Eder Kurti hoping to turn the corner

Paul Foley on a boxer coming off the back foot....

Steve Goodwin’s first London show on Saturday night also threw up a first for me thanks to Eder Kurti. As I entered his dressing room Eder was relaxed in a chair waiting for the call as he was fighting first.

A professional since 2004, London based Albanian Eder has shown recent good form with four wins on the bounce after taking a break from boxing in 2008.

Those victories have taken his record to 8-4 but he had a slight problem on his hands just 45 minutes before his scheduled fight time against James Tucker.

Eder had no one to work his corner. Credit goes to Kurti for displaying composure despite this set-back while promoter Steve was also backstage outside the fighter’s rooms being urged to delay the Eder fight to which he declined as several other fights were already changed from their original order.

Super-middleweight Kurti sharing the room with former crowd pleaser Graham Earl was happy to chat but was keen for me to be nice, feeling I was a little harsh when covering his friend Wayne Alwan Arab in January but admitted he was a little biased towards his friend.

Enough of our little sparring-match, what does Eder’s pre-fight preparation look like?

“I just relax, try and hold the weight down before the weigh in, have something to eat and now I am fairly relaxed. I am first on so I just need to get wrapped up (hands) and get warmed up and get in there, can’t wait to get in there and get cracking.”

So is Eder bothered he doesn’t yet know who will be in his corner tonight?

“No not really, I have not had a trainer for this fight so it doesn’t make much of a strategic difference.”

Where is your normal trainer?

“You have seen him before, Reece. (I met him after Wayne had fought in January.) There has been a mis-communication between myself and Wayne (they share the same trainer) and we have not actually had a chat before. He is all the way in Chessington, I am from Kennington, I work in central London you know but I can’t actually get away from work.”

What are you expecting tonight?

“Definitely I’ll win maybe a late stoppage.”

And how different is it from being a fighter in the limelight?

“I have had a shaky start to my career, bad management so for the past few years I have been doing pretty much what I am doing now so if it’s meant to be and I am good enough to make it out there then I will.”

So just who would be in the corner and how would Eder perform?

Thankfully for Kurti his friend Wayne Alwan Arab walked him into the ring as Eder got down from the stage. Bearded and chewing gum on his way to the first bell he was greeted with loud cheers.

It was Kevin Maree (normally associated with the likes of Yassine El Maachi and Kenny Anderson) who stepped up and worked the corner.

Eder looked in excellent condition and fought well over the four three minute rounds making good use of his jab, while maintaining an intense focus.

At the end his hand was raised and he proved to be a popular winner. Kurti also displayed a sporting side by greeting the defeated Tucker.

Despite his unsteady ride so far Eder still managed to shift 100 tickets for tonight and is looking forward to a possible Southern area title shot in the future.

Kurti then done some good public relations by entering the large bar area, mixing with the crowd while being hugged and congratulated by friends before taking his seat to view some of the other action.

One of the main reasons I like the smaller shows is you get to see the real stories of fighters like Kurti who despite having no trainer in the lead up to this fight, and having no one to work his corner a few minutes before his bout, still got on with the job at hand.

It’s not all glitz and glamour but Eder at 25 has still demonstrated grit and guts to overcome his hurdles. After suffering four defeats in five fights between 2005 and 2007 Eder has now taken his record to 9-4 and the winning streak to five.

A closer look at his record reveals he hasn’t been matched too easy from the start and once again there are a number of factors to consider when looking at a boxer's record. A few defeats certainly does not mean the end, because a padded record and fighter can easily be identified once a few more details are gathered.

But Kurti is not someone who has had the road of glory made easily available to him still smiles often and seems to take everything in his stride.

I just hope he gets his reward in and out of the ring.

Nice guys can finish first.