout with Scott may well be Danny’s fluctuating weight. Coming in as high as 288 pounds in the past, Danny is notoriously lazy in the gym at times. This is not an accusation that could be hurled at Scott Gammer. Not a huge heavyweight like Danny, Scott comes in at roughly the same poundage each time out ( around 220-230). A committed trainer, he has held his own with bigger men in the past, thanks to his fine conditioning. Can he do so when he’s in there with Williams then?
There are many intriguing questions going into the March fight. The weight of Williams, how badly the Harrison shellacking affected him and how much he really loves boxing today. Add to these unknown factors the notion that Gammer could well be blown away quickly by a fit, focused and determined Williams and you have the makings of a very interesting fight. This is the biggest occasion of Gammer’s career and he is going up against probably the biggest puncher he’s ever shared a ring with. Indeed, with all due respect to Gammer, if he was meeting the Williams of a few months ago he would be a fairly big underdog. It just might be that the fight has come at the right time for the man from Pembroke, however.
Much the fresher fighter, Gammer has to be given a real chance of ending the career of the London man. But if Williams can find the sort of form he showed back when he was dismantling Mike Tyson, it could be bad news for Scott. I feel we will see something in between, as Danny, stung by the mauling he received from the critics after his last bout, enters the ring in as good a shape as he can coming as he is towards the end of a long career. My guess is Danny will triumph somewhere around the middle rounds. If he does, however, we may have to brace ourselves for Williams-Harrison III. Now that’s a thought!