BoxRec

Crolla has come on a bomb since moving gyms

both he and Joe G came/come across really well. Joe in particular talks a lot of sense.

Crolla is one of the nicest lads you can ever meet, never a bad word to say about anyone, just works so hard and puts his trust in his coach.

Gallagher was brilliant last night, calm, gave great advice and his insight just amazing. Go to that gym and you'll see before their sessions Sanchez, Gomez, Pintor in the DVD - he's a student of the game.

Has great banter with Gary Sykes, they are friends, and what a(nother) fight that is down the line!

Well done Joe, well done Croll.

excellent technican is crolla. early defeats don't matter if you can put them behind you and improve. he tucks up well, deflects most shots and does all the damage. one of my fave british fighters to watch, he boxes well and takes the opponent apart in good fights. i imagine he'll be defending the lightweight title next, for the TV date. but will he plan to move down to super feather again? obviously he doesn't NEED a sykes rematch, not after winning a title a weight up. is his future at 130 or 135? there does seem to be some reward at 130, if he can get back down and IF the fights can be made: foster jr european champ, ricky burns world champ. i'd think this win (and the stoppage of morris) puts him well above the british 130 title. crolla really is delivering and if he's ready, i hope he gets a rewarding fight (european level) at either 130 or 135.

you have to like a skilled fighter who uses his ability to dismantle the opposition.

Brilliant fight and a stand out performance from Crolla who did look like a million dollars on the night.

I think he's gained himself some new life long fans after such a brilliant display. First Brodie, then Morris and now the cherry on the cake, the British title by beating Watson, who was extremely game.

Can't wait until his next fight, but first Crolla can bask in his glory.

First time I've seen Crolla in action for a long time, he's improved alot. Respect to him for taking the fight at short notice and moving up in weight, it was a very classy and mature performance from him. Despite keeping Watson under pressure he didn't rush his work and was clinical and patient in dissembling Watosn

Very impressed with his performance, constant pressure and picked his shots beautifully throughout the fight. I think the 12 round distance will suit Crolla alot better than the 4-6 round sprints.

gallagher should certainly get colegate lined up as a sponsor :!:

crolla is in the form off his life :!: i was impressed with his slipping & rolling it was top class :!: watson is a text book boxer & was made to miss & was punished for it

i make him favourite over gavin rees on that form.

Ant is one of the nicest kids you'll ever meet, i'm absolutely over the moon for him. Couldn't have happened to a better person.

he made me a fan after that performance..spot on attitude as well..

hitman_hatton1 wrote:i make him favourite over gavin rees on that form.

having boxed Gavin I didn't think he hit that hard for a stocky bloke , great fighter don't get me wrong. What he does have is a non stop work ethic. Ant really showed he is fit as a flea so as long as he can keep up with Rees I back you on that Ricky , been in with collar & he ain't half accurate too. Would be another cracker . Thinking about it, every decent boxer in Britain has beaten me up, lol

hitman_hatton1 wrote:i make him favourite over gavin rees on that form.

having boxed Gavin I didn't think he hit that hard for a stocky bloke , great fighter don't get me wrong. What he does have is a non stop work ethic. Ant really showed he is fit as a flea so as long as he can keep up with Rees I back you on that Ricky , been in with collar & he ain't half accurate too. Would be another cracker . Thinking about it, every decent boxer in Britain has beaten me up, lol

johnnygreaves wrote:

hitman_hatton1 wrote:i make him favourite over gavin rees on that form.

having boxed Gavin I didn't think he hit that hard for a stocky bloke , great fighter don't get me wrong. What he does have is a non stop work ethic. Ant really showed he is fit as a flea so as long as he can keep up with Rees I back you on that Ricky , been in with collar & he ain't half accurate too. Would be another cracker . Thinking about it, every decent boxer in Britain has beaten me up, lol

atleast your honest

so he's got aplace on the khan-mccloskey undercard, i've been reading. will there be pressure for a fight with rees?

Great win for Crolla. One thing was bugging me though, in his fight with Morris and this fight with Watson he's orthodox but I was thinking "hold up I swear Crolla was a southpaw?" Then I dug up the Brodie fight and lo and behold he's a southpaw! Also, the knockout punch of watson was a southpaw righthook, he switches his feet back to orthodox right after the knockout. So Crolla the switch hitter hey? Great addition to lightweight if he stays there.

black panther wrote:Great win for Crolla. One thing was bugging me though, in his fight with Morris and this fight with Watson he's orthodox but I was thinking "hold up I swear Crolla was a southpaw?" Then I dug up the Brodie fight and lo and behold he's a southpaw! Also, the knockout punch of watson was a southpaw righthook, he switches his feet back to orthodox right after the knockout. So Crolla the switch hitter hey? Great addition to lightweight if he stays there.

Yeh at some times he looked almost square on which worried me a bit, but he seemed to make it work for him and can't complain cos his tactics worked.

if mitchell's out of the murray fight, might rees challenge murray on the cleverly world title undercard?

i wonder if crolla-buckland could happen. buckland challenged for the domestic lightweight title before, losing, then won prize fighte, for the lightweight title. buckland seems hot at 130 but apparently he's never made the super feather championship limit. how about crolla v buckland, who beat sykes via KO (who beat crolla). decent enough matchup for the khan undercard.

Newly crowned British lightweight champion Anthony "Million Dollar" Crolla could be defending against former champion Gavin "The Rock" Rees in a fine-looking contest on the Amir Khan-Paul McCloskey show in Manchester on April 16.
If so, it is a lightning first defence for Crolla, who looked excellent in stopping John Watson earlier this month to win the title in Watson's home city of Liverpool (nine rounds). However, Rees had also stopped Watson for the British title in November in Newport (11 rounds) but then vacated due to a nose injury sustained in the fight, hence Crolla-Watson. The nose now nicely if slowly healed, Rees wants his title back.
The rugged little Welshman, a pro since 1998 and former WBA light-welterweight champion, has lost only to the Ukraine's classy Andreas Kotelnik in 35 fights (stopped in 12) and still has shelf-life at the age of 30, but Crolla, 24, is one of the most improved fighters in the country, having stopped big Manchester rivals Michael Brodie and Andy Morris prior to the Watson fight, a fight he took at short notice above his natural super-featherweight, although you wouldn't have guessed either as Crolla, trained by Joe Gallagher, set a hot pace and pulled out a big right hand to flatten Watson.
Of course, Rees will argue that he paved the way for the Crolla display, but after a bright start, Rees found the going much harder against Watson and suffered his nose injury from a series of Watson uppercuts in the middle rounds, before his experience won the day.
Comparitively, one has to favour the exciting Crolla in this one, in what amounts to a cracking match.