British Boxing on the Rise

By walshie1984 - 07/30/2013 - Comments

haye777By Paul Walsh: The last two years for British sport has flourished from Tennis to Cricket to Rugby but one sport in particular which has really excelled is Boxing.  This is mainly down to the success of London 2012 and team GBs performance at the games.  They had their most successful games ever which is rubbing off on all forms of the sport.

Britain currently has 4 boxing world champions (Nathan Cleverly, Carl Froch, Ricky Burns and Jamie McDonnell) but with 3/4 more working their way into mandatory positions over the last 12 months this number could potentially double within the year.

Over the last couple of weeks three major announcements have been made regarding British boxers and Matchroom promotion banner.  David Haye will take on Tyson Fury in a heavyweight non-title fight, Carl Froch vs. George Groves for the WBA and IBF world titles and Olympic gold medallist Anthony Joshua turning professional with his debut due later this year.  All three announcements have captured the imagination of fight fans not only in Britain but all over the world.  Nothing stirs up more interest than a domestic rivalry especially when it is a 50:50 fight and both fighters big personalities as Adrien Broner and Paulie Malinaggi recently proved.

Haye vs. Fury is set to be one of the most eagerly anticipated fights of the year.  It’s clear there is no love lost between these two as was seen in the recent press conference.  Both sharp dresser and sharp talkers, it could have been billed as the “battle of the egos”, this is one fight you will not want to miss.  With the winner likely to face one of the Klitschkos there is such much at stake not just bragging rights which makes it all the more intriguing.  I do think Haye will come out on top but it will be a lot closer than people think.  Tyson Fury is a smart man (even know he might hide it well) and he must see a chink in Hayes armour which he believes he can expose.  One thing I do know is that this fight will not go the distance as both are big punchers with suspect chins.  Expect fireworks and Haye to win inside 6 rounds with both men being floored.  It won’t last long but it will be brutal and explosive whilst it does.

The fight I am looking forward to the most this year (after Mayweather and Garcia) is Carl Froch vs. George Groves.  Reason being is that there is so much needle between the two and I genuinely believe there is a chance of a huge upset on the cards.  The reigning champion against the young pretender, this will be a fascinating tactical battle especially as Groves has the master tactician Adam Booth in his corner.  If Groves fights the right fight he has a great chance of pulling off massive shock.  However, much like the Mayweather and Canelo fight I think this might have come too soon for Groves.  Groves has the right style to cause problems for Froch and he has punch power, granted he does not hit as hard as Froch but he is accurate, does not waste punches and has great timing.  Again this will be another close encounter but I expect Froch to come through with a late stoppage in rounds 10-12.  Froch is still on a high from the Kessler fight and I don’t think he is in any mood to let up now.  Not only that he is used to big occasion, his last 15 fights have been for world titles.  For Groves however this is a whole new experience and will he be able to handle the pressure?  It will be a great experience for Groves but unfortunately it has come too soon and on this occasion he will come up short but he has time on his side and I do expect him to one day be a world champion.

Finally and possibly (for British fight fans) the most exciting news is the switch to the pro ranks for gold medallist Anthony Joshua.  Joshua is one of the hottest properties in boxing right now and it is a great coup for Eddie Hearn and the Matchroom team to keep his talents in the UK.  We will not have to wait long to see him in action either with a date this year being pencilled in at the famous O2 arena.  Joshua has all the tools to be a superstar, he is talented, articulate, humble, hardworking, good looking, what more do you want?  I really do believe he will become a star of the heavyweight division and one day a world champion.

It is a great time for British boxing, the feel good factor is running high and 2013 is set to continue in the same vain. British boxing is well and truly back on the map at home and across the pond.

 



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