Matt Maher: Midlands is punching its weight in the fight game
Suddenly you can’t move for big boxing shows in the West Midlands.
Tomorrow night’s event at Birmingham’s Resorts World Arena, headlined by Tyler Denny’s European middleweight title defence against Felix Cash, will be the second major one this year.
The third will follow just four weeks from now when Telford’s Liam Davies defends his own European super featherweight belt at the same venue.
After years of being bypassed by boxing’s big promoters on their way back to London from Liverpool or Manchester, our region has become rather popular.
“It’s got to a situation where you are thinking ‘OK, when is the next arena show?’ rather than just hoping there might be,” says Richie Ghent, owner of the RG Boxing Academy in Bilston.
Ghent has major interest in tomorrow’s show in the shape of Conah Walker, the Wolverhampton welterweight who trains at the RG Academy and faces Ireland’s Lewis Crocker in a fight many are predicting to be a classic.
Walker has won his last two bouts in brutal fashion, catching the eye of Matchroom supremo Eddie Hearn who deems the 29-year-old, with a 16-fight career almost entirely conducted on the small hall circuit, worthy of the bigger stage.
“I think what you’ve got now is a group of fighters in the Midlands the whole of the boxing public in the UK want to watch and support,” explains Ghent.
Walker is managed by Black Country Boxing, the Wednesbury-based gym and promotions company which deserves their chunk of credit for the increased strength of Midlands boxing.
