It’s a solitary existence. Packing up your things, jumping in the truck and travelling towards your next assignment requires discipline. Without a team to encourage or provide direction, self motivation is key, in boxing or in life. You reap what you sew, which is something that’s always motivated proud Minnesotan Rob Brant (25-1, 17 KO’s), […]
As a line manager, sandwiched in a culture of coaching and the constant development of an organisation’s people, I’ve been privvy to many different techniques or approaches to performance management. Sure, we can assess tangible results, but many businesses have distanced themselves from target-based environments. Often, the culture becomes focused on ‘what’ and ‘how’, but […]
Inside the Canaveralejo, Cali, Colombia, the tension is palpable. Deep, calculated breaths are taken by the men entering the ring, whilst their ‘opponents’ gasp for whatever air remains in a far less controlled fashion. The aim here in Valle del Cauca was to evade the brutal, unrelenting attacks of the larger competitor, whilst entertaining the enormous […]
The striking blonde hair dipping through the ropes at Dunfermline Boxing club has brightened a recently darkened, local landscape. Undefeated prospect, Craig Morgan (4-0, 0KOs), has been visiting the club of late, educating children or aspiring adults on the Sweet Science – his way of giving back, aged only nineteen. Morgan is from Kelty, the […]
In Frankfurt, young men and women battle through the bustling, crowded streets of one of Germany’s central hubs. Whether visiting the Goethe House Museum or enjoying a weisse bier on the banks of the river Main, the home of the European Central Bank was famed for its culture – not its chaos. Despite the city’s […]
Former world champion, Zab Judah, poses on a hospital bed, draping his arms proudly around his two kids. He is decked out, ironically, in the type of gown he used to dress his own patients in whilst admirably working as a nurse’s assistant after his boxing career had started to decline. Admitted following complications this […]
Emerging from the snow-capped trees that envelope Big Bear, the tall, dark figure pounding the tarmac looks more like a model or an actor, than a fighter. Running in high altitude, he’s smothered by his own lack of oxygen, testing himself at The Summit, preparing for battle once again. It was in his blood, that […]
In a sport often lambasted for building fights that frequently fall apart, one punishing prospect is determined to climb the ladder with pace and boundless potential. Calling on the reigning world champions after his professional debut, Uzbekistan’s undefeated, blue chip amateur, Israil Madrimov (2-0, 2KOs) is on a mission to capture boxing’s top prize. Revealing the […]
Staring up at the top of an open well, the young man stranded below feels hopeless. After tripping and falling inside, he finds himself in a predicament; looking up through the corridor of brick, he can see the way back, but it will take a set of circumstances unusually specific for him to complete an […]
One champion, one name. The road to the undisputed. The biggest star in boxing. As we approach Saturday’s complex bout between unified heavyweight world champion, Anthony Joshua and the ever game Andy Ruiz, there’s a part of me which poses the question; will AJ ever fulfil the prophecy spouted by his constantly giddy and optimistic […]
With waves crashing off the rocks at the scenic Watergate Bay or craggy Fistral Beach and with bodies bobbing up and down, attempting to regain their balance on novice surfboards, there wasn’t a punch in sight. It wasn’t that kind of place, Newquay. A popular destination for domestic holidaymakers, watersports and rugby dominated conversation as […]
As little James McGirt sat on the edge of a crumbling concrete step, looking out onto traffic, he’d found a certain sanctuary in isolation. When many others were wandering the street, enveloping themselves in mischief, he was far easier pleased. Despite the guzzling of gas and the emission of aggressive growling from the enormous engines […]