Crolla Joins Gallagher & Hattons
Posted: 08 Sep 2009, 12:43
Million Dollar or Nickel and Dimer?
http://www.boxingnewsonline.net/BN08/detail.asp?id=1256
Terry Dooley meets Anthony Crolla as he joins Gallagher and the Hattons
ANTHONY CROLLA has severed his ties with allegedly and will now box under the Hatton Promotions banner. The 22-year-old boxer fights on the undercard of Matthew Macklin’s vacant European title showdown with Amin Asikainen at the Velodrome, Manchester on September the 25th.
Anthony has also decided to alter his training regime, joining up with Joe Gallagher and Kerry Kayes’ at their Denton-based gym; the split with Warren meant that Anthony could no longer work with his previous trainer Anthony "Arnie" Farnell – who works exclusively with Warren-promoted boxers.
“It is down to the promotional thing,” explained Crolla. “I’m not a sellout. I mostly dealt with Dean Powell and we always had a good relationship. I can’t speak highly enough of Arnie – he is my mate. I speak to him on the phone every day. Joe is a very good coach and was recommended by Arnie. He has done great work with John and Joe Murray.”
Gallagher and Crolla, 13-2 (5), know each other well from their time on the amateur circuit – Joe as a trainer, Crolla as a boxer. This familiarity, coupled with Farnell’s blessing, made the decision an easy one for Crolla.
“I was familiar with Joe from the amateur game. I’m fighting in three weeks and have gone with someone who I know,” he confirmed.
“Femi [Fehintola], Joe, John, Seamus [Macklin], and [Matthew] Macklin - I’ve got brilliant guys with me at the gym. I’ll get great sparring. I really enjoyed my first two days here. We get on well so it was a case of picking up where we left off.
“Joe was surprised by how fit I am. I am doing well on the sprints and on the track work. I’ve got a horrible addiction to running. It is enjoyable. I’m looking forward to trying new things. Working with Kerry will give me extra strength.
“Joe has worked with a small bunch of fighters and he gets great results out of them. Joe and John Murray have been with him since day one. Joe went to the Olympics and will do good things as a pro. John is a former British champion and could be moving onto the European title. Joe and Kerry have turned John into a machine.”
“It was hard to leave Arnie as we are really good mates,” he reiterated. “I was there before anyone else so we were really close from the start. It is a very busy gym now and I’m sad to have left. We were in a situation where I wanted to move on from Warren and Arnie works with Frank’s fighters. So that is why it happened.”
Crolla joins recent Hatton signings Matthew Macklin, Michael Brodie, Andy Morris and David Barnes. The Hatton’s also have eight Sky TV dates to fill. Anthony feels that Ricky Hatton will take him to the top.
“I was out of contract. I spoke to [Hatton Promotion’s] Gareth Williams – who I knew anyway,” he explained. “Gareth is a nice guy and he guaranteed me fights in Manchester. I will be kept busy and both moves were done the proper way. Hopefully, I can move on with the Hattons.”
Crolla’s 94-97 points reverse in May’s contest with Gary Sykes was his last outing under Warren and Farnell. It was a pitched battle, with Sykes greater strength carrying the Leeds man to a well-deserved points win. Crolla is philosophical about the fight.
“I definitely did a few things wrong, but no excuses – Gary fought a brilliant fight. A few adjustments and it could have gone my way. I felt flat for most of the fight,” he lamented.
“A lot of people don’t realise that the Sykes fight was very close. Gary is a very good fighter; he will go on to win titles. The fight could have gone a different way if I’d have changed a few things but he could have adjusted as well so you never know. My arms felt tired early on. I had trained so hard but felt tired in the fight. I want to move on from that fight. I want to get my career going and get into winning titles. I’ll fight anyone.”
Gallagher had always wanted to work with Crolla. The trainer had hoped that Anthony would turn pro with him. Gallagher was an interested observer in Crolla’s unfolding career but he believed that his hopes of training Crolla had been permanently dashed. However, the change in Crolla’s promotion situation meant that Gallagher could finally get his man.
“I remember Crolla as a 12-year-old amateur," Gallagher recalled. "He beat one of my lads in the Schoolboys. I’ve known him for years; he is friends with Joe Murray so it was nice for him to give me a call. Anthony [Farnell] recommended me, which was a nice touch.
“Crolla used to come down Mosside to do some sparring, he worked with Joe Murray as an amateur. It is great to have him here. It is great for Joe and Femi, they all know each other and it provides brilliant in-house sparring.”
“Joe and Crolla are as thick as thieves again,” he continued. “Anthony is British title material. He was involved in that great fight with Gary Sykes – who defeated John Murray as an amateur. There is no disgrace in losing to someone like Gary.
“Crolla was a winner in that fight as he showed desire and a sheer will to win. We’ll add a little finesse to those qualities and get him into the British title mix. The Hattons will steer him down the right path.”
Crolla has skills, he is a student of the sport, and he trains like a demon; Gallagher believes that there is an untapped reservoir of talent waiting to be exploited.
“I’m not trying to be critical or anything else but there is room for improvement,” he claimed. “You’d hear the same thing if the Murrays went and trained with someone else as they’d get a different perspective. I think Anthony has the desire, he is in great shape, and his weight is already down. A few adjustments here and there and he can knock down the door when he fights for a title chance.”
Crolla has fought at super-featherweight and lightweight. The Sykes contest was a final eliminator for the British 130lb title. Gallagher wants to assess his new charge before pinning him down to a weight class.
“Anthony is 9st 12lbs at the moment,” he said. “He has fought mostly at super-feather and won the ABA title at lightweight [in 2006]. Kerry will work with him to get the maximum out of him. They will sit down next week to look at his body fat and we’ll make a decision based on that. There was nothing wrong with his last performance, he just came up against a kid who was strong and who upped his own game.”
“You can discount Anthony’s other loss as Youssef Al Hamidi [who defeated Crolla on points in 2008] was a fight too soon for Crolla,” he stated. “He was rushed a little bit too quickly. Hamidi is a sound fighter who gave John Murray problems. Anthony has the desire but little hurdles have tripped him up. John Simpson, Matthew Macklin, and Jamie Moore – they all came back from early career losses. Anthony is joining an ambitious gym and he will thrive here.”
http://www.boxingnewsonline.net/BN08/detail.asp?id=1256
Terry Dooley meets Anthony Crolla as he joins Gallagher and the Hattons
ANTHONY CROLLA has severed his ties with allegedly and will now box under the Hatton Promotions banner. The 22-year-old boxer fights on the undercard of Matthew Macklin’s vacant European title showdown with Amin Asikainen at the Velodrome, Manchester on September the 25th.
Anthony has also decided to alter his training regime, joining up with Joe Gallagher and Kerry Kayes’ at their Denton-based gym; the split with Warren meant that Anthony could no longer work with his previous trainer Anthony "Arnie" Farnell – who works exclusively with Warren-promoted boxers.
“It is down to the promotional thing,” explained Crolla. “I’m not a sellout. I mostly dealt with Dean Powell and we always had a good relationship. I can’t speak highly enough of Arnie – he is my mate. I speak to him on the phone every day. Joe is a very good coach and was recommended by Arnie. He has done great work with John and Joe Murray.”
Gallagher and Crolla, 13-2 (5), know each other well from their time on the amateur circuit – Joe as a trainer, Crolla as a boxer. This familiarity, coupled with Farnell’s blessing, made the decision an easy one for Crolla.
“I was familiar with Joe from the amateur game. I’m fighting in three weeks and have gone with someone who I know,” he confirmed.
“Femi [Fehintola], Joe, John, Seamus [Macklin], and [Matthew] Macklin - I’ve got brilliant guys with me at the gym. I’ll get great sparring. I really enjoyed my first two days here. We get on well so it was a case of picking up where we left off.
“Joe was surprised by how fit I am. I am doing well on the sprints and on the track work. I’ve got a horrible addiction to running. It is enjoyable. I’m looking forward to trying new things. Working with Kerry will give me extra strength.
“Joe has worked with a small bunch of fighters and he gets great results out of them. Joe and John Murray have been with him since day one. Joe went to the Olympics and will do good things as a pro. John is a former British champion and could be moving onto the European title. Joe and Kerry have turned John into a machine.”
“It was hard to leave Arnie as we are really good mates,” he reiterated. “I was there before anyone else so we were really close from the start. It is a very busy gym now and I’m sad to have left. We were in a situation where I wanted to move on from Warren and Arnie works with Frank’s fighters. So that is why it happened.”
Crolla joins recent Hatton signings Matthew Macklin, Michael Brodie, Andy Morris and David Barnes. The Hatton’s also have eight Sky TV dates to fill. Anthony feels that Ricky Hatton will take him to the top.
“I was out of contract. I spoke to [Hatton Promotion’s] Gareth Williams – who I knew anyway,” he explained. “Gareth is a nice guy and he guaranteed me fights in Manchester. I will be kept busy and both moves were done the proper way. Hopefully, I can move on with the Hattons.”
Crolla’s 94-97 points reverse in May’s contest with Gary Sykes was his last outing under Warren and Farnell. It was a pitched battle, with Sykes greater strength carrying the Leeds man to a well-deserved points win. Crolla is philosophical about the fight.
“I definitely did a few things wrong, but no excuses – Gary fought a brilliant fight. A few adjustments and it could have gone my way. I felt flat for most of the fight,” he lamented.
“A lot of people don’t realise that the Sykes fight was very close. Gary is a very good fighter; he will go on to win titles. The fight could have gone a different way if I’d have changed a few things but he could have adjusted as well so you never know. My arms felt tired early on. I had trained so hard but felt tired in the fight. I want to move on from that fight. I want to get my career going and get into winning titles. I’ll fight anyone.”
Gallagher had always wanted to work with Crolla. The trainer had hoped that Anthony would turn pro with him. Gallagher was an interested observer in Crolla’s unfolding career but he believed that his hopes of training Crolla had been permanently dashed. However, the change in Crolla’s promotion situation meant that Gallagher could finally get his man.
“I remember Crolla as a 12-year-old amateur," Gallagher recalled. "He beat one of my lads in the Schoolboys. I’ve known him for years; he is friends with Joe Murray so it was nice for him to give me a call. Anthony [Farnell] recommended me, which was a nice touch.
“Crolla used to come down Mosside to do some sparring, he worked with Joe Murray as an amateur. It is great to have him here. It is great for Joe and Femi, they all know each other and it provides brilliant in-house sparring.”
“Joe and Crolla are as thick as thieves again,” he continued. “Anthony is British title material. He was involved in that great fight with Gary Sykes – who defeated John Murray as an amateur. There is no disgrace in losing to someone like Gary.
“Crolla was a winner in that fight as he showed desire and a sheer will to win. We’ll add a little finesse to those qualities and get him into the British title mix. The Hattons will steer him down the right path.”
Crolla has skills, he is a student of the sport, and he trains like a demon; Gallagher believes that there is an untapped reservoir of talent waiting to be exploited.
“I’m not trying to be critical or anything else but there is room for improvement,” he claimed. “You’d hear the same thing if the Murrays went and trained with someone else as they’d get a different perspective. I think Anthony has the desire, he is in great shape, and his weight is already down. A few adjustments here and there and he can knock down the door when he fights for a title chance.”
Crolla has fought at super-featherweight and lightweight. The Sykes contest was a final eliminator for the British 130lb title. Gallagher wants to assess his new charge before pinning him down to a weight class.
“Anthony is 9st 12lbs at the moment,” he said. “He has fought mostly at super-feather and won the ABA title at lightweight [in 2006]. Kerry will work with him to get the maximum out of him. They will sit down next week to look at his body fat and we’ll make a decision based on that. There was nothing wrong with his last performance, he just came up against a kid who was strong and who upped his own game.”
“You can discount Anthony’s other loss as Youssef Al Hamidi [who defeated Crolla on points in 2008] was a fight too soon for Crolla,” he stated. “He was rushed a little bit too quickly. Hamidi is a sound fighter who gave John Murray problems. Anthony has the desire but little hurdles have tripped him up. John Simpson, Matthew Macklin, and Jamie Moore – they all came back from early career losses. Anthony is joining an ambitious gym and he will thrive here.”
