Interesting "club fight" (as they'd call it in America) between two grizzled old pros who would love to grab a title in the twilight of their careers.
September 35, Hull
Central Area cruiserweight title
Tony Booth v Neil Simpson
-
Matt Teague
- Heavyweight
- Posts: 318
- Joined: 16 Aug 2004, 16:19
Will be a very interesting fight, i'm leaning towards Booth on points, when Tony fights at home (HULL) he is a difficult guy to beat.
here is a link to a highlight documentry on him.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=MKtvB1KXjsk
here is a link to a highlight documentry on him.
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=MKtvB1KXjsk
At the City Hall in Hull on Tuesday September 25, gritty local favourite Tony Booth takes on Coventry's former British and Commonwealth light-heavyweight champion Neil Simpson for the vacant Central Area cruiserweight title. It's a fourth meeting between the pair: two wins to Simpson, one to Booth. All went the distance.
So these 37-year-olds are well-matched and (obviously) in the twilight of their careers. The remarkable Booth, who takes part in his 159th fight, has faced anyone and everyone since turning pro in 1990, including five world champions (Johnny Nelson, Enzo Maccarinelli, Montell Griffin, Victor Cordoba and Germany's Ralf Rocchigiani, whom he held to a fabulous eight-round draw in Berlin in 1993). He holds wins over Omar Sheika, John Beckles, Tony Wilson, Dominic Negus and Sven Hamer, taken on countless heavyweights (stealing the show at the Millennium Stadium in April against Derek Chisora in front of 35,000), and rarely gets stopped.
Probably his best win is an eight-round decision over Hackney banger Bruce Scott in 1997 at the Ally Pally. That win - one of five straight Tony put together - secured him a crack at Crawford Ashley for British and Commonwealth light-heavyweight titles in June 1998 in Hull. Roared on by a partisan crowd, Booth fought gallantly and competitively before the greater power of Ashley told in round six.
Given the luxury of notice, Booth is surprisingly fiery and ambitious for a man of so many fights, especially in Hull.
To Simpson, who has struggled for form since Mark Brookes narrowly outscored him in a 10-rounder in Sheffield in April 2004. "Simmo" looked desperately unlucky in a British light-heavyweight title eliminator in his opponent's backyard. On top of the apparently motiveless murder of trainer Joe Montague, he has boxed only five times since (three wins) without real passion.
In his day, Neil reached the 1994 ABA heavyweight final (beating Michael Sprott en route) and won the British light-heavyweight title with a hard-earned decision over the rugged and tricky Mark Baker in 2000, blowing out West Ham hope Mark Delaney in one round in a stunning first defence. A fight later, he survived three first-round knockdowns and another in the second to outlast Zimbabwe's Hastings Rasani in a spectacular affair in front of his own Coventry fans (four rounds).
Fittingly, it won Neil the Commonwealth light-heavyweight crown.
It also secured him a crack at the European title and Tony Oakey's WBU title. An Oakey 'fan' spat in Simpson's face as he made his way to the ring in Portsmouth in 2002, but Oakey (who publicly apologised to Simpson afterwards) needed a strong finish to make sure of the unanimous verdict. Two of the judges scored 115-113.
Neil had relinquished his British title to concentrate on the Oakey shot, and a shoulder injury cost him his Commonwealth belt when he was forced out of a scheduled defence against Peter Oboh. The two eventually met in Coventry in March 2003, with both titles at stake, and it was the feared Oboh who came through in the 11th round of a rough, bruising encounter, although Simpson's combination-punching had kept things close up to the finish.
Lanky, long-armed and quick, Simpson is a credit to the game like Booth. But in Hull, in 2007, he doesn't look like winning this.
So these 37-year-olds are well-matched and (obviously) in the twilight of their careers. The remarkable Booth, who takes part in his 159th fight, has faced anyone and everyone since turning pro in 1990, including five world champions (Johnny Nelson, Enzo Maccarinelli, Montell Griffin, Victor Cordoba and Germany's Ralf Rocchigiani, whom he held to a fabulous eight-round draw in Berlin in 1993). He holds wins over Omar Sheika, John Beckles, Tony Wilson, Dominic Negus and Sven Hamer, taken on countless heavyweights (stealing the show at the Millennium Stadium in April against Derek Chisora in front of 35,000), and rarely gets stopped.
Probably his best win is an eight-round decision over Hackney banger Bruce Scott in 1997 at the Ally Pally. That win - one of five straight Tony put together - secured him a crack at Crawford Ashley for British and Commonwealth light-heavyweight titles in June 1998 in Hull. Roared on by a partisan crowd, Booth fought gallantly and competitively before the greater power of Ashley told in round six.
Given the luxury of notice, Booth is surprisingly fiery and ambitious for a man of so many fights, especially in Hull.
To Simpson, who has struggled for form since Mark Brookes narrowly outscored him in a 10-rounder in Sheffield in April 2004. "Simmo" looked desperately unlucky in a British light-heavyweight title eliminator in his opponent's backyard. On top of the apparently motiveless murder of trainer Joe Montague, he has boxed only five times since (three wins) without real passion.
In his day, Neil reached the 1994 ABA heavyweight final (beating Michael Sprott en route) and won the British light-heavyweight title with a hard-earned decision over the rugged and tricky Mark Baker in 2000, blowing out West Ham hope Mark Delaney in one round in a stunning first defence. A fight later, he survived three first-round knockdowns and another in the second to outlast Zimbabwe's Hastings Rasani in a spectacular affair in front of his own Coventry fans (four rounds).
Fittingly, it won Neil the Commonwealth light-heavyweight crown.
It also secured him a crack at the European title and Tony Oakey's WBU title. An Oakey 'fan' spat in Simpson's face as he made his way to the ring in Portsmouth in 2002, but Oakey (who publicly apologised to Simpson afterwards) needed a strong finish to make sure of the unanimous verdict. Two of the judges scored 115-113.
Neil had relinquished his British title to concentrate on the Oakey shot, and a shoulder injury cost him his Commonwealth belt when he was forced out of a scheduled defence against Peter Oboh. The two eventually met in Coventry in March 2003, with both titles at stake, and it was the feared Oboh who came through in the 11th round of a rough, bruising encounter, although Simpson's combination-punching had kept things close up to the finish.
Lanky, long-armed and quick, Simpson is a credit to the game like Booth. But in Hull, in 2007, he doesn't look like winning this.
-
oliverfennell
- Heavyweight
- Posts: 5564
- Joined: 15 Feb 2007, 06:37
-
oliverfennell
- Heavyweight
- Posts: 5564
- Joined: 15 Feb 2007, 06:37
-
The Blade
- Heavyweight
-
oliverfennell
- Heavyweight
- Posts: 5564
- Joined: 15 Feb 2007, 06:37
I wasn't there, so can't really comment, but on nights such as that, usually the majority of people are in the bar whenever "their" fighter isn't on. I can't imagine either man having that kind of a fan base, nor the average punter staying in his seat for a 4x3 when alcohol beckoned instead.The Blade wrote:Oh yes there were, because it was a swing fightoliverfennell wrote:I'm not sure there were QUITE that many there for Chisora-Booth.stealing the show at the Millennium Stadium in April against Derek Chisora in front of 35,000
Again, though, I wasn't there.