In his latest column, former Olympian and heavyweight contender Frazer Clarke sets the record straight on plans for him to fight Fabio Wardley for the British title and gives his take on the huge heavyweight plans in Saudi Arabia.
Fabio and I both believe in ourselves
As the days go by, me versus Fabio Wardley for the British title is building up to be a very big domestic heavyweight fight. I salute Fabio, and myself, for playing our part, especially on social media.
There have been a few nibbles here and there, nothing too deep. But we are both very determined fighters, eager to get this on and we both have a lot of belief in ourselves that we will win the fight.
As far as that June 10 date goes when I am scheduled to fight on the Adam Azim card at York Hall, I’m happy to leave it if that’s how things develop. Fabio says he is ready for it next, I am 100 percent ready for it next. I just didn’t see any harm in fighting again beforehand, not just for the sake of fighting but for more rounds.
I have only ever done six rounds, Fabio has only ever done six rounds. He has never gone beyond it, just like me. So I saw a bit of benefit from it from a personal stand point.
Also, I am a prize fighter, I fight for a living so I will never turn down the chance to get paid twice rather than once. It is no problem, I’m in the gym every day, never too far away from being fight ready.
So if they say it is six weeks, eight weeks, 12 weeks away, I adjust my camp and I am ready. This is my job, I am in the gym every day and I am ready for it.
My conversations with Eddie Hearn on Saturday
I had a little chat with Eddie Hearn in Cardiff on Saturday night. Eddie is one of the top promoters in the world, a good businessman. But he is on the other side of the fence to me as far as this fight is concerned.
There have been a lot of things said online, a lot of back and forth between him and Ben Shalom too. But when we spoke on the night, I was letting him know just how much I want the fight. I have been made mandatory for a reason. It was just business.
He is someone I have known as a professional, someone I have admired for the things he has done for the sport. This time, it was a bit more intimate because there was business at hand. There wasn’t too much said, he was asking for some clarity on my 10 June date, I told him that after the purse bids, there will be a lot more clarity.
He told me I shouldn’t fight before I fight for the British title but I told him that’s not the rule, that’s his rule and what he’s trying to impose when in reality, he has nothing to do with me. But it was nothing too heavy, a bit of back and forth a bit of banter too. He said the fight between me and Fabio is 50-50 and I was gobsmacked he could find those words. But it was innocent enough.
Ben Shalom’s comments did look bad
My promoter Ben Shalom has got a bit of grief for some comments made in relation to me and the fight with Fabio. Some of the things that have been said are a bit unnecessary. It did look bad, it looked as if Ben had no confidence in me but we spoke on the phone afterwards, we had a good chat straight away.
He’s done a lot for me, to get me to this stage in my career where I’m about to challenge for the British title after just six fights is a credit to him and a credit to BOXXER and 258 Management.
We work together, we are a good team and I have full faith in him and the people I work with. You can’t really interpret everything that has been said in interviews, it doesn’t always work straight forward like that.
Maybe there was a little bit of miscommunication between us but we are sweet, we know our mission and we are more than confident achieving it.
We’re not daft, there’s the social media world then there’s the real world. The conversations we have had on the phone and around the table with 258, they are completely different to what is said in interviews. Deadline for purse bids is 10 May so we have a couple of weeks. I am training for 10 June, if that changes or not, there will be no harm done at all.
Saudi show in December could be too good to be true
At the top of the division, talk of Anthony Joshua vs Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk all on the same night in Saudi Arabia keeps building. It is being talked about but whether we can view it as a realistic possibility is another thing completely.
The money is endless over there so they can definitely afford it. But getting four sets of terms and conditions sorted is a big job. We have seen what it has been like in heavyweight boxing in recent years. It is never simple. It is hard enough making one mega fight, let alone two mega fights.
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Time will tell, let’s be optimistic, it would be massive for the sport.
There will be a big divide over why it is not taking place in the UK or the US, but the way it is with boxing and the nature of the financials, that is where it is going to be.
Of course it would be great if it comes off, but we might just been getting teased all over again.
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