David Starie announces his retirement

[bennie]

After I posted the fact that Matthew Barney's next challenger for the British title is to be ex-champ David Starie (in the Carl Froch thread), I came across an article in the Suffolk press in which Starie has announced his retirement from boxing. It was something of a surprise. Starie lost his last fight to reigning IBF and WBA super-middleweight champion, Sven Ottke, in Germany in June, but had boxed a highly commendable fight and made it close on the scorecards (115-113, 116-112 and 116-113, all for Ottke). David hinted of retirement at ringside afterwards. "I'm certainly going home to think about it," he said to the Sky-TV cameras. "I've accomplished much in boxing and need to think of it. I've had a good career - I've been boxing since the age of 10. It might perhaps be time to call it a day."
He hedged his bets a few weeks later: "You never say never. I'm still young and he (Ottke) proved that you can perform well at the age of 36."
Ultimately, he has gone with his first instincts.
Starie, a former double ABA champion from Pakenham in Suffolk, won the British super-middleweight title in 1997 with a seventh round stoppage of Belfast southpaw Sam Storey, but lost it dramatically in his first defence to Basingstoke banger Dean Francis, when he was floored and stopped in six rounds.
But Starie bounced back to outpoint Clinton Woods for the Commonwealth super-middleweight title in March 1998 - and only Roy Jones Junior has also managed to beat Woods in the fine 37-fight career of the Yorkshireman, who next Friday takes part in a crucial IBF light-heavyweight title eliminator with Glencoffe Johnson in Sheffield. In hindsight, it was probably David's greatest ever win.
Two fights later, he regained the British title (vacated by Francis, who had won the European title) with an 11th round stoppage of the rugged and capable Ali Forbes. David quickly made a Lonsdale Belt his own with a fine third round stoppage of Willie Quinn, and a unanimous but never easy decision over Mark Baker. But the decision to step up and challenge WBO super-middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe was probably a trifle ambitious at that stage of his career. He lost convincingly on points in a fight best forgotten. Calzaghe, suffering from hand and elbow injuries, couldn't punch his full weight but still had too much of everything for Starie.
Still, it was a good learning experience for the man who had his British and Commonwealth titles to fall back on and fall back on them he did. More defences followed against the likes of Alex Mason (w rsc 3), Guy Waters (w rsc 6), Neil Linford (w rsc 6) and Marc Bagero (w rsc 1), but those wins - as well as a succession of quick non-title wins - hardly prepared him for a trip to South Africa for another defence of his Commonwealth crown against the tough, courageous and capable Andre Thysse last March. Starie, unlike Jawaid Khaliq who was also on the bill and arrived a month prior to his IBO title defence against Jan Bergman, gave himself just two weeks to acclimatise to the thin South African air. He must have bitterly regretted it as Thysee stood up to his early onslaughts and fired back. It turned into a bit of a nightmare for the champion by the later rounds, who found himself hanging on for dear life. "I felt shot to bits," he said afterwards. But he survived, lost on points, and suddenly found himself a viable opponent to the prolific IBF and WBA super-middleweight champion Sven Ottke.
It was the German's 18th 'world' title defence and he showed why. No knockdowns, no great highlights, but Ottke did just enough to keep his nose in front against a determined, committed challenger.
It was a fine showing from David, much better than the Calzaghe one. Still only 29, he can bow out with his health and reputation intact and there was no doubt he had talent. A busy super-middleweight, Starie liked hooking off the jab and firing plenty of straight rights. He won 31 of his 35 fights, a whopping 24 of them by the short route.

[The_Wild_Man]

If only he would of presses the action more against Ottke he may have been the champ but as you said a commendable effort regardless and probably not to bad a note to finish his career off on.


Cant say ill miss him though, he beat too many of my Aussie countrymen