Junior Witter's belt giving challenger "trembles"
After years of being avoided, it was a rare treat for Junior Witter to come face to face today with someone who actually wanted something he had. Timothy Bradley challenges for Witter's WBC light-welterweight title at the Trent FM Arena, Nottingham, on Saturday, and the prospect of boxing for the famous green belt has the unbeaten Californian positively bubbling over.
"I've dreamed of winning this belt," Bradley said. "I look at the belt and it gives me trembles. I see his [Witter's] picture on that belt and I can imagine my picture on there.
“This is the only belt I knew as a kid. Growing up watching Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield – they all had a green belt. [Floyd] Mayweather too. I’m in prime-time shape. I’m so ready, I can’t sleep at night.”
If only Witter’s rivals had always been so keen. He has never managed to get Ricky Hatton to agree to face him, despite a rivalry that has stretched back since the turn of the millennium. If Witter thought winning the WBC title in 2006 was going to change things, he would be proved wrong, as Hatton, despite holding rival world titles in the same division, and others side-stepped him.
“Too much risk for too little reward,” is how Dominic Ingle, Witter’s trainer, puts it. Witter’s lack of box-office appeal and awkward style has limited his opportunities. “Junior has the style that can make a very good fighter look very basic,” Ingle said. “They can’t work him out.” Bradley’s homework in the build-up to this bout has included plenty of videos so he can study Witter’s odd switch-hitting style.
“He’s different to anyone out there,” Bradley said. “I’ve had sparring partners who can switch hit, lefties, righties, but no one boxes just like him. I’ve watched a lot of tape, I pretty much know all of his antics.” The confident talk from the American challenger saw Witter’s ears prick up. “It excites me,” Witter said. “I like people who want to fight, want to achieve, I get up for a challenge.”
But if Witter needs another incentive to perform, he knows that beating Bradley could finally open the doors that he has long had closed in his face. It will be screened live on ITV1, Witter’s first bout on terrestrial television, meaning more people will watch Witter box on Saturday than have ever tuned in for a Hatton bout. It will also be shown in the United States on the Showtime channel. A dominant display like the one that saw him flatten Vivian Harris, the former WBA champion, in his previous defence last September could see Witter finally emerge from Hatton’s shadow.
“I look at Joe [Calzaghe versus Bernard Hopkins] and he did enough to win, but he didn’t shine,” Witter said. “I’ve got to go out there and win, but I want to win and shine.”
As a general rule, mandatories are due once a year. The four main organisations do not rate the others' champions and the WBC drop boxers who box for other titles. This does not affect Hatton, who holds the lowly IBO title, which isn't seen as a threat by the others, so their champions are ranked. However, the IBO does not enforce any mandatories, so while they rate Hatton at No 1 and Witter and No 2, Hatton can face who he wants.
The WBC actually rates Hatton at No 2 behind Bradley, so if Witter wins on Saturday, there will be a situation where Hatton and Witter are the top contenders for each other's title.
Posted by: Ron Lewis | May 07, 2008 at 07:49 PM
On the subject of Hatton/Witter am I correct in saying that as soon as a fighter reaches a certain position (mandatory challenger?) with one organisation, the others simply delete him from their records? Is the champion of one organisation ever made mandatory challenger for a rival organisation or does the money involved in having different champions prevent that from happening? And just one more: How frequently will an organisation insist on a mandatory challenger and how often can a champion choose a voluntary? What I'm getting at is can nobody make Witter a mandatory challenger to Hatton?
Posted by: Phill Arrowsmith | May 07, 2008 at 07:10 PM