Murray out to make town home of Midlands boxing
Cannock is set to become the home of Midlands boxing, writes Matt Bozeat.
The Premier Suite at Bar Sport is already a regular venue for amateur shows and legends nights when ring greats share their stories.
Scott Murray, owner of Bar Sport and a former amateur boxer, has announced he will stage eight professional shows there this year.
Established last year, the Excelsior Sporting Club returns for the first of four shows this year on March 21. And Murray is bringing open boxing shows back to the town after a break of nine years when he promotes at the Premier Suite on Sunday, April 28.
The last open show in Cannock was at Chase Leisure Centre in July 2015 and featured the professional debut of Zach Parker.
Parker has gone on to challenge for a version of world honours and Murray hopes supporters of his shows will see more future champions. Sam Eggington and Nyall Berry have featured on televised shows after appearing at the Excelsior Sporting Club and the next show features an ambitious heavyweight puncher.
Nick Campbell won the Scottish title on the Josh Taylor-Jack Catterall undercard in front of the Sky Sports cameras two years ago and the 34 year-old from Glasgow is looking for more big fights after teaming up with trainer Andy Lee, the former WBO middleweight champion and cousin of Tyson Fury.
Murray said: “I want to make the Premier Suite the home of Midlands boxing. We already have all the amateur shows there, along with the celebrity dinners and I think it’s already one of the best venues in the UK. We are dedicated to boxing. We have four amateur club shows pencilled in for February and March, along with an England-Ireland Select match.
“We also have the Midlands semi-finals and finals of the National Amateur Championships at the end of March and the Midlands Area Council’s annual awards night.”
He believes has has the only venue in the country, and possibly the world, that has had ‘The Four Kings’ there – Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Thomas Hearns and Roberto Duran lit up the sport in the 1980s and Murray has a heavyweight night pencilled in for May. He plans to bring James ‘Buster’ Douglas and Kevin McBride, both slayers of Mike Tyson, to Bar Sport, along with a couple more heavyweight heroes.
