Super Saturday: Tale of three title battles
Brandon Bethell….huge Wolverhampton following. Pic: Manjit Narotra/BCB
FOR West Midlands fans, Saturday is a tale of three title fights.
And cracking, explosive 10 rounders at that.
Two of them see boxers truly end their ring apprenticeships and take the leap to championship level.
At the Holiday Inn, Birmingham Airport, Ryan Whelan, aged 27, and Dave Butlin – both unbeaten in five fights, both managed by Jon Pegg – battle for the vacant Midlands light-heavyweight belt.
On BCB’s big “Bragging Rights” bill at Aldersley Stadium, Wolverhampton, Brandon Bethell and Nico Ogbeide – both with six bouts to their name, both guided by BCB boss Errol Johnson – contest the vacant Midlands super-featherweight strap.
The third scrap, also on the Aldersley Stadium show, is different. Dudley’s Ryan Griffiths has proved his worth in a nine fight career, fought valiantly for the WBC youth world title and prevailed in a 10 round barnstormer with Lewis Morris for the Midlands featherweight crown.
Nico Ogbeide….”belt is coming back to Brum.” Pic: Manjit Narotra/BCB
He puts that belt on the line against Jack Dillingham, from Heanor, Derbyshire, in a riveting clash. Dillingham has peeled off six straight wins.
The criteria for area championships has changed a lot since I began writing about boxing in the 1970s. Back then, they were contested by seasoned campaigners and victory was a significant step towards British title opportunities.
Now beginners get the chance to capture belts, sometimes beginners who have never travelled beyond six rounds, even four rounds.
That is not a criticism of quality, it is an observation.
Great fights are a matter of matchmaking. In Whelan versus Butlin and Bethell versus Ogbeide, crowds have been handed the rarity of hungry, ambitious boxers meeting at the start of their journeys for something significant.
Wolverhampton’s Bethell, a 23-year-old with a huge Old Gold following, and Ogbeide may produce a fight of the year contender.
They’ll certainly generate the most noise, courtesy of Bethell’s barmy army.
Nico, a 31-year-old product of the white collar scene, is prepared for the wall of sound generated by Bethell fans. He told me: “I’m looking forward to silencing them and bringing the belt from Wolverhampton to Birmingham.
“I’m a back-foot fighter. Against Brandon, I’ll be big enough and strong enough to push him back when I want to and I have the skill to box on the back-foot when I want to.”
Brandon said: “Yes, it’s come early, but I sort of knew this opportunity was going to come. I was bringing the crowds, performing and felt that if I kept chipping away at things, it would come.
“I’m going to go right to the top. I think if I don’t, with the hard work I put in, there’s something wrong.”
Ryan Whelan….takes the step up to 10 round class at the Holiday Inn
The clash between Whelan and 31-year-old Butlin, from Tamworth, is balanced on a knife edge. Both like to keep it long, neither have registered a stoppage.
I expect a hard fought, gruelling distance battle.
Whelan, latest member of Birmingham’s famous Holt family to put on gloves professionally, said: “There’s no animosity. We’re mates despite wanting to punch each other in the face in the ring.
“I’m not facing a more experienced fighter, but this is more of a level playing field. He’s never gone beyond four rounds – it’s an interesting fight.
“I’m confident, I’m doing the work. There are always still things to learn, in boxing there are always things to do. That will never stop.”
I expect an explosion from Griffiths and Dillingham, a 22-year-old who carries a healthy dig, with two inside distance victories on his record.
He has never tasted defeat and 24-year-old Ryan may face an early storm before his edge in experience proves decisive.
Ryan Griffiths…expect explosive action. Pic: Manjit Narotra/BCB
Griffiths, who has fought as heavy as light-middle, told me: “Jack (Dillingham) has made the statement he’s the bigger puncher out of us. But he’s always fought at feather, so everyone he’s fought has been a bit smaller. For the first time, Jack is going to fight someone just as big as him. Apart from those two (title) fights, I’ve always been the smaller guy.
“It’s a really good, entertaining fight. I’ve had a dabble into his record and watched a few short clips on YouTube, but I haven’t looked extensively at him. My concentration is on what I can do, not what Jack can do.”
Three titles on the line, three five star battles – and all on one night. The countdown to Super Saturday has begun.