By Jamie Albrecht.

It is always a relief to get back into the “swing of things”. Especially when the swinging involved consists of two gloved fists eagerly awaiting to kick off 2010’s boxing calendar with a bang, and record an impressive performance.

In the instance of September 17th, 2010 one of the combatants vying for supremacy will be Ashton’s own Jon “2 smokes” Kays. He will be facing off against Welsh Super-Featherweight boss Dai Davies in the hope of winning the international masters’ Super-Featherweight title.
Speaking on the fight, Kays has expressed great confidence. He credits a lot of this to working with highly regarded trainer Bobby Rimmer, stating “Bobby has brought me on massively over the past 19 months I have been working with him. He has spent a lot of time improving my technical side and working on my strength”. Kays appears to relish the opportunity to work with a man who has worked with Light-Welterweight great Ricky Hatton, as well as Michael Gomez and explained that training alongside Blackpool favourite Brian “The Lion” Rose and Tony Jeffries “has really brought me on”.

Kays sees the International Masters title belt as a considerable tool which will help advance his boxing career, but is in no way getting complacent, ensuring that the Davies fight is the only thing he is concentrating on at the moment. “I’m looking to pick up the (International) Masters title and gain the experience of being in a 10 round fight which will hold me in good stead for any future fights that come up.” His ambition stretches to future domestic glories; “I’m hoping to move on from the masters, perhaps with an English or British eliminator after this…but I’m not looking past Dai Davies.”

“2 smokes” is anticipating an exciting contest; “I’ve heard he’s a tough lad who will come and have a go and I hope he does because it will bring out the best in me and make it an exciting fight for the fans”.

Also featured on the bill are the hard-hitting Super-Middleweight Warren Tansey, who will be looking to build on his perfect knockout ratio, and Brian Rose, who will most certainly be looking to bounce back with a win following his TKO defeat to Max Maxwell in 6 rounds last May. They will be joined by promising prospects such as undefeated Light-Welterweight Karl Place and Manchester southpaw Terry Flanagan. To add to the extravaganza, the evening also includes contests involving a number of other young rising VIP boxing stars including Blain Younis, Austin Hornsby, Nick Quigley, Marvin Grainger, Joe Collins and Kieran Farrell.

All in all, an exciting night of boxing looks to be on the cards and should offer a satisfactory pre-cursor to what will be an exciting weekend of boxing in its entirety.

Doors open 7.00pm

Boxing Commences 7.30pm Ticket prices £30.00 general admission £50.00 Ringside

ALL TICKETS AVAILABLE FROM WWW.VIPBE.CO.UK

British boxing has experienced something of a renaissance since the rollercoaster ride career of Manchester’s own “Hitman” captured the hearts of not just the boxing hardcore, but the armchair fan as well. It can be argued that Super-middleweight king Joe Calzaghe should clearly remain at the forefront of the success of the British scene in recent years, but for many fans, boxing is a profession that relies hugely on the personality as well as the fistic expertise of the man in order to determine success, equated by prize money won. Since the respective carers of Hatton and Calzaghe began to enter their twilight years, a number of capable candidates have stepped in to fill the void left by these boxing superstars. Carl Froch, David Haye and Amir Khan are the names that instantly leap to mind. These examples however are fighters that have already made the difficult transition from World title prospect to champion and will therefore be recognised as such in the history books. The next generation is coming through fast, and no doubt the success will continue to flow from the British Isles. What follows is an overview of the latest pool of talent from the United Kingdom that may be destined for big things in the future, emulating the current crop of brilliance.

Tyrone Nurse
Yet another promising prospect enters the fray of the exciting light-welterweight division. Enter Yorkshire’s Tyrone Nurse. The 20 year old from the Steve Wood VIP stable has thus far boxed his way to comfortable points victories over a large array of tough Journeyman opposition with one TKO victory in his 13 wins. He has been through a lot, even as a young professional. He has suffered an early knockdown,(against Adam Kelly) suffered cuts, and braved a few painful moments, still managing to taste victory in the process. Nurse sees these experiences as beneficial learning curves, stating “I’m happy with all the stuff I’ve been through… as it’s all happened early and I’ve managed to cope with each and everyone without losing my cool or getting frustrated by it”. This outlook is refreshing. One can clearly deduce that Nurse is not governed by fear of losing his unbeaten record, which of course, as with any dedicated professional, he is happy to possess, by shying away from boxing’s difficulties. Seeing these minor episodes as a benefit adds to his ring education and will mean he is not facing total darkness when he is undoubtedly faced with the same obstacles should he eventually reach the bigger stage he longs to compete on. The road ahead is long however, and whilst Nurse acknowledges his level of opposition has been somewhat below par (through no fault of his management) he has stressed that he is in no rush to progress too soon, and would rather learn his trade patiently than needlessly enter the lions’ den of a championship contest unprepared. After just recently being aired on Sky Sports in his fifth round stoppage of Johnny Greaves, Nurse has gained the exposure he needs to start the ascent up the light-welter ladder to success. , Nurse is one to keep an eye on, particularly with sky’s newfound interest and the drive of his management the sky is the limit. As Tyrone himself proclaims “There’s going to be some exciting and meaningful moments to come!”

October 2nd 2010 will signal a welcomed change to this scenario. Some of the biggest names in British boxing will gather at the Reebok Stadium’s De Vere Whites hotel to celebrate the fruitful career of Salford’s Jamie Moore, Former Irish, British, Commonwealth and European Light-middleweight champion.

Moore engaged in many memorable battles in his 11 year career, which began at Manchester’s Bowlers arena with a third round TKO over Botswana’s Clive Johnson. Since that night, the knockouts never stopped, as Jamie built a reputation as a crowd pleasing southpaw who was never afraid to dig deep, one particular example of this being with the thrilling third fight of a trilogy against Liverpool’s Michael Jones for the British title, where following a breathtaking up-down slugfest, Moore rallied to stop Jones in the sixth. Matthew Macklin also had the privilege of a fight with Mooresey, another contest that will never be forgotten and another British classic (and fight of the year,) described as a “barnstormer”, that saw the two fighters meet in the centre of the ring for the ultimate test of stamina and guts, with Moore reigning supreme. These are the fights that justify a night of thanks and appreciation for a man who never failed to disappoint, whether that ended in victory or defeat.

Notable guests include Former 2 weight World champion, Ricky “The Hitman” Hatton, who will be a speaker at the event and former opponents Matthew Macklin and “Old Spice” Ryan Rhodes, who defeated Jamie in another classic for the European title in October 2009, in what was to be Jamie’s last big occasion in the ring.

Speaking on the event, Jamie expressed gratitude towards manager and friend Steve Wood, who has organised the event and stated that the money raised from the testimonial would be of great benefit to himself and his family. He stated that upon starting his career “(my) big ambition when i began was to make enough money for the kids to have a roof over their head and get the mortgage paid…the money raised will go some way towards doing this and it is a great gesture”.

Jamie continues to give back to the community that have supported him and runs daily circuit training sessions for people in the area, along with writing a weekly column for the publication Boxing News and carrying out promotional work for CNP products.

It is refreshing that boxing has found the time to commemorate the career of a modern British great and hopefully the evening will go a long way to show that the fighters such as Moore, who give so much, will never be forgotten and will forever be applauded for the entertainment, thrills and displays of courage and valour they provide.

Jamie Moore Testimonial Dinner
Saturday 2nd October 2010
De Vere Whites Hotel, Reebok Stadium

To Book Tickets, Please Phone Lyn Wood on 01942 874241

CHAD GAYNOR – Moved to 4-0 with a 1st round stoppage of the normally durable Johnny Greaves who was not hurt but not answering back to the onslaught from the impressive 19 year old from Rotherham.

GARY DAVIES – Has just returned from honeymoon and has gone straight back into the gym in preparation for a crack at winning back the Lonsdale belt next season. Gary is mandatory by the BBBoC to fight the winner of Stuart Hall and Martin Power which he is more than up for , but one eye on is already on the European title , he would love a crack at Jamie McDonnell !!!

NEW SEASON – This year is now wrapped up for VIP fighters and the boxers are now all in rest mode getting ready for the new season to start back in September. Shows for the Veledrome , Colne. George Carnell centre and Wigan are to be announced shortly ensuring the boys will be busy after an indifferent year.

Friday 28th May 2010

Gary Sykes – Defended his British title with a landslide points victory over the game Kevin O’Hara who never stopped trying but was out of his class against the Dewsbury 5 Star champion who is growing in confidence each fight.

Tyrone Nurse – Shown his improvement by stooping the normally durable Johnny Greaves in 5 rounds , they have fought previously with a points win for Nurse who continues to impress.

Josh Warrington – Moved to 3-0 with a aggressive punching display against the game debutant Riley from Middlesbrough who despite being hit by everything kept in the fight. At the end he looked like he had been run over by a bus and the shame was that SKY did not film this fight of the night.

Bryan Rose – Blew his chance of first crack at Sam Webb’s British title defence when he was knocked out in round 6 by Max Maxwell. Bryan did not look his normal self and although not at his best was winning the fight until after his best round in the fifth , he started on the ropes in round 6 with his hands down and copped a beauty overhand hayemaker. It is a harsh lesson to learn but we believe it will make him a better fighter and the British crack will come again.

Saturday 29th May 2010

Mark Moran – Was stopped in the third round of the opening round against eventual Prize-fighter winner Willey Casey in what proved to be fight of the night in a great tournament. Despite 13 months out Mark won the 1st round showing his better boxing skills clicking up points with straight punches and good body shots , we hoped this would continue but Willie drew Mark into a fight and although competitive with both fighters hurt on many occasions, Willie turned out the slightly stronger and durable man on the night.

Sunday 30th May 2010

Jon Kays – Was disappointed when Master challenger Mo Khalid withdrew and his fight was reduced to a 8 round contest with Bulgarian Yordan Vasilev. However he kept his composure and boxed a very neat fight winning every round dominating behind a good jab and working the body well.

Terry Flannigan – Keeps showing massive improvement and stopped Hungarian Csaba Toth in under a minute.

Warren Tansey – Another VIP fighter who improves each day got his third stoppage on the trout – since his debut loss – with a first round KO off the normally durable Ally Morrisson.

BRIAN ROSE – Is simply flying with the news that he will challenge Sam Webb for the British Title in the New year.

GARY SYKES – Will have the first defence of his British Super-Featherweight title against Kevin O’Hara at Huddersfield on Friday the 28th May 2010 . The card will also feature VIP fighters GARY DAVIES , TYRONE NURSE and JOSH WARRINGTON.

CHAD GAYNOR – The Rotherham prospect will get his first taste of SKY action when he boxes in Doncaster on the undercard of Jamie McDonalds first European title defence in June , date is to be confirmed.

CARL DILKS – Is passing time sparring in France whilst he awaits a date confirmation from Hayemaker on his challenge to George Groves.

MARK MORAN – Has taken the opportunity to enter the Super-Bantamweight Prize-Fighter on the 29th May 2010 ay York Hall.

22nd MAY AT COLNE – Chris O’Brien will top the bill in his home town supported by fellow VIP fighter Shayne Singleton , the bill will also feature Liam Walsh , Lee Bennett and Wayne Bennett.

30th MAY AT STALYBRIDGE – Jon Kays will top the bill near his home town of Ashton and be supported by VIP fighters Terry Flannigan and Warren Tansey , other fighters on the show include Austin Hornsby , Lee Brewster and Blain Unis.

Read his Statement = http://www.jamie-moore.co.uk/news.htm

Tough guy Harvey has twice defeated the ‘One Man Riot’s’ close pal and VIP stablemate Chris Johnson.

But promoter Steve Wood insists there won’t be another upset predicting: “Alex is on a good run and in the mood to cause Harvey non-stop problems.

“He has sold a lot of tickets in his hometown and won’t be letting his fans down.

“Alex puts so much into boxing and improvement is coming. I don’t see why he shouldn’t be involved in British title eliminators by the end of the year.”

Matvienko, 31, is the current British Masters light-middleweight champion and shares Wood’s optimism for the future.

Matvienko (14-1) said: “I’m not saying I am the next world champion, but I would love to go on and fight for the British title. My Masters title means the world.

“How far can I go in the sport? Who’s to say? I just want to be as good as I possibly can be.

“I don’t want to leave boxing with any excuses. I want to know that I have given my best and with the team I have behind me feel I can continue to progress.”

Wood is delighted with the quality of his promotion after the cancellation of a recent Blackpool card adding: “My cards are value for money and this more than makes up for the Blackpool nightmare.”

An exciting undercard features John Kays, Shayne Singleton, Warren Tansey, Nick Quigley, Stephen Jennings, Johnson, Shaun Docherty, Paul Economides and debutants Austin Hornsby, Joe Collins and Liam Walsh.

Walsh has played for Great Britain’s amateur rugby league team and has sold more than 100 tickets for his first pro fight.

Tickets are available from boxers on the show priced £30 and £50, www.vipbe.co.uk or available on the door.

TYRONE NURSE – Moved to 12-0 with what proved a tricky victory over Adam Kelly . Tyrone Was a bit flat early on and did not use his excellent jab as much as normal and was even caught square in round 2 that saw him touch down in embarrassment .That was the wake up call he needed and he rose , shook of his laughter and started to control the fight which saw him a comfortable 58-56 winner on points.

JOSH WARRINGTON – Dominated his 4 round contest which was also shown on SKY and the 19 year old moves to 3-0 .

CHAD GAYNOR – Chad shown his ability last Sunday at Rotherham when he moved to 3-0 with a third round stoppage victory

BRETT FLOURNEY – Is back down to Welterweight after his adventure in the Light-Middleweight Prize-fighter competition which saw him loose in the final to Prince Arran. Brett won his first 2 fights with ease and was also winning the final until he touched down in the last round swinging the votes the other way. Brett can make the 10st 7lb limit and is now looking for meaningful fights at this weight and would be willing to fight anyone in a eliminator including local boy Michael Jennings.

14TH MARCH AT BOLTON – All is running well for this weeks VIP show which will be topped by local hero Alex Mattvienko with a very full undercard . Following the jinxed Blackpool show which had to be cancelled the already mega show will have extra fights added from Blackpool , full details will be posted shortly.

Rose, 25, hopes to delight his hometown fans at Blackpool Tower on Saturday night (6th March) when he challenges French star Bertrand Aloa for the vacant International Masters light-middleweight crown.

Promoter Steve Wood hopes that the Central Area title holder could meet his occasional sparring partner Arron in a British title eliminator later this year.

Wood said: “It is a match that would make a lot of sense for both boxers and would be a genuine 50-50 fight.

“Brian is unbeaten and Arron is in top form as he showed at Prizefighter last week, but we cannot over look this weekend’s challenge.”

Rose (14-0-1) added: “It was difficult to work Arron out when we first sparred because he is 6ft 4in, but by the end it had gone well.”

Rose’s clash against Aloa had been due to take place last weekend but was pushed back seven days at late notice because of a problem with medicals.

Manchester based Wood said: “I would like to apologise to everybody because the mix up was my fault and left it too late to get the medicals to the relevant authorities.

“I’m sure disappointed fans will get proper entertainment this weekend though and enjoy a top class night of boxing.

The tear up the Tower will be Rose’s first fight since his tragic tenth round stoppage of Jason Rushton in October.

Rushton needed brain surgery after the contests and although he is on the mend, the injury left Rose distraught and he is dedicating the Aloa (15-6) fight to his former rival.

Also on the bill are several if VIP boxing’s top prospects including Kieran Farrell, Chris O’Brien and Chris Johnson.

Tickets are still available from boxers on the bill www.ticketmaster.co.uk and www.vipbe.co.uk