Amateur boxing, professional boxing and 'Queensbury League Boxing'?
Word has been going round that former English welterweight champion Ross Minter has ruffled a few feathers with a new promotional venture aiming to establish a third code of boxing within the UK. The BBBoC isn't best pleased and many die-hard boxing fans are likely to be sceptical about the idea. So, exactly what is the Queensbury Boxing League? And why?
Speaking to BoxRec News, Minter explains how the idea was formed with promoter Alan Foley in order to fill a void in the pugilistic arts that he felt was being occupied by less than salubrious alternatives.
“What we're looking to achieve is to become a body which is in between the amateur and professional codes,” said Minter. “It can be for an amateur who wants to go pro but is not quite ready; or the ex pro who's been struggling to juggle a job with the demands of professional boxing. And then there's the boxers who are in the gym but haven't fought, who would like the opportunity to get in the ring without being thrown into a mismatch.
“Right now this void is being filled by unlicensed or white collar boxing,” he continued. “But what I've seen from these setups is terrible. It's really badly run with fighters really badly matched. There needs to be an alternative.”
One of the main selling points of the Queensbury League is the way in which match-ups are made. There are no opportunities for fighters to pad out their records or journeymen to step into the breach if a fighter pulls out. All the match-ups are carefully planned in order to make them as fair and competitive as possible. And this means a lot of hard work for Minter...
“With the league every fighter who steps into the Queensbury ring has been personally seen by myself in the gym so I know exactly what we are working with. I watch them spar, train and get a complete history of what experience they have had previously so that is all taken into consideration when making the matches so I know each fight is a good even contest which will be fair, competitive and hopefully enjoyable to watch.”
This approach has seen the Queensbury Boxing League receive coverage on Sky via Premier Sports, lending it a greater weight of legitimacy compared to other promotional ventures outside of the two established boxing platforms. Clearly the broadcasters hope that the short explosive nature of the fights and the transparent rankings system will appeal to the masses in the same way that the Prizefighter series has.
Fights range from three to five two-minute rounds. Standing eight counts are common place and thus far the main baubles are domestic titles. It'll certainly be interesting to see how the league develops as more and more fighters join, especially as they come in at vastly different experience levels.
Minter himself was last seen in the ring making a brave challenge for Michael Jennings WBU title in 2009 and now he has the challenge of winning the respect and recognition of established boxing fans and the rulers of the other boxing codes. At a recent awards bash, Minter noticed that the welcome from the Board was not the warm one it once was.
“I’d be lying if I said we had not come up against some negativity from the likes of the BBBoC and a few others but once people have actually been to a Queensbury show they all come away saying the same thing that these are the best boxing shows they have ever attended and go away with a completely different perspective because they have seen it for themselves,” he said.
“I can understand the opposition at first because they are judging the events on pre-conceived ideas that what we are doing is just unlicensed boxing which could not be further from the truth. Personally you won’t find a harsher critic of these unlicensed boxing events than myself because everything they do goes totally against what I think boxing is about.”
Certainly the promotions have so far looked the part, with proper weigh-ins, ring-walk entrances and a certain sheen which makes it look, well, professional. Whether it can go on to establish itself as the 'third way' remains to be seen, but it might be worth keeping an eye on.
The next Queensbury League Boxing show is on November 26th at the Effingham Park Hotel in Copthorne, West Sussex.
Pictured, Minter and Foley
