Archive for the ‘Boxing’ Category

Paulus Moses (L) & Ricky Burns meet at Friday’s weigh-in

Ricky Burns is looking forward to his rousing homecoming when he takes on Paulus Moses of Namibia on Saturday night.

The Scot has fought outside his home country for the past 12 months but returns to Glasgow to defend his WBO lightweight title.

The 6,000-capacity venue is sold out to see the fighter from Coatbridge and he promised not to disappoint his loyal fans.

“I’ve got to do the business in the ring now with all these fans coming to see me in action. “Ricky Burns Quotes of the week

“My weight was perfect so now it’s roll on tomorrow,” he said at the weigh-in. “I can’t wait for it.

“It’s going to be an amazing atmosphere in the Braehead Arena with every seat sold for my homecoming.

“I’ve got to do the business in the ring now with all these fans coming to see me in action.

“Moses is a tough tough fighter and I’ve not under-estimated him and the fans are in for a really good fight.”

Training

His opponent holds a stellar record of 28 wins with just one loss, and Moses – like Burns – revealed he has not studied his opponent before the fight.

“I have never seen him fight and I haven’t watched him on DVD either,” said the 33-year-old. “We will see each other in action on Saturday.

“I don’t look at my opponent, that is my coach’s job. I just train to win. The preparation has been good and now we are looking forward to the fight.

“If you look at my record, all of my opponents have been tough. Ricky is a world champion so he will be tough. But everything is good. I have trained to win – I don’t train to lose.”

Promoter Frank Warren believes the capacity crowd will be a big advantage for Burns.

“If you are losing a fight, if you feel that it is slipping away from you, the fans can lift you,” he said.

“You have to respect what this guy done, he has gone to Japan and won in the past. So I don’t think he will be fazed by the crowd but I think it will lift Ricky.”

But Moses countered: “The big crowd is not a problem. I like people to support boxing.

“I know Scotland will support Ricky because he is their boy but some of them will start supporting me, I will impress them.”

Carl Froch: Popular figure in his native Nottingham

Carl Froch could be fighting IBF super-middleweight champion Lucien Bute in an outdoor arena following huge initial demand.

Froch will take on Bute in Nottingham on May 26 and promoter Eddie Hearn is searching for a stage worthy of hosting the mouth-watering affair.

“Since announcing the fight, the phones, emails and tweets have been relentless,” said Hearn.

“Fight fans and sports fans all want to see these two world beaters clash, and I want to make sure as many people as possible get the chance.

“It is important that Carl gets to fight in Nottingham and I am looking at two outdoor venues there.

“We are also looking at venues in London and Manchester but we are working with Nottingham City Council to try to keep the fight in Carl’s hometown.”

Both boxers will be present at a press conference on Monday March 19 at the fight venue, while tickets will also go on sale that day at 2pm.

Ricky Burns: Hailed by promoter Frank Warren

World champion boxer Ricky Burns is on his way to becoming a “British sporting hero”, according to his promoter Frank Warren.

The 28-year-old fighter from Coatbridge will make the first defence of his WBO lightweight title against Paulus Moses at a sell-out Braehead Arena on Saturday night.

Warren believes Burns should already have hero status throughout the United Kingdom but claims he will make another step towards that with victory against the 33-year-old Namibian, who has an impressive record of 28 victories from 29 fights, 19 of them by knockout.

Speaking at the head-to-head press conference at the Braehead Arena, on the outskirts of Glasgow, Warren said: “Ricky should be a British sporting hero.

“He might not have got the recognition he should have got, but a few more good performances and he will be up there with famous Scottish boxers like Ken Buchanan.

“It is sold out. You can’t do better than that and Ricky deserves that public support. I just wish we had a bigger arena.

Homecoming

“Ricky’s homecoming is appreciated by the fans who recognise this is a good fight.

“Ricky is a double world champion, he has worked hard at it and is going from strength to strength.

“But Paulus is not here to make up the numbers, Ricky will have to be at his best.

“He is against a guy with a formidable record and who is well respected.

“Having said that you have got to make Ricky favourite.”

Gavin Rees: Looking for a big domestic fight in 2012 (pic – lawrence lustig)

Gavin Rees is hoping to seal a big domestic fight after he defends his European lightweight title against Anthony Mezaache on March 23.

The Welshman won the vacant belt against Andy Murray in Cardiff last year and his first defence against Derry Mathews in October ended prematurely when Mathews sustained a broken nose from a clash of heads.

LIVE ON SKY SPORTSGavin Rees v Anthony MezaacheFriday March 23

Rees is looking to impress when he takes on Mezaache in Paris as he looks to secure a clash with one of his fellow Brits in what is an ultra-competitive division.

“I would love to fight Ricky Burns this year,” he said of the WBO champion.

“There are other big UK fights out there too with John Murray, Anthony Crolla and Kevin Mitchell and I think they are cracking contests that would really catch fire with the public and draw a big crowd in Wales.

“It’s a great division to be involved in and as the European champion and a former world champion, I feel I am ahead of those guys.

“But for those fights to come off I need to beat Mezaache and beat him well. I’m not looking beyond him because that would be dangerous, but I do believe I’m out of his league and I will show that in Paris.”

“I’m not looking beyond him (Mezaache) because that would be dangerous, but I do believe I’m out of his league and I will show that in Paris.”Gavin Rees Quotes of the week

Rees’ promoter Eddie Hearn believes the former WBA champion can rise to the top once more and could take on his UK rivals in some big nights in the process now he has got past his injury niggles.

“Gavin looks fantastic in the gym and I think he is ready to unleash a lot of frustration out in Paris,” he said.

“Fights with the likes of Burns, Murray, Mitchell and Crolla are all big occasions and the sort of contests that Gavin wants to be involved in. He needs to win well in France but if he does that, the rest of 2012 looks very exciting for him.”

Ricky Burns: Will get huge support

Ricky Burns aims to make a successful defence of his WBO lightweight title against Paulus Moses on Saturday to reward his vast army of fans.

Burns, 28, is grateful for the sold-out home support at Glasgow’s Braehead Arena as he prepares to take on the Namibian challenger.

“I would like to say a big thanks to everyone who is going,” he said, before a media workout at trainer Billy Nelson’s Fighting Scots gym in Mossend, Lanarkshire.

“My phone has been going constantly with people asking for tickets.

“I was on the phone this morning to see if I could get any more, the demand has been unbelievable.

“My last couple of fights have been away from home and I think because a lot of people missed out and because it is in Glasgow, the response has been great.

Confident

“There was only a couple of hundred tickets left the other day so it will definitely be a sell-out.

“The way things are going for this fight – as long as I win – the next one is going to have to be at a bigger venue up here.

“Once I step in that ring, I will need to try block the crowd out and get on with the job.”

Perhaps surprisingly, Burns has not watched the 33-year-old challenger – who has lost only once in 28 fights with only one defeat – either live or on television.

However, the Coatbridge fighter is supremely confident of getting the win which will leave him free for a showdown with Londoner Kevin Mitchell in the summer.

“I haven’t watched him at all,” said Burns.

“We know he is a good boxer and has a big right hand, obviously, with 19 knockouts from 28 fights.

Waiting game

“He is also a former world champion who is not afraid to travel, he has fought in Japan and other places.

“So it is going to be a cracking fight but we are prepared for whatever he brings.

“Now it is about playing the waiting game. Once Friday (weigh-in) is over I can get on with it.

“I have always said the better the guy in front of me, the better I will perform, so it is just down to me now to produce the goods again.”

Ryan Rhodes: Long-term injury has flared up again

Ryan Rhodes has been forced to pull out of his European light-middleweight title clash with Sergey Rabchenko later this month.

LIVE ON SKY SPORTSGary Buckland v Paul TruscottBritish super-featherweight titleSaturday March 24

The Sheffield veteran has suffered a recurrence of the back injury that forced him to relinquish the belt in 2010, when he was due to defend against the Belarusian.

The 35-year-old had been sparring with Welsh prospect Kerry Hope when the injury struck.

“It’s an ongoing problem but to be honest we’ve had a clear run with him and he had been looking better than ever,” trainer Dave Coldwell told Sky Sports.

“He’s been in the gym twice a week since his last fight (against Siarhei Khomitski) and had kept the weight down. He was looking really sharp.

“He’s got to rest and get intensive treatment and he will not be training for 3-4 weeks, but when they get it on in the summer I’m 100 percent confident he’ll do a job on Rabchenko.”

The Sky Sports show on March 24 sees Gary Buckland defend his British super-featherweight title against Paul Truscott. Rabchenko will fight an eight-rounder on the undercard.

Darren Barker: Hip injury requires surgery

Darren Barker is out of a proposed world title fight in May after suffering a hip injury in training.

Barker had been lined up to challenge WBO middleweight champion Dmitry Pirog in Moscow in May, with the news about to be made public.

However, the former European champion, who earned plenty of credit in a first career defeat to WBC champion Sergio Martinez last year, injured his hip on Friday and requires surgery.

Barker’s promoter Eddie Hearn said: “I’m desperately disappointed for Darren as he has been looking sharp in the gym.

“Pirog’s promoter Artie Pellulo offered us the fight for May but we hope now to rearrange for September. We were also on the shortlist for the (Julio Cesar) Chavez fight in June but have also had to rule ourselves out of contention there.”

Matthew Hatton may be a huge underdog in his fight with Kell Brook on Saturday week, but that hasn’t dented his confidence.

Hatton, the younger brother of Ricky, will be taking part in his 50th professional fight – almost twice as many as his opponent.

“This is a fight I go into confident of winning, expecting to win and I like to prove people wrong and being the underdog hasn’t worried me throughout my career.”Matthew Hatton Quotes of the week

And the 30-year-old is hoping to make his experience tell as he seeks to de-rail unbeaten Brook’s inexorable rise to the top.

“I’m very proud to be racking up my 50th fight which is a lot for a modern day fighter and a landmark night for me and I want to celebrate in style,” he told Sky Sports.

“I enjoy being the underdog. I’m a stubborn character by nature and people are making me a massive underdog going into this fight; I certainly don’t see it that way.

“This is a fight I go into confident of winning, expecting to win and I like to prove people wrong and being the underdog hasn’t worried me throughout my career, and certainly won’t do on the 17th.”

Hatton fought for the world title 12 months ago and is not anticipating an easier night in Sheffield.

“A year ago I was in LA to fight Saul Alvarez,” he added. “I stepped up a weight division for that and gave away a big size difference.

“The fight against Kell is a level playing field and weight won’t be an issue.

“I believe I’m the better fighter, more experienced fighter, I think it will be a really tough fight and I’ve got a lot of respect for Kell Brook…I’ve prepared for a long tough battle and I believe that’s what it’ll be.

“He’ll bring his A game as well and I believe it will be a great fight for the fans.”