The Bbcolumn Awards are now entering there sixth year and celebrate the achievements of boxers from Birmingham and the Black Country. The award consists of three main parts ‘Boxers to watch’ which puts the light on new and rising talent the Column has been privileged to see. You then have ‘Fight of the year’ which say what it’s for in the title, then there’s the big one ‘Boxer of the Year’ which again speaks for itself.
‘Boxers to Watch’
There has been some great talent coming though the ranks this year and I am thankful I have got to report on there journeys from the start. We start with an Eastside gym Boxer Scott Melvin, this 21-year-old smashed it in the amateurs and is doing the same in the pros. He has fought 3 times so far and has not just won them all but looked good doing it, he stopped his first opponent in the first round but he has really shown his class in the two fights that have went the distance. He has already been on a big show being on the undercard of a Hennessy show in November of this year, and I’m sure this is just the start of this talented fights journey.
Next we have Danny Quartermaine, the Leamington spar fighter is four with out defeat and is yet to lose a round. The 24 year old has showcased his talent on the Tommy Owens Promotions shows with his last fight being on the same undercard as Melvin’s on the Hennessy Sports Promotion show that was live on channel five. Quartermaine it a very slick and talented Boxer and I am looking to see how far he can go in the lightweight division.
Next, we have two exciting fighters that come from the same gym, DnA Boxing gym have produced two exciting fighters that in my opinion have bright futures ahead of them. We start with Welterweight Elliot Sowe he has had two contests and won both of them, he had a hard debut against the tough come forward fighter Josh Hodgins but shone in his second fight. In his second contest he took on veteran Journeyman Qasim Hussain where he boxed well behind a very good jab, listen to his corner and won every one of the four rounds against a very unpredictable opponent. I can see him making waves in the Welterweight division in the future.
Finally, we have DnA’s Tyler Christopher, the 25-year-old Welterweight has won both of his two contests and also had a hard debut against Josh Hodgins. The Bermuda born fighter who now resides in Birmingham put on a fantastic display in his second contest against a very tough debutant who had loads of support and had came to win. Christopher boxed like a seasoned Pro emulating Muhammad Ali as his opponent pressed and pressured him in a Frazer like style, Christopher looks like a very exciting prospect.
Boxers to watch
Danny Quartermaine, Scott Melvin, Elliott Sowe, Tyler Christopher
Fight of the Year
I have picked three fights from this year, but to tell you the truth there is only one that stands head and shoulders above the rest.
We start with Lennox Clarke against Willy Hutchinson for the British Super Middleweight title. Everyone and his gran thought Hutchinson was going to claim the title easily but no one had informed Lennox Clarke and his BcB team. Clarke matched Hutchinson for the first four rounds and in the fifth round Clarke cut Hutchinson above the left eye and then dropped him with a cracking right - left combinations with the ref stopping the fight and Clarke winning the title. This may have been cut short but it was a devastating finish by Clarke.
Also, Shakan Pitters against Reece Cartwright for the WBC International Light-Heavyweight title was a cracker. Cartwright put on a great display and was really testing Pitters resolve as he came forward and got some big shots off. Pitters stayed cool and stuck to his plan eventually dropping Cartwright with a lovely right in the eighth prior to the fight being stopped. This was a cracking contest and is well worth a mention.
The winner of Fight of the year has got to go to Sam Eggington, he defended his WBC Silver Middleweight title against Bilel Jkitou, this fight went back and fourth and could have been fought in a phone boxes. Eggington was cut above his right eye but came out the victor winning the contest on a split decision. This was an unbelievable contest that could have graced a Hollywood movie and was aired at the Moonlight cinema at the custard factory Birmingham and is a worthy winner.
Fight of the Year
Sam Eggington v Bilel Jkitou
Boxer of the Year
We have narrowed it down to five fighters but there can only be one!
So, in no particular order we have the short list of
Sam Eggington, Lennox Clarke, Shakan Pitters, Liam Davies and IJaz Ahmed.
Lennox’s was crowned super Middleweight British champ at the start of the year with a sensational stoppage victory against Willy Hutchinson where not many people gave him a chance. He won this award back in 2018 and was a strong candidate to win it a second time but I feel the winner of the award just did a bit more in the year.
Shakan Pitters claimed a WBC title and has shown great intestinal fortitude to come back better and stronger after his first defeat again Richards. This is the second year he has came close to winning this award but unfortunately it is not his year.
Liam Davies has had an amazing year winning three fights in 2021 after claiming the English title late in 2020. Davies’s final fight of the year was a unanimous points victory beating Dixon Flores for the WBC International silver super-bantamweight title. He is well worth a mention and I can see him winning this award in the near future.
Just missing out was Ijaz Ahmed, he won two European titles was entered into the Bbcolumn ‘Hall of Fame’ and contested a draw for the British Flyweight title, he was a big shout for the award but there was one fighter who stood out for me.
So, the winner of the BBColumn ‘Boxer of the Year’ goes to ‘The Savage’ Sam Eggington. Since Eggington leaving Matchroom and moved to Hennessy Sports Promotions he has had three great contests live on Channel five. In May of this year Eggington claimed the WBC Silver Middleweight title beating Carlos Molina in a unanimous decision. He then had the fight of the year against an unbeaten Bilel Jkitou in an toe too toe battle with Eggington defending his title winning via split decision. The WBC Silver belt is one off the WBC World title and Eggington has now the potential to get a world title shot next year. This is why I am happy to announce that Sam Eggington is the Bbcolumn Boxer of the Year 2021.
Boxer Of the Year 2021
Sam ‘The Savage’ Eggington
