I received a call this afternoon from the promoter of the show I was due to fight on at the end of the month in Sheffield. I was told my opponent’s coach/manager had pulled him from the fight after watching the video of my fight which can be found here. Citing ‘principles’ he pulled his fighter. The promoter hadn’t told him about my fight (which was technically an interclub) and due to this – he pulled him.
I haven’t attempted to hide the fight, if I wanted to I wouldn’t have published it on my blog and Facebook. It was there for everyone and anyone to see. So what the ‘principle’ was I dont know.
I’ve attempted to get matched up on this show for a while and have had large amounts of pull outs for various reasons but this is the second fighter from the same gym who has refused to fight now. I’m finding it slightly ridiculous. The first guy pulled out after he revealed he couldn’t commit as he had a job offer in the US 2 weeks after confirming the fight. And this guy seemingly doesn’t want to fight for whatever reason.
There are no words at this moment in time to describe how p*ssed off I am. Not at the fighters, the gym or the promoter. Well, not much. But more so because I don’t think anybody realises how much I put into training for this seemingly ‘novice’ fight. I went out of my way to find a gym to focus exclusively on my Strength and Conditioning since I haven’t trained properly in months. I went and obtained sponsorship for supplements. I took on an extra job to cover gym fees as since SBG closed, there hasn’t been a ‘home’ gym and I’ve been sparring at rival gyms to get sparring partners – never feeling 100% comfortable at being in there.
I’ve not trained for a purpose since coming back from Thailand in January 2010. I had a catalogue of injuries I had to overcome, personal problems, motorcycle accidents and numerous hospital visits so to be frank… I’m pretty f*cking annoyed. To top it all off, I was offered a replacement which couldn’t be confirmed for a couple of days which would have made it a WEEK of training left until the fight. We’re on Monday, if a fighter would have been confirmed on Wednesday – I would have only been able to train until Wednesday the following week before tapering down for the fight day on Saturday.
For the first few weeks I’d been training for somebody shorter who wasn’t afraid to throw leg kicks but couldn’t box too well and seemingly didn’t like pressure or to get hit. For the last fortnight I’ve been training for a tall rangey fighter who didn’t look so strong. And now – nobody.
I’d like to offer a quick thanks to Primal Fitness Manchester for all the work they’ve done with me for the last few weeks. Caveman training at it’s funnest! My conditioning has increased ten-fold since starting the sessions with Simon and Fernando. My work rate has been consistantly high and my recovery has been amazing.
Proteins4U get a mention for the box of goodies they sent me this morning and the advice I’ve managed to get on what type of supplements would suit me best.
Part Time Grappler for the exposure and advice too!
Primal Fitness, Proteins4U and PTG are to continue with their support on this wannabe up and comer and if they’re willing to help a novice like me try and get a foot on the rung of a seemingly tall ladder… I’m sure they’d be willing to help you out too.
Peace and love.
