In the footsteps of giants, Yarde challenges Beterbiev

Article first published at BigFightWeekend.com

If English Light-Heavyweight Anthony Yarde can find a way to defeat Russian born and unified World Champion Artur Beterbiev at Wembley Arena this weekend, the victory will sit snugly alongside a small cohort of similarly astonishing wins by British fighters.

Traditionalists will argue Beterbiev isn’t Donald Curry, the famous Welterweight of the 80s demolished by Lloyd Honeyghan, which is true, he’s better. There is an argument that Jose Napoles’ longevity and home advantage made John H. Stacey’s 1975 knockout of the veteran great all the more remarkable.

Perhaps so.

However, neither Honeyghan nor Stacey lacked the experience or acumen in anything like the same way the 31-year-old Anthony Yarde does. To win, Yarde will need to perform a leap of Bob Beamon dimension in order to transcend the chasm that exists between him and the fearsome IBF, WBC and WBO champion.

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January 27, 2023 0

Yarde pursues another Russian hitman

Article first appeared at Bookmakers.com

Artur Beterbiev is a name not known to all sports fans. Those who dip in and out of boxing, as the pay-per-views come and go, may not appreciate his value or be aware of his brilliance. For regulars who live and breathe in the mad, mad world of boxing, the Russian-born Canadian national, is renowned for his thudding punching power and the measured brutality of his 18 victories, all achieved inside the distance. The competitiveness of his fight with Anthony Yarde hinges on an assessment of whether Beterbiev, who turned 38 last week, remains within that punishing prime, or has age and modest activity eroded his fearsome tools?

There are large rewards for Yarde if he can do it, and lengthy odds at many of the leading betting sites for those who indulge the apparent fantasy.

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January 25, 2023 0

Eubank, nostalgia and the glow of the past

Article first appeared at BigFightWeekend.com

To each their own. Every generation venerates a new clutch of heroes. My grandfather was born in the era of Jack Dempsey, marvelled at Joe Louis and was a contemporary of fellow Doncastrian Bruce Woodcock, who could fight a bit. His voice whispered through the pages of the books I inherited on his passing in 1984 too, Ali was the best of them all the collection suggested. He was gone before Iron Mike tore through the late 80s and before the seeds of love for the sport he planted blossomed into interest.

For children of the 70s like me, it was all about Tyson; inescapable, unique, intoxicating. But he was also out of reach. Seen through the prism of highlights and delayed screenings. Domestically, it was Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank, with a fleeting dose of McGuigan, and a sprinkling of Big Frank.

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January 20, 2023 0

Chris Eubank Jr. tackles blue-collar veteran Liam Smith

Article first appeared at Bookmakers.com

Most of Chris Eubank Jr.’s career has been spent in a quest for authenticity. To prove himself worthy of the name he inherits from a legendary father and to garner respect as a serious contender in the Middleweight division. There have been high points where he has legitimised the hyperbole projected before him, and there have been fallow periods in which his career has stagnated and the whisper of cynicism that haunts those with illustrious predecessors has grown ever louder.

On Saturday night at the Manchester Arena, he faces Liam Smith, a decorated member of the famous Smith boxing family and, superficially at least, the antithesis of everything that Chris Eubank Jr. represents. This contrast isn’t a new narrative. Eubank is always boxing someone hoping to knock him off the pedestal he adopts, and the one he is presumed to sit upon. Boxing thrives on these types of storylines and makes wagering on them at betting sites all the more popular.

It is the white and black Stetsons of the great Western films and helps build rivalries and ticket sales. Of course, the nature of humans, and of fighters, is never so binary. Nuance exists in both Eubank and Smith. But nuance doesn’t sell. Good guys and bad guys do.

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January 18, 2023 0

Leigh Wood to face wild Mexican Mauricio Lara

Article first appeared on BigFightWeekend.com

Two days ago, late night idling, I tuned in to a Twitter Space devoted to boxing. A handful of speakers and even fewer listeners. Some proclaimed a professional association to the sport, others merely lay opportunists, sharing profanity laden ‘shock jock’ opinions. It was an interesting medley. My visit lasted about the time it takes to endure a 40-36 show opener.

Extraordinary among this mundanity was the disdain shown for almost every fighter discussed. Listeners to the space may be surprised to learn just how many “bums” currently hold world title belts. I know I was. Among them, the panel suggested, was Leigh Wood, the Featherweight from Nottingham who was last seen knocking out Michael Conlon to secure the WBA belt.

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