Boxing
Newly motivated Kieron Conway says it’s all about family
Published
6 months agoon
By
J. Humza
BECOME a parent can completely change a fighter’s mindset. Suddenly, the thought of taking risks and making huge sacrifices seems less appealing as they consciously try to mitigate the professional hazards of boxing.
This in turn can cause some to withdraw from the brutal occupation they once fell in love with. For others, however, the responsibility of supporting a family can discover a completely up-to-date motivation in which their childhood dreams are not inhibited but strengthened.
“There’s more at stake. If I don’t do well, my salary will go down,” said Kieron Conway, who welcomed a up-to-date member of his family just over a month ago.
“[My daughter] must have a certain lifestyle – must eat; must dress; must have a place to live.
“Now everything revolves around her, now everything revolves around my family.”
It seems the opportunity to earn a life-changing amount of money couldn’t have come at a better time for Conway.
With the return of Matchroom’s Prizefighter, the 28-year-old has the chance to not only improve his position in the middleweight division but also, if he makes it to the final, pocket a lucrative $1 million bonus.
“It’s a huge deal,” he said. “There are players in this tournament who try to downplay the money and say they’re not motivated by it.
“But let’s be sincere, if you weren’t motivated by money, you wouldn’t be entering this tournament.
“So yeah, let’s just call it that. $1 million for three fights is a little more than we’re used to.”
Conway returns to the ring after a sixth-round knockout victory over former British title challenger Linus Udofia last October.
His momentum was halted when the Prizefighter quarterfinals – then taking place in Suite, Japan, on July 15 – were delayed by several months.
But the delay, while frustrating, gave Conway more time to prepare for his fight against opponent Ainiwaer Yilixiati – an enigmatic boxer from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in northwestern China.
“It was demanding to find out too much about him, but I found what I thought was enough,” Conway said.
“I think he’ll try to knock me out because he’s got a lot of knockouts on his account, but [his opponents] are not at this level.
“Those guys shouldn’t have been in the ring at all; I don’t even know if they had boxing lessons – all those guys he knocked down.
“I don’t care how tough he is. When my punches land on his face and right in the middle of his nose, a different game plan will come out.
“I’m a lot bigger than him and I know what my punches are going to look like on fight night.”
Undefeated middleweights Aaron McKenna and Mark Dickinson will join Conway in the quarter-finals, which, unlike previous Prizefighter tournaments, will consist of 10 rounds – the semi-finals and final will take place on separate nights.
The longer format should suit Conway, however, who suffered his first professional defeat in a three-round semifinal bout in an earlier tournament promoted by Boxxer.
“I came to this tournament only expecting to win because those guys weren’t at my level,” he admitted.
“That defeat really got me down; it gave me a up-to-date gear and changed my attitude.”
Since then, Conway has proven himself in the super welterweight division, with his most memorable moment being his British main event win over Ted Cheeseman (below), before losing a split decision to Souleymane Cissokho around two years later.
Now, after impressively overcoming those setbacks, he fights at 160 pounds, using the extra weight to further develop his punching power, which – despite what his past performance would suggest – has often been a problem for his opponents.
“The power was always there,” Conway said. “My amateur coach used to say I was one of the hardest players he ever felt on the pads.
“I think people realize pretty quickly in the middle of a fight that this isn’t the kind of force they want to go up against and get hit by.”
In addition to the $1 million carrot waiting for the winner, there are also $100,000 in bonuses for eliminating participants in each round of the tournament.
But financial gains aside, Conway knows all too well what a win in the Prizefighter revival would mean for his career.
He trained with his father, James Conway, in Northampton from the age of 11 and, while he always had his sights set on winning the world title, had often considered playing a game on the Northampton Saints rugby pitch.
For Conway, that’s reason enough to stay in his hometown, where he can support his family and sound the alarm in anticipation of a potential stadium fight.
“It’s good for me to be a stay-at-home dad while finishing up training camp,” he said.
“Many people would say that [staying at home is] distraction, but even though there were a few days [after my daughter was born] when I had a demanding time sleeping, I was still able to exercise and stay sturdy and fit. My fiancée is also very understanding.
“My intention is to keep winning and building a fan base. I have a really good support system at Northampton, so I think one day, [a stadium fight] “may be very likely.”
It’s protected to say that when fight night arrives, the future of Conway’s boxing career – and any accolades and awards that follow – will hang in the balance.
The stakes are extremely high indeed.
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Boxing
Ryan Rozicki is waiting for Badou Jack’s consent to mandatory cooperation with the WBC
Published
2 days agoon
January 13, 2025The World Boxing Council (WBC) ordered world cruiserweight champion Badou “The Ripper” Jack (20-1-1, 19 KO) to make a mandatory title defense against Ryan “The Bruiser” Rozicki (20-1), number 1 in the WBC ranking – 1, 19 KOs).
If both camps fail to successfully negotiate an agreement, the WBC will organize a tender on February 4, followed by the Jack vs. Rozicki. Rozicki’s promoter, Three Lions Promotions, immediately sent Team Jacek an offer to promote the fight in Canada last week.
“We are waiting for their counteroffer,” explained promoter Dan Otter of Three Lions Promotions. “Boxing has had a huge resurgence in Canada and Ryan is leading the way. He is one of the most electrifying and hardest-hitting fighters in boxing, definitely in the cruiserweight division. He wants the WBC green belt and ultimately the unification of the division. Ryan will fight Jack anywhere for the belt.”
29-year-old Rozicki, born in Sydney (Nova Scotia) and living in Hamilton (Ontario), fought 22 professional fights against 21 different opponents (twice against Yamil Alberto Peralta), stopping 19 of the 20 opponents he defeated. an eye-opening 95-KO percentage.
Jack, 41, was a 2008 Olympian representing his native Sweden. He is a three-division world champion, as well as the WBC super middleweight and World Boxing Association (WBA) lightweight heavyweight title holder. Jack has a record of 5-0-2 (2 KO) in world championship fights.
“We respect Jack and I don’t want to sound disrespectful,” Otter added, “but he’s over 40 years vintage and has been relatively inactive for two years (only one fight). He brings a lot of experience and respect to the ring, but he will fight a newborn defender with a lot of power. Jack is going to struggle and honestly, I don’t think he’ll make it past the first few rounds.”
Ryan Rozicki is on a mission to become the first Canadian cruiserweight world champion.
The next move is Badou Jack’s.
Boxing
Floyd Mayweather’s record is not normal, it can’t happen in 70 years
Published
3 days agoon
January 12, 2025Floyd Mayweather’s incredible 50-0 record is not normal and cannot be repeated in sports for another seventy years.
This is the view of Saudi Arabian president Turki Alalshikh, who wants to adopt the UFC model in which fighters lose many fights during their career.
In a speech as he hosted the Ring Magazine Awards after acquiring the long-running boxing publication from Oscar De La Hoya, Alalshikh was unequivocal in his opinion.
“Now losing some fights in boxing must be normal,” he explained. “All fighters want a career similar to Floyd Mayweather – no losses. This may happen once every 50, 60 or 70 years.
“We need it [to be] like currently in the UFC model, where champions lose and win,” added the matchmaker during the Riyad season.
Mayweather rose through the sport in the tardy 1990s to become one of its youngest superstars. Mayweather’s professional success came after winning a bronze medal at the Olympics after losing to Serafim Todorov.
Winning world titles in five weight classes, Mayweather was untouchable. The Grand Rapids native only came close to defeat a few times. He dominated Manny Pacquiao and overtook Canelo Alvarez and Oscar De La Hoya after heated debates, with decisions that should have been made unanimously.
Towards the end of his career, Mayweather chose to face Andre Berto and Conor McGregor, easily winning and ending his boxing career at the age of 50 without ever going out. Calling himself “the greatest of all time,” Mayweather earned first-ballot Hall of Fame honors and is widely considered one of, if not the greatest defensive fighter of all time.
However, Alalshikh says this type of career needs to end so that fans can get the most out of boxing, as is the case with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Boxing needs to become more attractive, and Alalshikh sees the failures of top stars as a way to keep interest at an all-time high.
In this sport, many boxers enjoy undefeated streaks, the most notable of which is Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian Pound for Pound King is 23-0 and has beaten the best he has to offer in his division and cruiserweight classification.
It remains a mystery how Alalshikh plans to make Usyk suffer while he dominates everyone else. By the time his grand plan goes into action, Usyk will be long gone, and Gervonta Davis, Shakur Stevenson and Devin Haney may be more realistic targets.
Boxing
Manny Pacquiao remains the favorite to win the title against Mario Barrios
Published
1 week agoon
January 6, 2025WBN understands that despite alternative options emerging, it is more likely that Manny Pacquiao will face Mario Barrios next.
Bob Santos, coach of WBC welterweight champion Barrios, told World Boxing News that he is currently in contact with Pacquiao’s team. Asked by WBN if he had spoken to Pacquiao or representatives of any other challenger, Santos replied: “Yes, Pacquiao’s promoter, Sean Gibbons.” Pressed on whether Barrios vs Pacquiao might happen next, he added: “It’s challenging to say. We’ll have to see how this plays out.”
WBN contacted Santos after Conor Benn emerged as a potential alternative to Barrios. The British fighter, who recently returned from a suspension following two positive drug tests, is keen to return to competition.
Benn showed favor with the World Boxing Council at the recent WBC Convention, the WBC Evaluation Committee and during an interview with the sanctioning body over the weekend. “The Destroyer” is ranked second in the rankings at 147 pounds, despite less than solid opponents during his time in exile, during which Benn competed twice in the United States while his career in the United Kingdom was in doubt.
As he battled to clear his name and with the British Anti-Doping Authority finding no evidence that Benn had intentionally taken ostarine, the 28-year-old’s career took a pointed nosedive. Despite this, he remains highly rated and at least one step away from fighting for an eliminator or one of the remaining championship titles.
However, Pacquiao remains Barrios’ favorite. Now it’s up to the boxing legend and Hall of Famer who got the first votes to secure his shot. WBN believes a July date – most likely at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas – is the most realistic date for a Nevada swan song.
Pacquiao could extend his record as the oldest welterweight champion by six years if he can secure a huge victory over the 29-year-old world champion. At 46 years antique, such a scenario remains unlikely, but he can never be compared to one of the greatest players of this generation.
Unlike heavier boxers and his training regiment, Pacquiao looks in great shape despite his advanced age. Everything is set for a massive return to the boxing capital of the world, provided Pacquiao and his team can manage his political ambitions, which are expected to run from this month until May. After that time, Pacquiao could find himself in the summer finals and become the all-time champion, regardless of the result.
Barrios is based in the city, where he trained with Santos, and would be the perfect opponent to see out the career of one of the greatest fighters in history.
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