'I still have massive ambition' - Willie Limond
BoxRec News recently had a chance to speak with Scotland’s Willie Limond, who is due to return to the ring on June 3rd against the busiest of all fighters according to the BoxRec schedule, the infamous TBA. Limond was rumoured at one point to be close to finishing with the fight game but has recently signed a long-term deal with Tommy Gilmour’s St.Andrews Sporting Club and explained the reasoning behind his decision.
“I have signed a three year deal with Tommy as I think his track record speaks for itself. If he sees that I’m still very committed and if I keep winning, then I’m sure I will get title shots.”
Signing with Tommy Gilmour raises the tantalizing prospect of an all-Scottish showdown with Aberdeen’s Lee McAllister who has also recently signed for Gilmour’s outfit. Limond is well aware of the demand for this fight and said, “Of course a fight with Lee would be a massive fight for Scotland and with the two of us under the same banner then who knows what can happen. It has potential to be some fight.”
Limond also expressed an interest in fighting the winner of the upcoming clash between Gavin Rees and Andy Murray. “Gavin Rees is fighting the boy Murray from Ireland, so I could maybe get a shot at the winner. They are both good fighters but these are the type of fights that I need to be involved in.”
At 32 years of age, Limond is no spring chicken, and he will be 35 by the time his new deal comes to an end. He does however believe that the next three years could be the most successful of his career.
“I am 32 now but I still have massive ambitions in the sport. I would love to fight for the British, Commonwealth and European titles and win them!”
On the subject of older fighters, Limond’s last fight saw him travel to Mexico City to take on one of the legends of the sport, Eric Morales, something Limond says he will never forget.
“The fight with Morales was some experience. In front of 56,000 fans in a bull arena, it will be hard to top.” Limond was holding his own against the Mexican for the first four rounds but appeared to tire, allowing Morales to take over and force the stoppage in the sixth. Prior to facing Limond and also after the fight, many observers stated that Morales was a shot fighter who wouldn’t stand a chance against any of the top light-welterweights in the world. Morales of course proved everyone wrong by pushing the hard-hitting Marcos Maidana all the way in a controversial points loss.
Limond told Boxrec News that he “was over sparring with him for the Maidana fight and the amount of effort he puts in at training is tremendous.” Limond was also keen to point out that Morales was “a true gentleman” and that “the Mexican people treated me really well in my both times there”.
Although the opportunity to face Morales was a dream come true for Limond, another potentially big fight that many of Limond’s fans were sad to see fall through was a match up with Londoner Kevin Mitchell. Limond explained why the match up never happened.
“The offer I got to fight Mitchell was terrible, I’ve had more for a 10 rounder. If they were serious about that fight then they would have made me a serious offer.”
One thing that Limond was adamant he wouldn’t be trying again in the near future, after giving it a shot in 2009, is mixing fighting with trying to promote his own shows. Limond stated, “I wont promote again when I’m still fighting. Maybe I will give it another go when I call it a day, but that’s a fair bit away I hope.”
If Limond can stay active and give his full concentration to the sport over the next three years then it could be a very exciting time for the Scotsman and his fans. I see no reason why the former WBU champion, who admits that “the traditional titles are better”, can’t win at least one of the British, Commonwealth or European belts that he is aiming for.
