Quigg starred alongside Joshua and Crolla on Manchester card
Thursday 2 October 2014 12:44, UK
You can’t point your finger at Scott Quigg and Carl Frampton to fight – have a look at the people behind them, says Johnny Nelson.
Hopefully common sense prevails and the people behind these guys get their heads together, but I see them both fighting once more first.
We heard Eddie Hearn ask to sit down and talk so that leaves one person left – and the people behind Frampton need to talk. Give the public what they want.
There’s no point mouthing off and saying “my boy is going to do this or that to your boy” if you haven’t got the faith in your boy to make the fight. Before they both had titles and people wanted them to fight, they said ‘let’s get world titles first’ and make it worthwhile. The only thing that can happen now is one of them loses their title so the goalposts are moving.
This is where the politics of boxing kill the sport and that’s frustrating. Hopefully common sense prevails and the people behind these guys get their heads together, but I see them both fighting once more first.
Quigg wins by knock-out
His performance was spot on, he kept his focus and didn’t get dragged into the success of Frampton last weekend. It was the right attitude and you have to rate him.
Stephane Jamoye is a bogeyman, he travels well unlike most fighters so that’s dangerous.
Quigg broke Jamoye when he smiled back at him as his guard blocked everything Jamoye threw. He was thinking ‘I’ve just flurried but this guy is still walking me down’. That’s where the fight changed.
Joshua records 8th straight KO
We know Anthony has a spiteful side and we saw that when Konstantin Airich was put down and he seemed to forget and continue letting his shots go. You saw him back off in the second and he was thinking ‘I want the rounds’. But then once he lands a shot and tastes blood he says ‘I’ll get rid of him’. That’s a good instinct because why give him a chance?
I like his spitefulness, every fighter needs an edge, especially if you’re going to be a top fighter. Nice guys come second and Anthony is a nice guy outside the ring but I was happy to see that spite. It’s not nasty, it’s just a bit of spite when he does his job. I like that.
It does look too easy for him but the match-making is so important because if he’s not matched right he won’t develop. You’re seeing this young man develop into an outstanding fighter because of the way he’s being matched and the way he’s being brought on.
Muhammad Ali’s former trainer Angelo Dundee said that for heavyweight prospects it’s not just about fighting, it’s about getting the right opponents. And I totally agree.
Crolla denied win by cut stoppage
Anthony Crolla is usually a slow starter but he was holding his own from the off. I’ll tell you the truth, there’s been a couple of times where I’ve thought ‘he’s not going to do it here’ because he’s never had to show us what he’s got.
But what he does is go out and produce something out of his skin, sticking to his game-plan and executing it, and showing discipline.
Gamaliel Diaz knew the way it was going. He knew the smart move was to get out. It was an honourable way, he thought, to divorce himself from the situation. Crolla won’t be happy because victory was taken away by Diaz disappearing from the fight.
Madness in Manchester
Manchester is a special place to hold a Fight Night and the reason is because it’s a fight crowd. I don’t know what it is, they’re used to big fights and big crowds. The fans turn out in their droves. The amount of good boxing nights they’ve had. You get guys who aren’t even from Manchester and they fill the place out. Manchester knows its boxing and they’ve got two football teams who they turn out for too. They just get it.
