North East Boxing is Booming

North East boxing is on the rise. Honestly, it’s full of brilliant boxers. While the national coverage remains limited, those in the know will argue fervently that there is a wealth of untapped talent. Without turning this into a self-pitying rant, the recent woes of some of the top boxers from our region don’t tell the entire tale. For example, someone from another region may have only seen a couple of our boxers on TV recently.

Sunderland welterweight Glenn Foot entered the Prizefighter tournament in 2013 and emerged victorious with a 10-0 record. This should have been his time to kick on and push for national titles at the least. Due to a combination of serious injuries and personal problems this wasn’t the case. We saw first-hand his brave attempt to win the British title from Sam Eggington but again it wasn’t to be. He is undoubtedly a talented fighter but there aren’t too many from the North East who have made the most of their big breaks recently.

Which takes me onto Bradley Saunders. The excitement was palpable when he turned pro but, again through injuries, his career didn’t progress as expected. Then again, when signing with Matchroom, excitement levels rose on Tyneside. This was supposed to be the new dawn for North East boxing. The chance for our talented prospects to showcase their skills to a national audience, as well as Brad himself pushing on beyond the domestic scene and onto world honours. Suddenly, following serious hand injuries and shocking lack of discipline, the chances of Matchroom returning to Newcastle seem remote. The fickle nature of the sport we love at its cruel worst. I firmly believe Saunders, a former Olympian, is talented enough to make it to the top and sincerely hope he does so.

Despite the numerous promoters and talented fighters available to watch regularly up here, the lack of so called “big time” boxing is a massive disappointment to many fans. However, it is these local promoters, and fighters, that should receive the adulation. We will cover some of the best prospects later in the week so I won’t go into specifics. There are many small hall shows that contain packed cards with evenly matched contests. The promoters often operate at a loss but do so for the sport we, and they, love.

Some of those who rant about PPV prices, and the expense attending big cards, could do a lot worse than checking out what’s on their doorstep.

#Saunders #Foot #Mat #NorthEast #local #Jeffries #Wraith #Relentless