By Lee Collier
Terry Flannigan, 5-0 (1), has recently seen gym mate Karl Place steal all the headlines as one of Britain’s top prospects. The 20-year-old Manchester featherweight is looking to follow his friend as he makes an impact on British boxing in 2010 and Flannigan feels he is ready to start stepping up in class.
“I feel I have improved a lot in the last 12 months working under [trainer] Steve [Maylett]. We have been working on a lot of new things and I have learned a lot from him. I was training myself before Steve came on board and it was bobbins to be honest. I was based in Ancoats and then moved up to Northside, and then Steve became involved. I’ve been boxing since I was about seven, even when just messing about, and used to train with Steve back when he used to fight so I trust him,” explained Flannigan.
“I think I should be alongside Karl [Place] fighting on the big shows and I want to fight better fighters, I don’t want to fight journeymen as you know you are going to win. I want to fight good kids as I know I can beat them all.”
Flannigan’s didn’t have the best start to 2010 as his proposed first fight of the year fell through after VIP Promotion’s Blackpool show got cancelled; Flannigan admits that it is hard to keep himself motivated.
“It’s hard to keep myself motivated but Steve is the one who keeps pushing me and keeps me going. I have got to the point where I have wanted to give it up but Steve drags me to the gym and keeps me training,” admitted Flannigan.
Flannigan’s last fight was back in December when he scored his first victory inside the distance when he stopped Delroy Spencer [Flannigan had gone the distance previously with Spencer] and the fighter was happy with the stoppage win.
“Stopping Delroy showed that I’d come on and improved. I was disappointed with the match as you know it is a win before you get in there so Steve told me to prove this by stopping him and that’s what I did. It proves I have improved a lot and I showed that I am also punching harder by stopping Delroy in the second fight. Both fights were made at the same weight so there was no advantage and I feel a lot stronger,” revealed Flannigan.
“But it’s no good for me when I am not fighting. I have been training since after Christmas so whilst we are waiting for a new date I am just ticking over. I am learning more technique and when I step it up for this fight I’ll be ready. I’m more of a boxer now; I like boxing someone’s head off behind the jab. I like people like Calzaghe and Manny as they are southpaws and I can learn from them.”
Flannigan is not the only person who feels the young boxer has come on with trainer Steve Maylett seeing vast improvements in the gym. “I feel that from October last year it has all clicked in to place with his training. He has started to put together everything he has done in training and took it into the ring,” opined a proud Maylett.
“We had a bit of a break over Christmas and before his fight got cancelled he was looking very sharp, in fact the best I have ever seen him. I felt if the fight hadn’t have been cancelled he would have got his second stoppage as it feels like he is punching a lot harder. His technique has improved and his sparring was spot on so he was looking really good.”
Maylett is keen to get his fighter active again as there is nothing worse than a young boxer going stale from a lack of the much needed rounds that they need to develop.
“[Flannigan’s manager and promoter] Steve [Wood] has offered us a Sky show to make up for his show being cancelled but I feel we need a warm up on one of Steve’s shows then we can move up to a bigger card and show people what he is all about,” declared Maylett.
Maylett has recently seen his other young fighter, Karl Place, gain a lot of attention in the British boxing press, including being named by Boxing News as a top prospect, and the confident trainer feels that boxing fans will be reading about Terry Flannigan next and feels that a title fight is not too far away.
“We had a write up recently on Karl in Boxing News called ‘top prospects’ but Terry turned pro 12 months after Karl so is a bit behind but next year I think Terry will be in the magazine as a hot prospect,” predicted Maylett.
“Terry hovers between super-bantamweight and featherweight but is about five fights away from the English title and if we can keep him busy we are looking at the end of the year. I would prefer the English but if the right opponent is there in an Area title fight then we’ll take that.”
Maylett feels that getting top level sparring for his young fighters will be a great benefit, with Place being used as a sparring partner by Amir Khan. Flannigan has been learning his trade facing off against the highly rated Scott Quigg of Bury and Maylett feels that these spars are right up there with the best he has witnessed.
“Some of the best spars I have seen since I have been a coach come when Terry spars Scott Quigg at Collyhurst and Moston,” revealed Maylett. “Scott is a great fighter and will go far and it’s a good gauge of where Terry is and the spars are really competitive. Last time everyone watched and applauded it was that competitive.”
