By Frank Warren
The fact that Carl Froch was the sole fistic representative in the top ten listed for the BBC Sports Personality Of The Year award does not truly reflect boxing’s remarkable renaissance in 2014.
Few sports have experienced such a huge surge in popularity, both in participation and numbers of spectators packing venues from small provincial halls to stadiums including Wembley, London’s O2 and ExCel, as well as those in Manchester, Liverpool, Belfast and Glasgow.
Virtually every show promoted this year has been a sell-out. Some football clubs in the lower leagues – and certainly in Scotland - must be envious of the gates boxing attracts in the smaller venues.
Boxing has fought its way back off the ropes and is now one of sport’s biggest hitters again, here and overseas.
In Britain, not only do we have a fistful of world champions but boxers who have got themselves into challenging positions for meaningful title shots.
Moreover we have witnessed the advent of a new breed of young boxer. There is some cracking burgeoning talent with dozens of kids coming into the game who are intelligent, articulate and know how to sell themselves as well as their sport.
As do those who have already made names for themselves – the likes of Froch, George Groves, Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, Carl Frampton, Paul Butler and Billy Joe Saunders.
Fighters are now developing big fan bases. For example, we have a brilliant unbeaten youngster in Mitchell Smith, a super-featherweight from from Harrow, hardly a boxing epicentre, who has had only ten fights but regularly sells 1,500 tickets.
Overall, when you look at the demographics of those buying tickets, most are relatively young. Interestingly our specialist TV channel BoxNation, now in its fourth year, did some market research among subscribers asking, among other things, their favourite radio station. Talksport topped the list but close behind was Radio 1.
It seems the sport is connecting with a new, younger audience. Many of the faces you now see at ringside you think would be more familiar with pop concerts than pugilism. But they do seem knowledgeable about the sport and are not just there because it is an ‘event’ to be seen at.
Surely one of the most heartening aspects of boxing’s comeback is its resurgence in schools, both in competitive and non-contact forms, and among girls as well as boys.
Since the 2012 Olympics, where boxing was one of the most successful sports, the growth in schools has been remarkable, inflicting a KO on those prissy critics who deemed it either an unsafe or politically incorrect part of the PE curriculum.
According to the most recent figures published by the Department of Education boxing is now available in 2,149 schools which covers 10 per cent of all schools and 38 per cent of secondary schools.
The regulator Ofsted has also a identified competitive sport, including boxing, as something that can help build a positive culture in schools and says it enables pupils to excel both in the classroom and on the playing field. In particular boxing teaches the value of self-discipline and helps build self-esteem and commitment. As well as fighting obesity.
All, of which is good news for the future a sport which has taken its lumps but continues to come out out fighting.
My one regret is that boxing could be even bigger if there was some sustained coverage on terrestrial TV. Both BBC and ITV are missing out by ignoring a sport that has recaptured such public interest. It is time they followed the fans and got switched on again.
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I do not subscribe to the view expressed by some of Amir Khan’s cheerleaders that Floyd Mayweather Jnr. is running scared of him after that one-sided conquest of Devon Alexander in Las Vegas last weekend. Why should he be?
Khan certainly boxed brilliantly and intelligently, keeping his composure against an unadventurous opponent. He has always had fast hands but now, as a full-blown welterweight, he literally has found his feet, moving laterally and deftly to evade danger.
But this does not mean he is good enough to defeat Mayweather, who is a step up in class and remains the most accomplished boxer in the world. He reads the game better than anyone and I seriously doubt he would be fazed by the prospect of facing a fighter a decade younger than himself. He is aware of Khan’s blurring punching velocity but is a cute counter-puncher and no slouch with his sleight-of-hand either.
Some argue that Mayweather’s advancing years - he is coming up 38 -would be the decisive factor but few in boxing look after themselves better outside the ring. He is rarely above his best fighting weight and is in the gym religiously every day. That’s the secret of longevity in boxing and is why Bernard Hopkins has also had such an enduring career.
In any case the question is almost certainly academic. It is not so much much whether Khan will beat Mayweather but whether he will actually meet him. I maintain this is unlikely at the moment.
Khan is still to take off in a big way in America- the MGM Grand, which seats 16,800, was less than half full in Saturday - and I remain convinced that the super-fight between Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao finally will materialise next May. It is one the world demands, as does US television and now it seems both fighters are close to agreement. And the probability is that there will be a return.
Which puts Khan on the Mayweather back burner, and available to challenge here for Kell Brook’s IBF welterweight title, a fight he should take-and win-with both hands.
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There has been a lot of speculation about my litigation with Ricky Burns and I wanted to explain what happened. I jointly managed Ricky with Alex Morrison for a number of years and my company promoted him. We had a good relationship and I did well for him, taking him from fighting in small halls in Scotland to being a double-weight champion, one of only eight or so British boxers to achieve this. I and my team worked hard to get him into that position but Ricky was easy to work with and we enjoyed the journey and, importantly, he delivered in the ring.
On Wednesday 6 March 2013, out of the blue, I received a letter from Ricky in which he sought to terminate his promotional and management agreements. I was shocked by the letter and tried to meet with Ricky to sort matters out. He would not meet with me. I then received a letter from the joint-manager Alex Morrison telling me to deal through his solicitors.
The next thing that happened was that Eddie Hearn announced that Ricky had signed with Matchroom Sport. This created a media storm which ended in me successfully suing Alex Morrison for defamation, being awarded, I believe, the highest damages award this year.
Hearn claimed publicly to the press: “we've been provided with a letter from Ricky Burns as confirmation that he has terminated his agreement... We have advice from our lawyers and I'm very comfortable. There is no contract now." During the trial it emerged that the letter of 6 March terminating Ricky’s promotional agreement (which Hearn said was proof that he was a free agent) was not actually signed by Ricky and he said his signature had been forged.
I therefore felt that I had no option but to take matters further. If Hearn was saying that boxers could walk away from contracts with me then what I needed to do was to prove the integrity of my management and promotional agreements. Unless contracts are upheld the sport of boxing is thrown into complete disarray and the business cannot operate.
I issued proceedings a few days later and Ricky instructed Hearn’s lawyers to act for him, the lawyer acting for Ricky being in a relationship with Hearn’s right hand man. The case went to trial in October 2014. In the last month, there have been two Judgments from Court. In the first, the Court upheld the integrity of my contracts with Ricky Burns and found that his explanation and arguments were “untenable”. In the second Judgment, the Court found that I was “the successful party” and awarded me damages and legal costs. Ricky sought permission to appeal and this was refused.
I was glad to establish the validity of the management and promotional agreements with Ricky and that he was wrong to walk away from the agreements, which is what I set out to do. I am sorry, for Ricky’s sake, that it came to this.
So, was Ricky right to listen to Eddie Hearn or indeed Alex Morrison? Since joining Matchroom, his career has completely crashed, badly losing two contests and his world title in the process. Ricky spent over £200,000 on his own legal fees. He has to pay me management commission of around £75,000 and legal fees, around £175,000 of which is due at the end of January with further substantial sums to follow. Ricky also gave evidence at trial that he earned far less for his first fight under Matchroom Sport than I was paying him before he left.
Meanwhile Alex Morison is yet to pay me the substantial libel damages that are due to me and has enquired about an instalments plan to cover the outstanding amounts owed.
Andy Lee’s spectacular acquisition of the WBO middleweight crown – the first Irishman to win a world title on US soil in 80 years - perfectly sets up an all-traveller encounter with Chris Eubank Jnr’s nemesis Billy Joe Saunders.
It is a pairing I plan to promote in March. Lee, who was given a civic reception back home in Limerick on Wednesday, wants it in Ireland on St Patrick’s Day.
Well, I have been talking about that and other possibilities with his new mentor Adam Booth. Hats off to the man who nurtured the Hayemaker on helping Lee fulfil the prediction made by the late, great Emanuel Steward, who first schooled him in Detroit’s legendary Kronk gym, that he would become a world champion.
Lee did so in style, with his stunning sixth round stoppage of previously unbeaten Russian slugger Matt Korobov. Can Billy Joe can outbox him? He must beware: this man really is dangerous.
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Sad to hear that Bill Martin, the highly respected one-time chief sports correspondent at the Press Association, has died at the age of 90.
Bill specialised in boxing and tennis and was also a former chairman of the prestigious Boxing Writers’ Club.
My sincere condolences go to his family.
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