Ronnie "The Shark" Clark -My Views following your comments

[daviddee]

berchelts better then martinez imo

is ronnie as good as burns?

but yes, if you can somehow get ibf fights with the likes of dib, boschiero, etc then your talking of good chances

Fair enough that’s your opinion with Berchelt I see a lot of similarities... As for Ronnie and Ricky they are very very different fighters and it would be disrespectful to say Ronnie is as good as Ricky after everything Ricky has achieved.. Ricky was promoted really well and they took the risk at the right time. I know Ronnie can compete at that level and believe the better the fighter the better he will be.. Time will tell

[TheLeprechaun]

berchelts better then martinez imo

is ronnie as good as burns?

but yes, if you can somehow get ibf fights with the likes of dib, boschiero, etc then your talking of good chances

Fair enough that’s your opinion with Berchelt I see a lot of similarities... As for Ronnie and Ricky they are very very different fighters and it would be disrespectful to say Ronnie is as good as Ricky after everything Ricky has achieved.. Ricky was promoted really well and they took the risk at the right time. I know Ronnie can compete at that level and believe the better the fighter the better he will be.. Time will tell

Mate, saying martinez is better that berchelt is up there with the absolute worst things ive read people write on boxing. Its really really poor. What berchelt fights have you watched?

[mainman1]

Only my 2 pence worth for what its worth

@markhdunlop It is great having managers, coaches and boxers posting on the forum so i appreciate you taking the time to do so but I think you are going too far with what the win really proves as to where Ronnie is at. Yes it was a great win for Ronnie and the bookies had Zelfa (not Zelpha) as favourite but lets put all the cards on the table. Zelfa although a great prospect but he had never been tested even at British level before the fight with Ronnie and I think that Ronnie got it spot on in the build up when he said it was too soon for Zelfa. Ronnie showed all his experience and mental strength in getting through the fight and claiming the victory. Imo it showed that was in the right place to finally achieve his aim of being British champion and that should be his next challenge. In all honesty Ronnie isn't the European champ, he is the IBF East/West European Champion which is really only a belt to help get ranking points. The EBU is the real European title and the IBF East/West European title is really just the same as the WBO European title and the EU title. Ronnie should be chasing the winner of the Bowen vs Hughes fight and if he can pick up that title then imo he can look to go after higher honours like the EBU or chase a world title but imo a win over an untested prospect doesn't suddenly prove Ronnie is world level and should be matched accordingly.

@daviddee and @JamieM I have to agree with @Alba that in some respects you do Ronnie no favours especially when it comes to social media, I've only spoken to Ronnie at a couple of shows and he comes across as very likeable, down to earth and respectful when it comes to other fighters but some of the things you 2 have previously wrote ie dropping Ricky Burns in sparring and the now famous story of Billy dipping his chips into his McFlurry (hilarious) imo just shows that you both don't seem to have the same respect for fellow professionals as your brother does. I know that behind the scenes you are both very helpful to Ronnie so that he can get on with his training but I just think that you both need to calm things down sometimes instead of getting carried away. Can I ask you a serious question? Do both of you really believe that Zelfa is better than Martin J Ward, Anthony Cacace or Craig Evans? If you both were honest don't you think that Ronnie's next fight should be for the British or EBU title? I think looking fight world champions after beating an unproven prospect is too big a step but once again only my opinion.

As for Ronnie, more fighters should look at how he has conducted himself throughout his professional career. He has never turned down a fight and kept working hard even when others have doubted him he has kept working hard and finally got his breakthrough win against Zelfa, hopefully now he gets a crack at the winner of Bowen vs Hughes and gives a real account of himself when fighting for the British title and if he can go all the way and eventually win a world title then nobody would deserve it more.

[JamieM]

Hey I'll answer a few of them, I agree on all you said in regards to zelfa, I believe ronnie got him at the right time and although unproven etc if a promoter can manipulate a record to get guys like zelfa into title fights and final elimnators for titles then why can't we manipulate the system too? We are going on the way boxing works as a whole and a business and all we want to do is profit from hype. If boxing was the way it's meant to be there would be one world title, one European etc etc so unfortuenty that's way above us. In have never once said let's fight for a world title. But if i had a choice of fighting someone like frenois and dib to get into position of a world title fight or fight Hughes or Bowen then a rematch with Barrett then sorry I take the first option as I feel the latter are harder fights.

Myself and David do conduct things a little different from Ronnie so again you are bang on the money, but your outlook is wrong. Social media is what it is. The old cliche the emptiest can make the most noise does not apply, it should be the emptiest can does not get fights. Alot of what we do is ways to get Ronnie out there. We want to try and get him fights and he knows exactly why we do it. Ronnie lives for boxing and properly the best example of how we work on a smaller scale is Danny Garcia. His dad is out there saying his son beats everyone and Danny is a proper good guy. We just want to get Ronnie what we feel he deserves and get him chances and if that means that people who dont know me hate a username then well worth it. I for one do not want him to just be forgotten man, boxing for us is not about money, titles or status. It's about keeping Ronnie motivated and his mind occupied cause with it focus etc then life is hard. Fighting is all he knows.

People may think that we are idiots etc but trust me there is a method to everything. Ronnie is respectful and to be honest hes far to laid back. We have beated the drum for years. Almost 6000 likes on his fan page, not one was bought like most pages, selling a constant amount of tickets for home shows, following him home and away. Sorting out sponsors, driving him to sparring all in support of our brother while working full time. Every person has a role and Mark Dunlop has a key role but it's all irrelevant cause all that matters is Ronnie is given the chance to do what he wants to do. None of us matter and none of us deserve a single ounce of credit. I have met a few people off of here at shows etc also and I laugh with them cause I am a quiet down to earth guy who actually loves boxing..... but having an insight into the politics does make me sick sometimes.

[Ginger one to watch]

Berchelt is top draw,superior to Rocky Martinez in every way.

He would batter Ronnie.Theres just no need for this thread to go here.Dibb yeah why not.

[daviddee]

Only my 2 pence worth for what its worth

@markhdunlop It is great having managers, coaches and boxers posting on the forum so i appreciate you taking the time to do so but I think you are going too far with what the win really proves as to where Ronnie is at. Yes it was a great win for Ronnie and the bookies had Zelfa (not Zelpha) as favourite but lets put all the cards on the table. Zelfa although a great prospect but he had never been tested even at British level before the fight with Ronnie and I think that Ronnie got it spot on in the build up when he said it was too soon for Zelfa. Ronnie showed all his experience and mental strength in getting through the fight and claiming the victory. Imo it showed that was in the right place to finally achieve his aim of being British champion and that should be his next challenge. In all honesty Ronnie isn't the European champ, he is the IBF East/West European Champion which is really only a belt to help get ranking points. The EBU is the real European title and the IBF East/West European title is really just the same as the WBO European title and the EU title. Ronnie should be chasing the winner of the Bowen vs Hughes fight and if he can pick up that title then imo he can look to go after higher honours like the EBU or chase a world title but imo a win over an untested prospect doesn't suddenly prove Ronnie is world level and should be matched accordingly.

@daviddee and @JamieM I have to agree with @Alba that in some respects you do Ronnie no favours especially when it comes to social media, I've only spoken to Ronnie at a couple of shows and he comes across as very likeable, down to earth and respectful when it comes to other fighters but some of the things you 2 have previously wrote ie dropping Ricky Burns in sparring and the now famous story of Billy dipping his chips into his McFlurry (hilarious) imo just shows that you both don't seem to have the same respect for fellow professionals as your brother does. I know that behind the scenes you are both very helpful to Ronnie so that he can get on with his training but I just think that you both need to calm things down sometimes instead of getting carried away. Can I ask you a serious question? Do both of you really believe that Zelfa is better than Martin J Ward, Anthony Cacace or Craig Evans? If you both were honest don't you think that Ronnie's next fight should be for the British or EBU title? I think looking fight world champions after beating an unproven prospect is too big a step but once again only my opinion.

As for Ronnie, more fighters should look at how he has conducted himself throughout his professional career. He has never turned down a fight and kept working hard even when others have doubted him he has kept working hard and finally got his breakthrough win against Zelfa, hopefully now he gets a crack at the winner of Bowen vs Hughes and gives a real account of himself when fighting for the British title and if he can go all the way and eventually win a world title then nobody would deserve it more.

I see Jamie has responded but I want to answer a few of the other questions.. Firstly with regards to respect, you will find we are the most respectful people you will get the Ricky Burns sparring stories came from Billy we just put the record straight.. As for the McFlurry and other things.. Me and Billy have been known to wind each other up and both us have reacted but I really respect Billy.. I think he is a great trainer and he knows about boxing.. He does waffle a bit but who doesn’t... Boxing is a sport that can have serious life changing/ending implications if you take that too serious then people need to look at theirselves.. Only guarantee in life is we all die so may as well be positive and don’t take it too serious I look at boxing in the same way... If someone bites on here then I am going to have a laugh with it. As for Zelfa Barrett being better than Ward, Evans and Cacacae.. I know he’s better Zelfa is a excellent fighter and isn’t getting the credit he deserves for that fight.. That was the best Ronnie has ever fought 10 times the fighter he has ever been.. Look at these 2 close fights with Ward and Cacacae that same Ronnie would of beat both them no way they could cope with the intensity Ronnie fought at.. Evans was a joke he ran away the whole fight got protected with the ref and got a horrendous home decision that fight was not even close.. Depending how Zelfa comes back from this will depend where he will go.. His uncle Pat is very good and watching how they go about their business is amazing. Proper professional outfit.. I agree Ronnie got him at the right time and at the right weight!! That is the big thing here is weight.. Fighters cut badly to make this weight Ronnie is a beast at this weight there is a reason why every fighter goes backwards against him.. I believe Zelfa V Lewis Ritson would be a 50/50 fight and I really rate Lewis. After a few come back fights I think Zelfa beats Lewis and can become a World Champion..

As for where should he go British Title or EBU I would say EBU he beats Martin J Ward and I think Hearn even knows that.. If Ronnie had threw the punches he caught Zelfa with he would of Knocked out Ward. They won’t take that fight they are not stupid.. So why go for the British?? He wants to fight for a world title there’s a route with the IBF plenty of winable fights there so why fight fighters ranked below him.. As Jamie says politics and no one willing to back a real fighter would rather back show ponies..

[daviddee]

Berchelt is top draw,superior to Rocky Martinez in every way.

He would batter Ronnie.Theres just no need for this thread to go here.Dibb yeah why not.

Berchelt has fought no one and not looked great in doing it.. Martinez has wins against Beltran.. Estrada .. Magdelano and Salido who are a lot better than anyone Berchelt has faced.. He was beat by Ricky Burns in a close fight and by proper elite level fighters like Garcia and Lomachenko all 3 fighters would beat Berchelt.. When Martinez fought Burns all that was said Ricky had no chance.. We will see what happens if Berchelt actually steps up to true World Level

[PredatorHayds]

Berchelt is a class fighter and far better than Martinez has ever been.

He beat Miura and Vargas with ease. He can bang and more importantly box to instructions when needed.

Martinez best two wins are a over the hill Salido (in a close one) and Nicky Cook.

Miura and Vargas are far better wins than Salido and Cook.

I personally want to see Clark win the British title. I need to double check but I think I had him nicking the Ward fight.
Nothing wrong in fighting for the British and getting a couple of defences.

[daviddee]

Berchelt is a class fighter and far better than Martinez has ever been.

He beat Miura and Vargas with ease. He can bang and more importantly box to instructions when needed.

Martinez best two wins are a over the hill Salido (in a close one) and Nicky Cook.

Miura and Vargas are far better wins than Salido and Cook.

I personally want to see Clark win the British title. I need to double check but I think I had him nicking the Ward fight.
Nothing wrong in fighting for the British and getting a couple of defences.

I haven’t said he’s not Class. I see Gervonta Davis staying at SuperFeather so that fight would now make most sense for Berchelt and I feel he will lose that one.. We disagree on Martinez and Berchelt.. I think Beltran and Salido would beat Muira and Vargas so can’t agree on better wins.. Although I had Lomachenko beating Salido he gave him his hardest fight..

If the British Title is tied up for a year I don’t see the point waiting on that.. If that was his next fight I would be up for that.. I want to see him fight in Dundee build a fan base in Scotland to get the huge fights here.. He’s a huge character and fan friendly with a good promoter would do good business

[jamamb]

miguel beltran jr? why is he better then vargas and miura? do you even know who beltran is? are you sure you have the right beltran? martinez beat the boxrec #156 beltran

you also said walter estrada is much better then vargas and miura, which is truly baffling

[daviddee]

miguel beltran jr? why is he better then vargas and miura? do you even know who beltran is? are you sure you have the right beltran? martinez beat the boxrec #156 beltran

you also said walter estrada is much better then vargas and miura, which is truly baffling

I know the difference between Miguel and Raymundo.. I thought Beltran was a very decent fighter fringe world level and same with Estrada but I’ll give you that Muira and Vargas are probably better but not much of a difference.. I prefer Muira to Vargas but feel he doesn’t travel well.. A lot of his fights were in Japan.. I think Salido is the best opponent on both lists.. I think Salido would possible beat Berchelt.. I think you feel I am not given Berchelt the credit he deserves and I genuinely am he’s a world level fighter same as Martinez.. I just believe he is beatable.. There is a very fine line between fringe World Class and World Class.. I believe it’s then a huge leap to be Elite... my examples would be Burns, Crolla, Flanagan, Eubank jnr all World Class fighters yet... Katsidis, Moses, Kevin Mitchell and David Price are all fringe only took a bit of luck and they would be World Class... Looking at Ronnie’s fights and his display v Zelfa Barret I would have him at European level I believe he’s on the same level as Martin J Ward(I Think he won that fight).. Liam Walsh and Stephen Smith are both Fringe World Class and Martin J Ward is pushing towards that these fighters have been massively promoted Ronnie has had nothing.. I hope that makes sense of where I’m coming from

[Tommy Gunn13]

All this talk Clark against world level guys is crazy, he beat an unproven boxer in Barrett ( was a good performance though) Walsh,Smith,Ward,Tennyson,Cacace & Bowen would all beat him IMO & there just names from the UK of the top of my head...

[bripez]

On the one hand I get it - the IBF Euro title gets him a ranking with the IBF, so he might get an opportunity there to fight for a vacant World title, and you couldn't blame him for taking it if it was offered.

However, if he cant get a home fight now, then any Title fight will be away from home and the odds stacked against him - if he loses, then what?

He is potentially worse off than he is now.

Why not have 2 or 3 fights against domestic opposition (that is team believe he will win anyway), earn a few quid, build his reputation, pick up another title or two etc. and then go for the IBF?

Surely this makes more sense?

[mattienelsen12]

miguel beltran jr? why is he better then vargas and miura? do you even know who beltran is? are you sure you have the right beltran? martinez beat the boxrec #156 beltran

you also said walter estrada is much better then vargas and miura, which is truly baffling

I know the difference between Miguel and Raymundo.. I thought Beltran was a very decent fighter fringe world level and same with Estrada but I’ll give you that Muira and Vargas are probably better but not much of a difference.. I prefer Muira to Vargas but feel he doesn’t travel well.. A lot of his fights were in Japan.. I think Salido is the best opponent on both lists.. I think Salido would possible beat Berchelt.. I think you feel I am not given Berchelt the credit he deserves and I genuinely am he’s a world level fighter same as Martinez.. I just believe he is beatable.. There is a very fine line between fringe World Class and World Class.. I believe it’s then a huge leap to be Elite... my examples would be Burns, Crolla, Flanagan, Eubank jnr all World Class fighters yet... Katsidis, Moses, Kevin Mitchell and David Price are all fringe only took a bit of luck and they would be World Class... Looking at Ronnie’s fights and his display v Zelfa Barret I would have him at European level I believe he’s on the same level as Martin J Ward(I Think he won that fight).. Liam Walsh and Stephen Smith are both Fringe World Class and Martin J Ward is pushing towards that these fighters have been massively promoted Ronnie has had nothing.. I hope that makes sense of where I’m coming from

Has Frank been in contact about who Ronnie is facing next?

[daviddee]

On the one hand I get it - the IBF Euro title gets him a ranking with the IBF, so he might get an opportunity there to fight for a vacant World title, and you couldn't blame him for taking it if it was offered.

However, if he cant get a home fight now, then any Title fight will be away from home and the odds stacked against him - if he loses, then what?

He is potentially worse off than he is now.

Why not have 2 or 3 fights against domestic opposition (that is team believe he will win anyway), earn a few quid, build his reputation, pick up another title or two etc. and then go for the IBF?

Surely this makes more sense?

Possibly if the fights are there but more likely he will get chances on 2 weeks notice which isn’t fair he deserves to have a full camp to fight someone

[daviddee]

miguel beltran jr? why is he better then vargas and miura? do you even know who beltran is? are you sure you have the right beltran? martinez beat the boxrec #156 beltran

you also said walter estrada is much better then vargas and miura, which is truly baffling

I know the difference between Miguel and Raymundo.. I thought Beltran was a very decent fighter fringe world level and same with Estrada but I’ll give you that Muira and Vargas are probably better but not much of a difference.. I prefer Muira to Vargas but feel he doesn’t travel well.. A lot of his fights were in Japan.. I think Salido is the best opponent on both lists.. I think Salido would possible beat Berchelt.. I think you feel I am not given Berchelt the credit he deserves and I genuinely am he’s a world level fighter same as Martinez.. I just believe he is beatable.. There is a very fine line between fringe World Class and World Class.. I believe it’s then a huge leap to be Elite... my examples would be Burns, Crolla, Flanagan, Eubank jnr all World Class fighters yet... Katsidis, Moses, Kevin Mitchell and David Price are all fringe only took a bit of luck and they would be World Class... Looking at Ronnie’s fights and his display v Zelfa Barret I would have him at European level I believe he’s on the same level as Martin J Ward(I Think he won that fight).. Liam Walsh and Stephen Smith are both Fringe World Class and Martin J Ward is pushing towards that these fighters have been massively promoted Ronnie has had nothing.. I hope that makes sense of where I’m coming from

Has Frank been in contact about who Ronnie is facing next?

Mark would be the man to answer that last I heard was No contact

[KiwiRider]

He is pencilled in for the 14th April.

Who is it going to be?

[JamieM]

I have no idea who it's going to be but I think it's going to be a 6 rounder to keep active. It's a sad state of affairs that despite beating Barrett we have no idea what's happening and we are basically waiting for the prmotors to try and screw us with short notice etc. Ronnie will be ready as he lives in the gym and now has backing. I still hope that Ronnie can get on a Scottish show rather than Belfast cause we wanna have a massive support. He's 33 and may not have many fights back here. I really think we can take 200 up to Aberdeen easy. We usually do 100 anywhere away from home in Scotland so I'm hopeful we can do it. Ronnie deserves everything he gets and people have opinions and we respect them but Ronnie out of every super feather in Britain has faced them all against the odds. No excuses he got in there and you don't lose, you learn. But I am telling you right now .. Ronnie will knock cacace out if they rematch.... hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard.

[Tommy Gunn13]

I see Ward - Tennyson Euro title & Bowen-Hughes Brit title has been announced today.. Where do that leave Ronnie?

[JamieM]

I am guessing that it's gonna be the Barrett rematch straight away. I look forward to seeing barret run away from Ronnie and see if he is successful.

[TheLeprechaun]

I am guessing that it's gonna be the Barrett rematch straight away. I look forward to seeing barret run away from Ronnie and see if he is successful.

Yeah if I was training Barrett I'd be wanting him to move a lot more than he did for sure. He landed some good shots to body and head and didn't drop Clark like he was dropped so it's probably best that he moves as much as he can. I don't think Barrett should go for the rematch. Another loss and he's going to become the next Tyrone Nurse of british boxing. Maybe he is that already. He's got skills for days but I thought he was a better counter puncher than he was. A good counter puncher figures out his opponent and lands clean shots as the fight progresses. Barrett didn't seem to be adjusting to Ronnie during the fight and just kept doing what he was doing, looking the part with his technique but it wasn't enough.

[David McAllister]

I have no idea who it's going to be but I think it's going to be a 6 rounder to keep active. It's a sad state of affairs that despite beating Barrett we have no idea what's happening and we are basically waiting for the prmotors to try and screw us with short notice etc. Ronnie will be ready as he lives in the gym and now has backing. I still hope that Ronnie can get on a Scottish show rather than Belfast cause we wanna have a massive support. He's 33 and may not have many fights back here. I really think we can take 200 up to Aberdeen easy. We usually do 100 anywhere away from home in Scotland so I'm hopeful we can do it. Ronnie deserves everything he gets and people have opinions and we respect them but Ronnie out of every super feather in Britain has faced them all against the odds. No excuses he got in there and you don't lose, you learn. But I am telling you right now .. Ronnie will knock cacace out if they rematch.... hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard.

If Mark is keen for a big fight for Ronnie in Aberdeen then I would defo be ok handling everything on my side in regards to venue, dates etc

[David McAllister]

I have no idea who it's going to be but I think it's going to be a 6 rounder to keep active. It's a sad state of affairs that despite beating Barrett we have no idea what's happening and we are basically waiting for the prmotors to try and screw us with short notice etc. Ronnie will be ready as he lives in the gym and now has backing. I still hope that Ronnie can get on a Scottish show rather than Belfast cause we wanna have a massive support. He's 33 and may not have many fights back here. I really think we can take 200 up to Aberdeen easy. We usually do 100 anywhere away from home in Scotland so I'm hopeful we can do it. Ronnie deserves everything he gets and people have opinions and we respect them but Ronnie out of every super feather in Britain has faced them all against the odds. No excuses he got in there and you don't lose, you learn. But I am telling you right now .. Ronnie will knock cacace out if they rematch.... hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard.

If Mark is keen for a big fight for Ronnie in Aberdeen then I would defo be ok handling everything on my side in regards to venue, dates etc I have enough fighters to help sell the undercard and if Ronnie can bring up 200 we could put on a massive show

[JamieM]

When is the next show mate? I hope we can get him on cause Dundee fans will follow. I think the rematch may happen in the summer so a nice fight for Ronnie will set.him up. As much as I love Belfast I think a fight back in Scotland is needed. A fight here Aberdeen or Edinburgh, the rematch and see how land lies and possible fight in Dundee on am MTK show maybe. I think Ronnie is in exact same boat he was before the Barrett fight where he's gonna have to be ready and fight in Barrett back garden against the odds. All that is wanted is 3 judges and he'll do it again.

[David McAllister]

When is the next show mate? I hope we can get him on cause Dundee fans will follow. I think the rematch may happen in the summer so a nice fight for Ronnie will set.him up. As much as I love Belfast I think a fight back in Scotland is needed. A fight here Aberdeen or Edinburgh, the rematch and see how land lies and possible fight in Dundee on am MTK show maybe. I think Ronnie is in exact same boat he was before the Barrett fight where he's gonna have to be ready and fight in Barrett back garden against the odds. All that is wanted is 3 judges and he'll do it again.

Right now our next show is on 1st September but if it was something Mark wanted to do then we could arrange another date (maybe at the Beach Ballroom) and put on a big show with Ronnie, Darren etc