By Terence Dooley
Joe Gallagher guided John Murray to an eleventh round TKO win over Gary Buckland last Friday night and the trainer now believes that his charge is on the cusp of joining a potential British round robin with Amir Khan and Kevin Mitchell, who both take part in major bouts this weekend.
Mitchell is vying for Michael Katsidis’ WBO interim lightweight title; Khan defends his WBA light-welterweight title against Paulie Malignaggi in New York’s Madison Square Garden; Gallagher feels that British and European 135lb boss Murray could push both men close if given the chance.
‘In Murray, Mitchell and Khan we have the makings of the Nigel Benn, Chris Eubank and Michael Watson rivalry of the 90s. Those three exciting young fighters are the new generation of British boxing, taking over from Hatton, Joe Calzaghe, Junior Witter and Carl Froch. It's a rivalry that not only British, but global audiences would be glued to, which is why I hope both Khan and Mitchell are successful this weekend. But, ultimately, I am in the business of pushing John Murray's case,’ wrote Gallagher in his latest MEN column.
‘His [Murray’s] 11th-round stoppage of Gary Buckland made him my second European champion in the space of seven months after Matthew Macklin's middleweight victory last year. John's talent is such that he doesn't need to make his name off the back of Amir. Much has been made of the rivalry between the two, but we don't want to go down the route of Junior Witter or Carl Froch, who both spent much of their careers calling out Hatton and Calzaghe respectively.’
‘I firmly believe John is within four fights of becoming a box-office fighter and winning a world title in his own right. By that time he won't need to go searching for any opponents, they will be beating down his door. The good news for boxing fans is that Mitchell is every bit as keen on a battle of Britain as John. But he's got to get past Katsidis first. If he doesn't then John has got to be first in line to face the Australian and we will be happy to go anywhere to make that fight happen,’ he declared.
Indeed, Katsidis welcomed a verbal challenge from Murray earlier this year and stressed that he could be tempted into a fight with the 29-0 (17) fighter should Murray get the wins needed to force his way into the elite class. However, Gallagher, and Murray, are keen to take on Mitchell and will be hoping that the Dagenham-based boxer can wrest the interim title from Michael ‘The Great’s’ grasp on Saturday night.
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