Boxing: Hobson's hat trick Feb 3 2006
By The Huddersfield Daily Examiner
MARK HOBSON is in line for a quickfire hat trick - thanks to a new boxing management deal.
The British and Commonwealth cruiserweight champion from Huddersfield didn't have a single fight during a frustrating 2005.
But the 29-year-old is due in the ring three times in the next five months if a proposed link-up with Hennessy Sports comes off.
Any deal between Hobson and the Essex firm would have positive spin-off effects for his stablemates Dale Robinson and James Hare.
In the past, the title-winning trio have all been managed by Glasgow's Tommy Gilmour, but those deals are up within months.
First on the agenda for Lindley's Hobson is a six-round warm-up at the famous York Hall in Bethnal Green on Friday, February 17.
That fight, against a yet to be confirmed opponent, will be part of a show being put together to prepare Nottingham super-middleweight Carl Froch for his forthcoming British and Commonwealth title clash with Belfast's Brian Magee.
If all goes well, Hobson will defend his Commonwealth belt on a Sky show in Huddersfield in April.
Then, in another mandatory defence, he will put his British crown on the line by June.
"We've had productive talks with Mick Hennessy, and while things hinge on a handshake at the moment, there's no reason why the deal won't go through if everything goes smoothly later this month," said Chris Aston, who trains Hobson, Robinson and Hare at the Northern Fitness gym in Linthwaite.
"It's fair to say things haven't gone as we would have wished with Tommy Gilmour over the last 18 months or so. We would prefer to have been busier.
"With the contracts coming up for renewal, it was an obvious time to review things.
"Hennessy Sports have contacts in the USA and Canada, and that could open up some exciting new avenues."
Hobson, currently sparring with top heavyweight Matt Skelton, twice missed out on a tasty British title clash with David Haye last year.
First Haye, who has since won the European crown, withdrew injured, then Hobson suffered shingles.
Robinson has returned to flyweight after losing out on points to Martin Power in a British bantamweight title clash in London last May.
Welterweight Hare, who is recovering from shoulder surgery, won both his fights in 2005.