I think he's still closer to the journeyman label. I don't feel comfortable giving someone the gatekeeper label if his best wins are Nick Webb and Sean Turner; while he's losing to Mark Bennett, Martin Ilunga, and Tom Little. Gatekeepers aren't supposed to let people like Tom Little through the gate. Even journeyman manage a surprise sometimes, like Michael Sprott's win over Edmund Gerber, Darnell Wilson's win over Juan Carlos Gomez, etc.
As far as UK's best gatekeeper, it's probably like... David Price > Sam Sexton > David Allen > Gary Cornish. I might've had Allen above Sexton, but in light of Webb's second (and even more pathetic) loss, I can't continue valuing Allen's win over him as highly as I had.
It depends how you classify journeyman. My definition of a journeyman is an away corner fighter who takes fights on short notice with an object to survive without inflicting damage.
Whereas Sokolowski rarely ever looses by shut out on the scorecards, showing he is not there to survive and he comes with a genuine ambition to win and clearly carries a little power.
You don't see too many dangerous journeyen these days looking for victory.
Kamil Sokolowski has gone down the route of journeyman possibly because he makes more money doing that route or he simply cant get a promotional deal. He is better than his record suggests. I dont think you will get many novice boxers fighting him over more than 4 rounds. A 4 round fight you possibly have the chance beating him on points as he seems a slow starter but picks up when the novices get tired after 3 rounds. His last loss against Bennett was over 4 rounds and was beaten by 1 round. If that fight had gone 6 it may have been a different story.
Hes not a gate keeper because the top heavyweights at British level have passed him but he certainly is a heart breaker for the young unbeaten novices who are not as fit as they think.
I predicted Webb would get beat but by points and not stoppage as Kamil doesnt have a great ko ratio. If I was managing a young heavyweight who had an unbeaten record of 3 or 4 fights hes not a boxer I would match him up with. 10 or 11 fights unbeaten and a good knockout ratio then yes, hes the guy who you need to see how good you are over 6 or 8 rounds.
Its a shame that Kamil Sokolowski wasnt looked after better, he certainly could have made top 10 in this country.
Weve seen this too often in this country, decent boxers going down the route of journeyman just because they can earn more by losing. I'll never forget Michael Murray (RIP) from the late 80's to 2000. He was a good boxer, but soon found he was making more losing. He said he wasnt bothered about titles and losing was far more lucrative. He beat Markus Bott who went on to win a world title.
jamamb wrote: ↑19 Dec 2018, 15:13
hes an excellent gatekeeper to find out if a prospect isnt serious
Sure seems tough as nails. A previous poster mentioned he may have been more successful had his management done a better job with him. Saw the Webb fight, he certainly seems fun to watch!
I'm glad I'm not alone in finding pleasure when a tough journeyman/gatekeeper finds out a prospect.
While I don't really classify Kamil as a gate keeper ( I think that belongs to Del Boy in the UK) I do think he is a good test.
KiwiRider wrote: ↑21 Dec 2018, 13:54
I'm glad I'm not alone in finding pleasure when a tough journeyman/gatekeeper finds out a prospect.
While I don't really classify Kamil as a gate keeper ( I think that belongs to Del Boy in the UK) I do think he is a good test.
I think the journey/gatekeeper is somewhat lost this era thanks to the plethora of title belts available. The job of the gatekeeper is now at a lower ranking than eras past. I remember guys like Boone Kirkman and Edwin Viruet (I know I'm showing my age) who were fringe contenders, were the tests for young and upcoming fighters. Now, we're talking about guys like Kamil, who I have the utmost respect for, but is much farther down the rankings. Guys that could be gatekeepers, like Bryant Jennings; Carlos Takam; and Del Boy, are vying for titles or title shots. Maybe I'm wrong, but it sure seems different, and not for the better.
