Woodhouse aiming for revenge against Morris
Curtis Woodhouse finds himself with the opportunity to win his first professional boxing title (the mouthful that is the small hall British Masters International belt at light-welter) in his 13th fight since hanging up his boots as a professional footballer. But to add a little spice to the biggest night of his boxing career, the man standing in his way will be the only man to have beaten Woodhouse since he laced up the gloves.Jay Morris from the Isle of Wight will be looking to repeat his April 2009 points victory over Woodhouse, a victory that shocked not only Curtis himself, but the Belfast crowd and the watching Setanta live viewing audience. The rematch takes place at Rotherham's Magna Centre on 28th February.
Although Woodhouse was off form that night, the Driffield man thought he had done enough in a tough, energy sapping fight to come away with the win. However the referee gave the decision to Morris and the unbeaten record was gone.
Woodhouse has always vowed to gain revenge over Morris, who since their first meeting has publicly goaded the brawler to take him on again as he believes in a second meeting he will knock the former footballer out.
Promoter Dave Coldwell explains, "This is a fight Curtis has been pestering me for since we got back in the changing room after Morris got the decision! I thought Curtis was off form that night, he felt flat and fought flat but still did enough to win in not only my opinion but most of the people who watched on TV. The crowd in Belfast were amazed at the referee, he truly was one of the worst I've seen, letting Morris get away with all sorts of rough stuff.
"Curtis said he was a lot more nervous than usual, he was live on TV boxing away from home for the first time. Another thing that made him nervous was that he had David Haye in the changing room with him and sat ringside shouting him on! Curtis is a massive boxing fan, massive David Haye fan and it's the first time someone of that stature in the game was up close and talking to him and just in general being in his presence in the changing room. Obviously its all part of the experience and after spending two weeks in Cyprus with Haye and the rest of us from Hayemaker he has no such issues anymore! He's also learnt that no matter who is around you, you've got to go out and perform.
"Jay Morris has said publicly in the past that he would fight Curtis again but with Curtis coming down to light-welterweight I didn't think the fight would happen, but when I heard that Morris was dropping down in weight also it allowed me to make the fight. Morris believes that with this being the first time he's ever had eight weeks of preparation for a fight that he will knock Curtis out this time. He really must believe that as he has asked for 100 tickets.
"The thing is, he's judging his chances on the worst performance of Curtis' career. Anyone that saw him at Hull in November will know he has come on in leaps and bounds and is now a genuine prospect who's ready to pick up his first title in front of his Rotherham fans."
On February 28th at the Magna, they both get their chance to prove themselves right and become a champion in the process. Will it be repeat or revenge?
Submitted by BoxRec News on 5 January, 2010 - 13:15
