BoxRec

I think Elcock will land the cleaner, strighter shots with his excellent right cross testing Macklin's whiskers (Macklin does tend to catch quite a few when pressing the action) but I think the younger man will prove the stronger of the two and will bully and wear down Mad Dog later in the fight.

Elcock is one of the nicest fellars you could meet - no wonder so many people follow him because he is so genuine and approachable. I just think he will be a little past his best here and I expect youth to be served with Macklin grinding out a tough points win or maybe even late stoppage due to accumulation of damage.

One thing is for sure, it has the makings of the best Midlands fight in my living memory...

Time will tell about Macklin (if he wins).

No heard anything regarding the undercard yet. By this time next month we should have a good idea of what the undercard is like.

The biggest 'local 'fight in Birmingham for many a year takes place at Aston Events Centre on March 14 when British middleweight champion Wayne Elcock defends against charismatic fellow Brummie Matt Macklin, the mandatory.
Elcock is much the more experienced man, having challenged for a major world title, but will be 35 by the time of the fight and Macklin, 26, is the man most definitely on the way up. However, Elcock has never been one of those 'busy' fighters, with only 22 fights to his name (compared to Macklin's 25), and we all remember how a well-preserved Jim Watt turned back some of the best young fighters in the world when well into his thirties.
Elcock won the title from Battersea 'name' Howard Eastman on a worthy decision in Coventry in September 2007 and came through a similar altercation to this when he stopped Dudley's young, ambitious and capable Darren McDermott in two rounds last year in Wolverhampton in his first defence (cuts). Wayne made sure his head was in the right place at the right time that night and blatantly butted Armenian strongman Arthur Abraham in that challenge for the world middleweight title in December 2007 in Switzerland, which triggered a fight-ending response from the unbeaten Abraham. Wayne was on his feet but 'gone' when the referee stopped it in the fifth round.
"Mad Dog" Wayne is no angel in there (like Watt) and might be a bit 'chinny' after a shock first-round loss to raw Scot Lawrence Murphy in Glasgow in 2003, one of those losses which stick in the mind. Wayne was tagged high on the head and fell back over the ropes like Joe Erskine against Henry Cooper, to be counted out. It took years for Elcock to get over it as he fought infrequently and was outscored over 12 uneventful rounds by Plymouth's Scott Dann in a first challenge for the British title in Plymouth in 2005, showing a distinct lack of fire, but a revenge win over Murphy lifted him and he took the English title route back to a second crack at the Lonsdale Belt against Eastman. He outboxed the fading Londoner to wrest the most traditional of titles (McAvoy, Finnegan, Gumbs...).
Wayne can do a bit of everything in there, you know, while the aggressive, heavy handed Macklin has been 'boxing' in recent fights (effectively) and you wonder if he's just better off getting stuck into the punch-picking Elcock, ala Carl Froch against Jean Pascal. OK, Matt did that with Salford light-middleweight star Jamie Moore and came unstuck but Moore is one of the best fighters we have and Macklin definitely had his moments in that fight, that fantastic fight, three years ago, now. Defeat, in the 10th round, convinced Macklin to pace himself more and to move up to middleweight, where he has won six on the spin. He looked sharp last year against some decent middleweights.
This is pick 'em. Macklin's defence looks porous but his chin generally hold ups (exhaustion as much as anything cost him against Moore) and one can see him shrugging off the inevitable heavy counters coming his way and working hard throughout.
In the end it might boil down to youth. Macklin grinds out a thrilling decision.