IN Abdullah Masonin his hometown of Cleveland, Ohio, the Art Museum presents a painting that has become one of the world’s most eminent depictions of noble art. ‘Stag At Sharkey’s’ may be 115 years senior, but in its lightning-quick blur of sweat and sinew, George Bellows perfectly captures the drama, suspense and thrill of watching a warrior pursue his extraordinary profession.

Swift forward to 2024, and the city is once again delighted with the exemplary skills of a local fighter, a adolescent Southerner who many are touting as the sport’s top prospect. For Mason himself, developing these natural talents became an obsession.

“It’s never over,” says Mason (13-0, 11 KO) “When you’re in competitive sports, there’s always someone coming after you or someone coming after you. You want to make sure that you’re always going to be perfect and you’re going to be better. So I hope to do the good things that I do better. I’ll continue to work on doing them better. And whatever else I have to criticize, I’ll work on criticizing. So I just keep moving forward.”

A key element of Mason’s early success in the sport is his exceptionally robust bond with his father and trainer, Valiant Mason, and his five siblings, four of whom followed in Abdullah’s footsteps as boxers. In a city plagued by violent crime, the family found focus and inspiration in the sport, forming a close bond that seemed impenetrable to negative influences.

“Cleveland is a really tough environment, but you have to be in the right places and around the right people. My father was always around the right people. He kept us away from the typical things that go on in Cleveland. He kept us with the right people, everyone who actually had something.

“So growing up, he had a perfume store where we sold all kinds of body products and he told us to run out of there. When we started boxing, we ran products out of the store to navigate the boxing world and to various tournaments.”

Fighting was ingrained in the heart of the Mason family’s upbringing. Their ever-protective father divided his nest into two groups, introducing the eldest three to karate, taekwondo and jujitsu and encouraging them to teach their younger siblings what they had learned. However, after the family moved abroad for a while, it was Abdullah who first tried boxing.

“We moved abroad to Yemen and Egypt a while back,” Mason recalls, when he was just 20. “When we came back, there was a boxing gym right around the corner from where we lived. Our dad would ask everyone, ‘Who wants to come to the gym and start training, fighting, boxing?’ I was the first one to really get interested.

“I started out this way and my brothers came right after me. But when I started really getting into the ring and started sparring, that’s when I realized. Then I thought, “OK, this is something I really want to do.” At that time it was just fun. I just wanted to be there because I know that’s what I want to do. But when my brothers got into it, I really started getting stern. I say, “Okay, this will be my thing.” I will take over boxing.”

Of course, for some families, the ongoing complexity of sibling rivalry combined with teenage angst can prove to be a major obstacle to ambitious plans. However, the bonds the Mason brothers have forged have only served to sharpen their skills and strengthen their competitive confidence. It’s a relationship that Abdullah is rightly both incredibly proud of and fiercely protective of.

“I would say we are more supportive than competitive. Of course, we are competitive, as five guys in the same environment, growing up in the same house. We will naturally compete. But it is not a negative competition. It is like motivating each other to be better. Definitely supportive, we are super supportive. If one brother is lacking in some area, not just in boxing, we always like to motivate that person, that brother, to be better,” he says.

“We have many of the same good qualities, but as warriors we have different personalities as brothers. But these are our styles. So we all have the same good similarities but a different personality, you know what I mean? So one person might be more offensive, or another might box more, or punch harder, or something like that. So we all definitely have similar styles, but with our differences.”

Mason is keenly aware of boxing’s affluent history of fathers training their fighting sons, but their partnership, he says, has its own unique animated. The undefeated lightweight sees his own progress as part of a family project, with his brothers offering just as much insight and advice as the man who commands his son’s corner.

“They see a lot of things that other people don’t see, I would say. I pick up on that, apply it, and apply it well,” he says.

“It’s amazing to have that family animated and have brothers in your corner, have a father in your corner. It’s a business and you don’t take anything personally. You go in there, you listen to everything they say because that’s what’s best for you in the ring.

“His [his father] being a coach who actually sees things that can’t be seen from the outside, but at the same time he is my father. So it’s definitely more comfortable having my father and brothers in my corner. It just gives me an extra kick. I can settle in a little better because I know they’re there. They will tell me what they see. And I will trust them completely.”

It’s a testament to the work Mason’s team has put in behind the scenes that each victory so far has resulted in an impressive set of knockouts. The result was an avalanche of praise, with many predicting he would dominate the lightweight division in the coming years.

However, the competition in this particular weight class, even among potential fighters, is already looking very heated, and among the undefeated, promising fighters are such as Andy Cruz, Keyshawn Davis and Emiliano Vargas are competing to become the next massive thing at 135 pounds. Although Mason appreciates his natural strength, he is looking forward to showing off the full range of his fighting skills.

“It just flips on like a switch when I want to start sitting on my punches and reverse punches. But when I’m in the gym, I see a lot of things and do a lot of things that I would turn into something in a fight. In the fight, you see me give that one punch that will knock them out.

“But in sparring I would put together combinations, move differently, step differently, move smartly. I would just work on different things,” he says.

“But as I fight, you’ll see those things come together a little more. Once I start fighting those longer fights, those rounds against tough opponents, I feel like more of them will come out and eventually people will start to see more of my arsenal and more of my true style. Of course I have the power, as you can see from my previous performances, but I can do much more.”

HIS plan initially was to excuse himself from the fathers’ race due to injury. Leg, arm, head, whatever would be useful. Indeed, just one look at his face, still bruised from Friday’s fight, and it would be tough for even the most competitive parent not to feel sorry for Macaulay McGowan and let him sit this fight out.

But McGowan’s problem was that his daughter, Florence, who had already won the bean bag race herself, had nothing to do with it. “Come on, daddy,” she said to her hero. “You”.

“I felt pretty bad,” McGowan said moments after crossing the finish line during sports day. “I was tranquil Eddy; he finished fourth out of eight. I was just outside the top three.”

Florence, his seven-year-old daughter, fared much better. She brought home medals – or in this case stickers – and her father, standing by, was ecstatic to watch her and enjoy her transformation from warrior back to commoner.

Now that he can eat what he wants, go where he wants and fulfill a role much more critical than that of a fighter, McGowan currently finds himself in that perfect post-fight place – call it the honeymoon – where the adrenaline of the battle and its aftermath continues to fuel him ahead inevitable expulsion.

“I’m actually high,” he said. “I couldn’t sleep very long. But eventually it wears off, right? Everyone is now screaming and stuff, calling you a warrior and stuff like that, but eventually it all fades away and you’re left with only loss. It takes time for this to stabilize.

“At about this point or in the next few days, I will accept that I lost and it will hurt. But I can do it, man. I’m not too worried about it. I have a momentary lull and that’s it.”

On Friday, McGowan fought 12 rounds against highly touted German Abass Baraou in a fight for the European super welterweight title. That alone is perhaps noteworthy, especially considering Baraou’s reputation and McGowan’s career path so far, but the way he pushed Baraou and won the hearts of fans is what brought McGowan (20-5-2 (5)) home with a feeling of victory even after defeat. On the one hand, yes, he failed to prepare for the gigantic night, but on the other hand, performing live on Channel 5, he was met with a fanfare that some contestants cannot find with their hands raised.

“I try to be successful from within,” he said. “I try to keep it all inside. If I give 100 percent in training and 100 percent when performing at night, I will achieve what I wanted. That’s basically all I can do.

“It’s disappointing that my best results weren’t good enough. But at the same time, it’s not up to me. I can’t conjure victory out of skinny air. I can’t exploit magic to defeat this boy at night. I gave my all in the fight and he was better than me. I have to accept it and I accept it. This is how I will get over the loss.

“The losses hurt, yes they hurt and they always will because at the end of the day I’m a competitor and I really want to win. But sometimes I have to accept that you’re doing your best, but it’s not enough. I know it’s not sexy and it’s not what you read in sports books, but it works for me.

“It still doesn’t mean I accept the level I’m at or the boxer I am today. I’ll go out and work on the things I need to work on. But if I worked on everything I needed to work on before the fight and gave it my all, I couldn’t do anything more. If the fight doesn’t go my way, there’s not much I can do, right?”

To say McGowan’s approach to competition is refreshing would be an understatement. By thinking this way, the 29-year-old shows not only humility, maturity and understanding, but also intelligence and confidence that most would lack, given everything he has just said. after all, intelligence has as much to do with the ability to accept and cope with reality as it does with anything else. Even the self-confidence that so many boxers need and desire is only beneficial when it is a confidence rooted in some reality and an awareness of what is true and what is not. Otherwise, it is not self-confidence, but an illusion.

“I got a surprise shot at the European title and I think everyone thought Baraou was going to knock me out and it was going to be a quick and uncomplicated night for him,” McGowan said. “The scorecards (119-110, 118-110 and 117-111) may indicate that it was an “uncomplicated” night for him, but I know full well that every round was close. Okay, there were one or two rounds that he won clearly, but the rest were close. It was never for him.

– He’s not some nobody either. He was a legitimate, solid, world-class fighter with a European title. I gave my all, but it wasn’t enough.”

The Mancunian added: “I lost, but I’m not defeated. At one point in my career, I never thought I would be in fights like this. But there I was headlining a gigantic European title fight on Channel 5 and giving the fans what they wanted to see. For me it really doesn’t get much bigger than that. That was crazy. I know I said that if I won this fight it would make my career easier, but even just remembering this whole situation – fighting for the European title against the second WBA – is priceless. As a child, I would have done anything for this moment.”

No matter how humble he is, and certainly as he is, McGowan is not the type of man to eat dinner while performing – whether in victory or defeat. Instead, as Monday showed, he is more willing to break away from the ersatz world of attention and adulation and go straight back to what he does best and what he knows. In other words, he wants to get back to reality as quickly as possible; day job; real life.

“It wasn’t that bad,” he said of his first day back at work, where he measured and cut drywall. “I didn’t have to do much. I just took measurements of the drywall, then did some trimming and tidying up.

“Everyone (at work) was dead ecstatic. Everyone was just talking about the fight and praising me a lot. I liked. It’s nice to have that balance, meet other people and get some routine back in your life. Otherwise you’ll just dwell on it.

Before the drywall was cut, McGowan could be seen at Joe Gallagher’s boxing gym. It was there he stayed until 11.30 and there he paraded and bore the only signs of success he took home from Friday’s fight at Bolton.

“When I have a gigantic fight like that, especially a loss, I like to just go into the fight on Monday and get it out,” he said. “Honestly, I just wanted to put on the Grant gloves I had. I wore Grant’s gloves when I fought and I always wanted to wear them. I’ve always dreamed about them, but I would never pay for them. I took them home with me so I could wear them to the gym.”

See. Who needs seat belts?

From London to Las Vegas with Puerto Rico sandwiched in between this Saturday (June 15) was a busy night for boxing.

World titles were at stake, and reputations were at stake in the cruiserweight, lithe heavyweight, super lightweight and lightweight divisions. And although the main winners; Chris Billam-Smith, Jack Massey, David Benavidez, Gervonta Davis and Liam Paro are rightly praised for their victories. What does the future hold for those who fall on the wrong side of the results?

The events of Saturday evening did not end the careers of the beaten ones Richard Riakporhe, Isaac Chamberlain, Oleksandr Gvozdyk, Frank Martin AND Subriel Matias but the quintet will still have the sour taste of defeat 48 hours after the fights.

analyzes the further fate of five men on the losing side and we start with “Night Train” Richard Riakporhe. Composed and confident on the eve of his WBO cruiserweight title fight against Chris Billam-Smith, the evening proved to be something of a disaster for Riakporhe.

The 34-year-old was on Crystal Palace’s home turf at Selhurst Park and entered the ring wearing Palace colors, with fans on his side and bookmakers seeing him as favorite to win the title. The champion had a different opinion and despite his nickname “The Gentleman”, he was dressed in wicked black and looked like a man who could not be defeated from start to finish.

Billam-Smith wanted revenge for the defeat to Riakporhe in 2019, which is the only defeat in his history. Bournemouth and manager Shane McGuigan had a game plan that was too clever for the one-dimensional Riakporhe to do anything. Sent off, strangled and overthought, Riakporhe’s knockout power couldn’t really be executed as Billam-Smith absorbed any painful shots that found the mark.

The defeat was sobering for Riakporhe, who had to go back to the drawing board with coach Angel Fernandez, who pleaded with his fighter between rounds to follow instructions. After signing a contract extension with Boxxer last spring and being one of their first signings, Riakporhe still has a future ahead of him, but who could he fight next? A loss as mandatory challenger will have an impact on his WBO world ranking, but he has ample opportunity ahead of him in a division where it’s not strenuous to find fights.

Billam-Smith’s former opponent Mateusz Masternak could be a valuable exercise for Riakporhe, whose firepower would probably be too much for the Polish veteran. Former world champion Mairis Briedis is an attractive option, but it is not affordable. Cuban artist Yuniel Dorticos it would be half of a fan-friendly fight if he accepted Callum Johnson who, after returning to sport, calmly goes about his business.

If Riakporhe has struggled at this weight and is no longer able to make the 200-pound limit, then a move to bridgeweight is likely before the logical move to heavyweight. Recently, a much-hated division has been welcomed Lawrence area to their ranks, who quickly became the WBC champion with his Polish demolition of Łukasz Różański. Riakporhe and Okolie are not just rivals, but two men who dislike each other and in February 2023, they almost came to blows at the London premiere of Creed III. A professional fight between the two may look good on paper, but could be a tough sell to Boxxer’s broadcast partner, Sky Sports.

Chamberlain (left) in action against Massey (photo: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

It was another of Selhurst Park’s beaten warriors Isaac Chamberlain who could be another cruiserweight alternative for Riakporhe after losing to Jack Massey in the European and Commonwealth cruiserweight competition.

Chamberlain has been trying to get under Massey’s skin all week, insisting he’s just being himself. Come fight night, Chamberlain tried to pass the Marple fighter, but got right into his hands and was consistently caught from distance and close range. Chamberlain tried to force the action and looked like he was hurting Massey at times in the second half of the fight, but Massey was overall the better and clearly deserved the win.

The defeat is Chamberlain’s third after earlier losses to Lawrence Okolie and Chris Billam-Smith. There is no shame in losing to players of Massey’s caliber, but the Brixton man would be heading towards a world title shot if he won on Saturday night. The natural fight for him would be to fight this fight now Vidal Riley who has been making enough noise lately about fighting Chamberlain that he may now get his chance. Ellis Zorro – who has suffered back-to-back defeats to quality opposition in Jai Opetai and Cheavon Clarke – should also be taken into account.

Beyond the pond Frank Martin his first foray into the elite level ended in a painfully crushing eighth-round knockout defeat to Gervonta “Tank” Davis, who defended his WBA lightweight title.

The skillful and athletic Martin had a promising start in the first three rounds, but to the delight of Davis, he began to jump on the rope too often, who then unloaded his world-class punching power. At 29 years aged and with only one loss to his name, Martin can undoubtedly return to the ring, but the top 135-pound fighters are scattered across various promotional companies, which means Martin may have to continue to play second fiddle. However, there are opportunities closer to home in the Premier Boxing Champion stable, including Chris Colbert and Javier Fortuna or even polarization Roland Romero who lost to “Tank” two years ago.

Before Martin and Davis entered the ring for their main event at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, David Benavidez and Oleksandr Gvozdyk were on hand to provide a decent-looking main support contest in the lithe heavyweight division.

For Benavidez at 175 pounds, it was his first fight after postponing his pursuit of undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez. And although there were various injuries in the ring on Saturday, he coped with the risky threat from his Ukrainian opponent, winning by unanimous decision and taking the interim WBC belt with him.

What now with Gwozdyk (right) after the second defeat? (Photo: Steve Marcus/Getty Images)

Even though Gvozdyk was 37 years aged, he didn’t look like cannon fodder for Benavidez on Saturday night. The former WBC lithe heavyweight champion took a lot of power punches, but absorbed them and found his own success, and by the end he looked like the fresher of the two fighters, but ultimately never looked like the winner.

However, it seems that there is still a lot of fight ahead of “The Nail”, who currently has two defeats, albeit against Benavidez and number one in the lithe heavyweight division, Artur Beterbiev. After completing a three-year and four-month retirement, Gvozdyk won three more fights against Josue Obando, Ricards Bolotniks and Isaac Rodrigues, respectively, before facing Benavidez.

Great Britain Callum Smith – who himself lost to Beterbiev in January – a match with Gvozdyk is an intriguing prospect if both men continue their careers. Gwozdyk will want to continue fighting at the highest level possible, which may bring Smith, Anthony Yarde and Marcus Browne on the table. Gvozdyk’s ultimate goal was to challenge Beterbiev’s winner against Dmitry Bivol, but while he took a step back on Saturday, the former Olympic medalist is able to move forward again.

Matias lost the world title in front of home fans to Liam Paro (Photo: Melina Pizano/Matchroom.)

Meanwhile, in Puerto Rico, reputation Subriel Matias received a shock when undefeated Australian Liam Paro entered the lion’s den and emerged as the IBF super lightweight champion. After a successful first six rounds for Paro, Matias faced him and the home favorite could do little to move the steely Australian who was not to be denied.

Having signed with Matchroom, there is no shortage of options for Matias. It’s likely we’ll see him again on one of Eddie Hearn’s US shows later this year. Stable companion Regis Prograis could be an attractive proposition if the defeated champion wants to return to fight another top-class operator, or maybe we will see the 32-year-old face an opponent like Sergei Lipinets who could be made for him. Ireland Sean McComb – who was incredibly unlucky to lose to Arnold Barboza in April – may have the wrong style for Matias, but the Puerto Rican would certainly appreciate his chances of winning. Either way, his reputation as one of the most risky men in boxing is currently on fire and needs to be extinguished immediately.