Scottish boxing monthly review, January 2022
By Jamie Sokolowski, January 2022
Retirements: some shocking, others well timed
Given the suspension of all events, Scottish boxing was never going to have a particularly positive month, but boredom turned to agony in January as Kash Farooq unexpectedly announced his retirement for medical reasons. The loss of Farooq cannot be overstated, he epitomised the sport in Scotland. The young kid that accidentally stumbles upon a gym, falls in love with the game, and irreversibly changes the direction of their life. Witnessing Farooq’s progression in the ring was fascinating, guided by Craig Dickson, he transformed from a shy prospect with decent potential to a master of his art; slipping, countering, and dazzling his way to the British title, becoming the first Pakistani-born fighter to win the Lonsdale outright. It was just as much a privilege to see Farooq’s development out of the ring, maturing into a universally respected ambassador of boxing. His premature departure from the sport is particularly cruel given his signing with Matchroom and the promise of significant and financially rewarding bouts, not least the rematch with fellow Scot Lee McGregor, on the horizon. But Farooq has handled the news with the dignity and grace that he displayed throughout his career, a true champion mindset.
There were two further significant, although less shocking, retirements in January. Popular Dundonian Ronnie Clark decided to hang up the gloves after a decade of exciting contests in Scotland and further afield. Clark leaves the sport with a record of 21 wins from 30 bouts, a winner of the Scottish and IBF European titles, and a two-time British title challenger. He will be remembered for his impressive and unexpected win over Zelfa Barrett live on BT Sports in 2018, and battling on in the sport despite repeated and severe injuries.
Jordan McCorry made the difficult but ultimately sensible decision to walk away from the sport as a new father, healthy and proud of his achievements. McCorry won the admiration of boxing fans and pundits in recent years with highly entertaining fights in England with key prospects such as Sam Bowen and Archie Sharp. Incredibly tough and not without skill, McCorry took on all challengers, happy to surrender favour and fight on the road, his reputation as road warrior well earned. McCorry was a two-time Scottish champion, and challenged for the Commonwealth, British and European titles over a decade-long career.
From small hall to arenas, home shows to tough away journeys, boxing is back in February
With no UK shows on throughout the month, January was a challenging time for boxing fans, with die-hards rewatching auld classics on YouTube or trawling through the internet looking for obscure matches in South America and Central Asia, but the sport returns in February. And it returns with a bang.
Saltire Boxing Promotions, linked with St Andrews Sporting Club, kick things off on Friday 4 February with their Normandy Knockout show in Renfrew. We will see the anticipated debut of Jake Limond, son of Scottish boxing legend, Willie. There will be some pressure on the 18 year old, given the family name, but you imagine he will be guided sensibly, with no Campbell Hatton style over exposure, as he looks to make his own way in the sport. The Black Assassin, Ahmed Mweva, returns to the ring after two years of inactivity. Ahmed had built strong momentum before the pandemic, with seven consecutive wins and landing a Scottish title, and will be keen to find form again quickly. Jack Turner’s career is progressing quietly but confidently as the 26 year old featherweight looks to go 4-0, and Martin Crossan will make his second appearance as a professional, with further bouts already planned to give the 20 year old more experience. Popular Renfrewshire man Callen McAulay continues his career rebuild after injury and the pandemic kept him out of action between 2019 and 2021. The Masters degree graduate returned in November and cruised to a comfortable but uneventful points victory over six rounds. McAulay would have been happy to secure the rounds given his time out, but may look to be busier and more spiteful in this contest. In exciting news for Saltire and St Andrews, television cameras will be in attendance, as the show will be available to watch on the Fightzone TV app. Fightzone has been a welcome addition to the broadcasting landscape, offering high quality coverage of Scottish shows, and they haven’t disappointed in entertainment value.
St Andrews Sporting Club follow up six days later with their rescheduled Burns Night on Thursday 10 February at the Raddison Blu hotel in Glasgow. The Burns Night is one of the most enjoyable evenings on the Scottish boxing calendar, a real tradition with good contests, guest speakers, good food and plenty of bevy. Martin Harkin features and is always exciting to watch. From knocking out Ally Black for the Scottish title, stopping James Moorcroft for a British eliminator, or challenging top English prospects like Michael McKinson. Harkin is a quality operator and motivated to climb the British rankings for more opportunities. Cassidy Todd, Glasgow’s first ever professional female boxer, returns for her second contest. And Andy Tham and Josh Campbell look to extend their unbeaten records.
Edinburgh’s Lee McGregor - current British, Commonwealth, and European champion - fights the following evening, Friday 11 February, against Diego Ruiz. You never want to discount opponents, particularly unknown quantities from South America, and Ruiz does have a winning record, but he has lost on British and Irish soil before, and should be no match for the Scotsman. Until recently, McGregor may have had two goals occupying his mind: one, to settle the outstanding question of who is the best bantamweight in Scotland between him and Farooq, and secondly to push on to challenge for a world title. Now, with Farooq sadly out of the sport, McGregor will single-mindedly gun for a world title shot without any distraction, and this bout will be a useful tick over before more meaningful bouts arise.
Pharmaceutical companies, PPE shareholders, and the nearest off-licences around Downing Street. These are probably the only three other entities in Britain that have had a better two years than Kynoch Boxing Promotions. During the pandemic, the Glasgow outfit has expanded its operations to England and South Africa, enhanced its stable of fighters, secured television deals with Fightzone, inked collaborations with Probellum, and most importantly their boxers have been successful; winning world, international and national titles. They’ve played a blinder. And they return to our screens via Fightzone on Friday 18 February at the Turnberry resort in Ayrshire. David Jamieson headlines and is currently making the transition from local ticket seller to genuine prospect, smashing through opponents and entertaining crowds, with the sense that he is one or two fights away from a British title shot. Nathaniel Collins is the current Commonwealth and Celtic champion and has the ability, attitude and following to go right to the top. Eyes will be on Kieran Smith, the highly talented light middleweight, who returns after experiencing his first loss last year. And it is with relief and anticipation that we see Michael McGurk back in a ring after a near three year absence. The Lanarkshire man is aggressive and entertaining, and hopefully this is the start of getting his career back on track, and perhaps on a collision course with Kieran Smith, now both are under the same stable. Great fight, that would be. Jordan Grant and Kate Radamska also feature.
The following evening, Saturday 19 February, Kynoch Boxing Promotions return to the same venue, this time in collaboration with Probellum, to bring us a Scottish title fight. Glasgow’s Stewart Burt (13-2-2) faces Arbroath’s Corey McCulloch (4-1-1) for the welterweight belt. Both men, bizarrely, share recent draws with CJ Wood as a result of head clashes, but not many other similarities. Burt is a boxer with more experience as an amateur and professional, and has fought on large, televised shows, while McCulloch is a come forward fighter that has shown tenacity and grit in the early stages of his career. Former amateur standout, and ex-Matchroom fighter, John Docherty makes his Kynoch Boxing Promotions debut as he continues his rebuild. Docherty appeared to have the world at his feet until a devastating loss to Jack Cullen in 2020 slammed on the breaks. With a new team - from coach to promoter - the super middleweight should be a really exciting addition to the Scottish boxing scene. Ayrshireman Arran McGarvie will be delighted to fight at home in his fourth contest, and Elliot O'Donnell, Beth Arthur, Darren Johnstone, and Alfie McArthur complete the line up.
It’s delightful to see Craig Morgan have a homecoming fight at the Glen Pavillion in Dunfermline on 19 February. The undefeated Kelty man has brought bus loads of fans all across Scotland in his first eight contests, making noise from Glasgow to Aberdeen. The Northern Sporting Club show also features Paul Deas.
We, of course, have the big one on Saturday 26 February at the OVO Hydro as Josh Taylor defends his undisputed titles at super lightweight against Jack Catterall. It’s not often Scots go into sporting contests against the English with supreme confidence, but we do on this occasion. Not because Catterall is weak or cowardly. On the contrary, the Lancashire man is skilled, committed, and undefeated in 26 fights. But Taylor is a once in a generation fighter, a genuine pound for pound star, and Britain’s only undisputed champion in the four-belt era. Taylor’s run over the last four years has been astonishing: humiliating domestic rival Davies; out-fighting Postol in a gruelling war; making mincemeat of Baranchyk; edging out Prograis in a truly elite affair; and dropping Ramirez twice in a clear points victory in Vegas. It is the stuff of dreams and will live in the memory of Scottish boxing fans. There is an unquenching thirst for more - to see Taylor compete against other superstars such as Crawford or Lopez - and there will be some that feel Catterall is anticlimactic. But, all going well, comprehensively beating the English at home is probably not a bad way to start 2022.
On the undercard, there is an interesting contest between Jay McFarlane and Nick Campbell. The Glaswegians are fighting for the Scottish heavyweight title, the first time the honour has been fought for in 71 years. That in itself is historic and viewing worthy. The bout should be an exciting one, a battle between two polar opposite characters. McFarlane is gifted, experienced, and unpredictable in the ring but also chaotic and unreliable out of it, prone to poor fitness and ill-discipline. Nick Campbell, a former professional rugby player, has shown real commitment, work ethic, and power in his young boxing career, but is ultimately a novice at this stage. McFarlane has shocked doubters before, previously losing considerable weight to win the Scottish cruiserweight title, but fans will remember him gassing out quickly in his performance in 2019’s Boxxer touranement, where early success was halted with poor fitness. The fight here will be as much about mental strength and physical stamina as it will boxing ability. Scott Forrest, former GB amateur star, will make his professional debut on the card. The cruiserweight has been signed by Sky/Boxxer and, given his pedigree, is likely to be fast tracked in the sport, one to keep an eye on.
Lanarkshire’s Scott Allan travels down to Liverpool to take on Marcel Braithwaite on the same night, Saturday 26 February. Braithwaite is a talented boxer and lost only to high level opposition, Sunny Edwards and Jay Harris. But the underrated Allan is always confident, sets a ferocious pace, and similarly has only fell short to quality opponents such as Farooq and McGregor. Allan will be making his debut at super fly, has a quality new trainer in Ped Lynch, and should be strong at the weight given his muscular frame and experience at bantamweight. It should be a crackin’ ten round contest for a WBC title, and one we’ll keep an eye on while at the Hydro.
New media
An exciting new boxing podcast in Scotland has been launched involving our own Craig Cameron and Boxing Social’s Craig Scott. The Roots of Boxing podcast is recorded in a professional studio, bringing together some of the most interesting characters in the sport, and will produce quality, insightful and entertaining content. They have just released the first episode with Scottish boxing legend, Tommy Gilmour. Watch the episode here.
