BoxRec

Matchroom announced the Prizefighter super-bantamweight contestants this morning, they are: Wayne McCullough, Josh Wale, Esham Pickering, Mark Moran, Teesiders Chris Riley and Gavin Reid, along with unbeaten pair Ricky Owen (Swansea) and Craig Lyon (St Helens).
Thoughts anyone.

As much as I don't like Prizefighter I think this is one of the most competitive line ups to date...

Id be very surprised if Craig Lyon didn't win thi version

its gonna be wale or lyon

Great line up. Even the lesser known types like Riley and Reid are solid pros who over 3 rounds could cause anyone problems. Moran and Lyon stand out with their busy styles and amateur pedigree. Lyon/McCulloch as a quarter final would be interesting.....

Shame Marsh or Rocky Dean are not in it. I am looking forward going to it.

Chris W 1982 wrote:Id be very surprised if Craig Lyon didn't win thi version

Me to

ricky owen is the dark horse for me in this format im not one for betting but might have a flutter if hes a good price

a super bantam prizefighter will be like a few amateur fights...it just wont work

only lt heavy and up works

neil hibbert wrote:ricky owen is the dark horse for me in this format im not one for betting but might have a flutter if hes a good price

Ricky is damn good, but I fear being out for a year will hurt him against the better fighters

Over 3 rnds and half fit I'd still fancy McCullough, especially if his horrible cow of a wife needs the money.

Hagler2002 wrote:Over 3 rnds and half fit I'd still fancy McCullough, especially if his horrible cow of a wife needs the money.

Leave poor Cheryl alone.

I think McCullough will be hard to beat in this, even at 39. He's in decent shape, good chin and is always busy.

Been busy is the big factor in this format, and there isn't many fighters out there with his workrate, even at 39.

neil hibbert wrote:ricky owen is the dark horse for me in this format im not one for betting but might have a flutter if hes a good price

I agree with this.

Moran's worth a look, too.

Moran sadly too inactive.

Lyon all the way.

its a shame martin power is not involved. would have like to see him in this

I'm bored of prizefighter now...no interest in it

jizzle wrote:I'm bored of prizefighter now...no interest in it

wouldnt say im bored of it , but some have more appeal than others , i do think international fighters need to start being put in it , weve discussed on here many times the heavyweights from around the globe who we think would be attracted to it , none of them world class , mainly has beens but would definately attract an interest , the likes of holyfield , mccall , botha , golota , couser , maskaev , skelton , vidoz , etc etc, that will make an interesting spectacle.

Is there any notable reason internationals cannot be included? Watched one on Eurosport the other week from Cyprus with some Russian heavy taking the 16k top prize.

Bomber 1 wrote:As much as I don't like Prizefighter I think this is one of the most competitive line ups to date...

Prizefighte ris my favourite format, by far- and this does indeed look a good line up.

Many years ago those celebrated ex-fighters who refused to walk away wound up in the boxing booths, like Randolph Turpin, or later the unlicenced boxing scene, which made room for Ken Buchanan. Today, stubborn old champs wind up in Prizefighter, ala Wayne McCullough, the 39-year-old Belfast man who once held the WBC bantamweight title for a brief period. Since those heady backs back in the Nineties, McCullough has moved up through the weights and soaked up the best shots of Naseem Hamed, Daniel Zaragoza, Erik Morales and Scott Harrison, to name but a few. Frankly, McCullough should have quit after a horrible 12-round pounding from Harrison in 2003 for the WBO featherweight title but ploughs headlong into Prizefighter later this month at York Hall (May 29). He comes off two stoppage defeats.
Likewise, Esham Pickering also drags his weary body into the Prizefighter event, held at super-bantamweight. A former European champion at the weight, Pickering went by the colourful nickname of "Brown Sugar" and had plenty of sweet moves but any remaining sugar is now thoroughly caramelized. Pickering lost his European title to Bernard Dunne in 2006, a man now safely retired, and was knocked out in his last fight in October up at featherweight. Pickering has now lost three of his last four fights. It will hurt both him and McCullough to boil down to super-bantamweight.
To compound this and their dwindling skills, McCullough and Pickering line up against two unbeaten tearaways in Prizefighter: southpaw banger Ricky Owen and St Helens stalker Craig Lyon. I once saw Owen dish out an horrendous beating to a 99-fight Anthony Hanna while Lyon is the son of the great John Lyon, a man who boxed in the same Olympics as McCullough - back in 1988. Craig Lyon is every bit the animal in the ring his father was. Two other entrants, Josh Wale and Mork Moran, also rank as tough nuts amid a field of eight.
Former world title challenger Danny Williams never recovered, fistically, from a two-knockdown beating he suffered at the hands of unlikely Carl Baker in Prizefighter heavyweight last year and made a real mess of his legacy in the process. McCullough and Pickering look headed for a similar fate.

David Savage Jnr was to box but had to pull with a injury he would done well in it