Thomas Kindon names his top five British super-bantamweights
Unbeaten 20-year-old prospect Thomas Kindon (5-0) from Guildford, Surrey took time out of his busy trainng schedule to list his top five super-bantamweight British champions of all-time.
The 'Pocket Rocket' operates in the talented 122lbs division, currently ruled by IBF World champion Carl 'The Jackal' Frampton, and has ambitions to one day add his name to this illustrious list.
The division has never been so exciting and is stacked with potential big fights with the likes of Barry McGuigan's protégé Carl Frampton, his rival and WBA World titleholder Scott Quigg signed to Eddie Hearn's Matchroom that the nation are desperate to see meet in the ring. There's also the current European champ Gavin McDonnell, British champ James Dickens and hugely talented WBO European and WBA Inter-Continental champion Lewis Pettitt, all set for big things in the near future.
Rising prospects include Gamal Yafai, Ramzy Nassa and Thomas Kindon himself. Preparing for his sixth professional contest in Brighton on October 2nd, the six-time national amateur champion listed his top five 8st 10lbs British champions of all-time.
5. Michael Brodie (36-4-1)
Mikie from Manchester was a fantastic champion collecting the British, Commonwealth and European titles and amassing a record of 29 fights unbeaten until stepping up for a WBC World title shot against Californian Willie Jorrin and suffering his first career loss on a mixed decision. He bounced back remarkably amassing half a dozen wins against top class opposition whilst winning the WBF and IBO World featherweight titles. Thus, earning another crack at the WBC World crown, this time at 126lbs, Brodie was again just a whisker away, drawing with South Korean In-Jin Chi. A rematch one day before his 30th birthday in October 2004 saw him KO'd in the seventh round. Brodie also failed to capture Scott Harrison's WBO World strap in the 2005 and was eventually retired for good by Anthony Crolla in 2009.
4. Michael Hunter (27-2-1)
Hartlepool's Michael Hunter is a former British and European super-bantamweight champion and also challenged for the IBF World title. He is one of only three champions at 122lbs to defend the honours three times. He remarkably reached 27 fights unbeaten whilst collecting the Northern Area, WBF World, British and European titles in the 8st 10lbs division. He only lost in twice during his career in a failed IBF World title bid and to super-bantamweight king, Jason Booth.
3. Esham Pickering (34-13)
A former British, Commonwealth and European champion, Pickering also challenged for the WBO World bantamweight title. Nicknamed 'Brown Sugar', he dominated the domestic 122lbs scene between 2003-2005 before being dethroned by a young Michael Hunter but won the same title back two years later in 2007 against Marc Callaghan becoming only the third person to recapture the belt at that weight.
2. Scott Quigg (33-0-2)
Mancunian Scott Quigg is the only super-bantamweight British champion to go on to win a recognised World title. He took his first step to becoming the ruler of Britain at 122lbs by beating Gavin Reid in a final eliminator in 2010. He then grabbed his first professional title by beating Argentinian Santiage Allione for the vacant WBA inter-Continental super-bantamweight belt in his 20th contest. In his 23rd contest, he beat Jason Booth for his Lonsdale belt in what was the Nottingham boxer's fifth title defense of the prestigious award. He then experienced leaving the ring for the first time in his exciting professional career without having his arm raised in June 2012. A cut over the legendary Rendall Munroe's right eye in the third round of their interim WBA World title fight ended in a technical draw. Five months later, they met again on Ricky Hatton's comeback show at the Manchester Arena which sold out in six hours! Quigg won via a sixth round stoppage finally winning the interim WBA World title and was promoted to WBA World champion soon after and has since defended the honours six times!
1. Jason Booth (38-13)
'2 Smooth' is still active at the age of 37-years-old and takes on top prospect Ryan Burnett in a British bantamweight title eliminator in Belfast 29 days after my next fight. He first collected the British and Commonwealth flyweight titles in 2009 after notching up a 15-1 record from his first three years in the paid ranks, the only blemish coming from a failed European flyweight title challenge. He then added the IBO World super-flyweight belt to his growing in 2003. Moving up a weight, he grabbed the Commonwealth bantamweight title in 2007. Moving up again in weight, Booth set the super-bantamweight division on fire by winning the vacant British title beating an undefeated Mark Moran and went on to defend the honours successfully four times before losing to the current WBA World champion Scott Quigg in October 2011. Although his career suffered on occasions due to his alcohol and drug addictions and personal demons, he had a remarkable career that is still continuing even today.
Honourable Mention: Matt Marsh (13-2)
From Welling in Kent, Marsh was a two-time ABA champion at flyweight and bantamweight. He is most noted for his trilogy of fights with Rocky Dean emerging as the winner on all three occasions. His victory over Esham Pickering to win the Lonsdale belt in June 2008 at the York Hall was emphatic as he was the underdog going in and outworked the titleholder from the opening bell making him look ordinary. His only losses came from a step up to featherweight to challenge the WBU champion Derry Mathews and in a controversial defeat to Frank Maloney's Nottingham fighter Jason Booth, both times being stopped in the 11th round. He retired far too early for his talent and potential and the reason he gets a mention on my list is because of his memorable wars with Rocky Dean, his stylish win over Esham Pickering but mostly because of his performance against an in-form Jason Booth in which he was winning the fight up until the debateable stoppage.
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eam Kindon would like to thank his sponsors Dag Scaffolding and Manya Building Supplies and M.R Leggett Drains Ltd. and PR Manager Tim Rickson
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