Boxing News magazine 3.2.2011 Download pdf

Boxing News Magazine 2011  History

FIGHT fans were extremely sad to hear of the
tragic death of former British heavyweight
Champion Gary Mason.
He lost his life recently in a road accident,
and was a fun-loving character - unable to
take life too seriously, something that was not
conveyed to me by my old mate, trainer Jim
McDonnell.
At the time, in 1989, Jim was an undefeated
European boxing champion who, with his
lovely wife Kim, fell in love with Tenerife - the
Island of Eternal Spring.
Having pioneered the first modern health
and fitness club in the south of Tenerife in the
early 1980s, I designed and equipped it for
developing the cardiovascular strength and
body-power to become a top-class pugilist.
The emphasis was always on developing that
vital speed, power and durability needed in the
toughest game of all.

GAVIN REES will not be able to defend
his British lightweight title against
John Watson. The latter instead will
take on Anthony Crolla for the vacant
belt at Liverpool's Olympia on
February 12.
Rees' manager/trainer, Gary Lockett
said his man would fight the winner
unless something better comes along,
adding the Welshman was hopeful of a
European tide fight with John Murray.

SOMETIMES when one fighter is
unbeaten you tend to give him the edge
when trying to predict the winner. Many
fighters who box solely on home turf are
able to run up an unbeaten record that,
in reality, is like a bridge built on weak
underpinnings; when something too
heavy passes over it, it can collapse.
After running off 17 wins without
defeat against local opposition in his
home country Colombia, William Urina
(8st 21bs) made his Mexican debut against
a tough little local named Johnny Garcia,
who proved it's not always the guy with
the better numbers who wins.

WHAT price a controversial decision? In
Sergio Mora's case, you could argue it
to be around the seven-figure mark. Back
in September, "The Latin Snake" exposed
Shane Mosley's dulled reactions and aching
bones only for the cumbersome contest
to be called a draw. The veteran's joyful
response to the judges' totals said it all; he
feared the game might have been up.
But four months on, "Sugar" is gearing
up for a May showdown-slash-mismatch
with Manny Pacquiao in Las Vegas. The
irony of Shane fighting both Manny and
Floyd Mayweather Jnr now he's too old to
perform as he'd like to is probably not lost
on Mosley, however much he'd deny it.

"When we talk of the four top amateurs of all-time
in Britain, as concerns the number of contests,
we have the late Bruce Wells, Dick McTaggart,
Graham Moughton and Johnny Cooke.
"Cooke boxed for Maple Leaf ABC in Bootle,
meeting Dick several times - and then, unlike
the rest, turned pro and won a British title
[at welterweight]. Does anyone know his present
whereabouts?"

ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON once wrote,
"Tis better to have loved and lost Than never
to have loved at all". Matthew Hilton might
question the wisdom of the leading poet of
the Victorian age, though. The softly-spoken
Canadian won the hearts of the boxing world
in 1987 when he laid claim to the love of his
life - the world (IBF) light-middleweight title
- with a blistering points victory over Buster
Drayton. But, as with many relationships
rapidly constructed with a ferocious thirst for
contentment, stifling companionship quenched
the thrill of pursuit, and the bond broke.
"I was only 21 years old at the time," Hilton
remembers about his ill-fated affair with glory.
"My dad said - which 1 didn't really like at the
time - that he would have preferred for me to
wait until I was older before 1 fought for the
world championship. But when 1 got older
I understood what he meant because when
I reached my goal, it should have been the
beginning but it was effectively the end."