As boxing begins to stagger back to its feet following the Coronavirus knockdown, forward-thinking promoter and former Detroit-based fighter Dmitriy Salita revealed official plans to stage fights in the city’s legendary Kronk Gym. With the support and assistance of Tyson Fury’s trainer ‘Sugar Hill’ Steward, it seems fans of the sport could witness licensed, professional contests in […]
When he stepped up to bat, the young All-Star baseball player from the troubled town of South El Monte, California, always landed on ‘first’. Either hitting a single or making the walk, arriving at his desired destination was key – taking it one base at a time. Valuing safety and success, he has continued progressing […]
An education in the sport of boxing becomes extremely tough, very early. The young children spending hours staring at themselves in the mirror, perfecting their stance, or the older teenagers skipping rope until they’re all out of bounce, are constantly sharpening their skills. Irvine, California’s blue-chip prospect Alexis Rocha (16-0, 10 KOs), or ‘Lex’, has benefited […]
Peering in at boxing’s heavyweight division from a safe (and social) distance, it appears that most of its significant fights have taken place via email, telephone call or discarded, disingenuous contract. Champions and recently defeated challengers have battled back-and-forth, killing time and building the commerciality of their bouts. The next school of hungry prospects are, […]
The locker room is suffocated by the disappointment of an unexpected defeat. It’s not unexpected due to the calibre of opponent, as such, but because of the steely self-belief that has carried the fallen prospect this far and is crushed, at least temporarily. Only footsteps are heard, pacing in search of inspiration as bodies in […]
It’s been over seven years since that long trip home from the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg. The flight seemed to drag for Matthew Hatton (43-7-2, 17 KOs) and his team after suffering one, final defeat at the hands of fringe contender Chris van Heerden. The Stockport native knew, almost immediately, that his time as a professional fighter was […]
Between short, bridging spells of nervous laughter, the softly spoken Emilio Sanchez (18-1, 11 KOs) seems surprised. He’s surprised that he’s come this far as a boxer after previously pursuing a mixture of American Football and track while studying in North Hollywood. It was only during the athletic off-season that boxing would occupy his schedule; burning […]
Listening to the deep, Southern drawl, you would be forgiven for thinking that former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder had picked up the phone. Instead, fellow Tuscaloosa native Deon ‘The Equalizer’ Nicholson (13-0, 12 KOs) spoke to Boxing Social about changing paths and the hunt for greatness at the top of two divisions. Nicholson was last seen […]
The evening’s main event wasn’t supposed to be this good. Sure, both men were battling for a belt they’d treat as their own world title, but York Hall shook unexpectedly. The balcony boomed as it gazed down upon a former Premier League footballer taking it to one of boxing’s hard luck stories; women jumped up […]
The crowd holds their breath in silence as another burst of fast-twitch muscle fibre results in a thumping connection. This is what they’ve come to see: the veins of their chosen athletes’ calves pulsing, shorts creased as they constantly sweep the perimeter of the arena, predicting sudden danger at unmanageable pace and facing the expectation of their paying audience. […]
The phone rings out, unanswered for a second time. Nothing. Fighters aren’t known for their timekeeping or their reliability, but when packing up, resigned to try my luck another day, an incoming call then flashes across the screen. The voice of former WBC Super bantamweight challenger, Rendall Munroe (28-5, 11 KOs), greets me, barely able to contain his […]
Everything was still. Everything except the panicked, adrenalin-charged chest of the young criminal, struggling to reduce its trembling, staring up at the foundation of a stranger’s home. The teenager had covered himself in dirt, desperately trying to evade the howling, tenacious Police dogs, searching for the unlawful on another cold, Houston evening. With mud covering most […]