The British middleweight division has already gone from strength to strength this year.
First, Hamza Silas dismantled Liam Williams and cemented his place as one of British boxing's brightest hopes. Immediately afterwards, Nathan Heaney and Brad Pauls engaged in an epic battle for Heaney's British title. Then, a great fight was confirmed for Sheeras with Austin “Amo” Williams.
Meanwhile, European 160-pound champion Tyler Denny sat quietly watching events unfold, hoping his time would come.
Denny, 18-2-3 (1 KO), has been away from competition since winning the EBU title in front of a raucous crowd in Wolverhampton last November, but last week he finally stepped away from the ring. was announced. He finished with an attractive belt defense against Felix Cash. The fight will headline Matchroom's show at Birmingham's Resorts World Arena on June 22nd.
“It was a little frustrating,” Denny told BoxingScene about the firing. “I was supposed to do some volunteer work in February or early March, but because it took so long to get it done, the EBU gave me cash directly. That's totally fine, but I have to fight. You don't get any money, right?
“This is definitely the biggest night of my career. I'm looking forward to everything. The atmosphere, the fights, the build-up. It's going to be a full-on dungeon. I can't wait.”
Denny, 32, has had a slow but steady start to his career with an ambitious and potentially undefeated record.
For two and a half years, Denny went from filming Derrick Osaze's '0' in a Sheffield car park to headlining a Sky Sports show and winning the European title from Italy's Matteo Signani for the first time in his career. I even went so far as to record an interruption. Along the way, he also covered River Wilson-Bent, Brad Lea, Brad Pauls and Macaulay McGowan.
Still, with the biggest names in the 160-pound division gaining attention, his story is regularly portrayed as a feel-good story, a little patronizing.
“I'm really a little mad, but I don't care. Everybody has their own little moment, right?” Denny said. “Now people are going to have to talk about me again.'' is over, so I'm going to punch Cash so they can keep talking about me.
“Sometimes I don't get the credit I deserve, but when you compare it to other players, I don't think there are many players who have the resume that I have in the last few games.”
Denny has successfully filled out the “Experience” and “Achievements” sections of his resume over the past few years. It took him three tries to win the English middleweight title, but once he finally got over that hurdle, he quickly rose to European level. He clearly benefited from this activity and appreciated the opportunities presented to him. Don't get me wrong, Denny was employed as an away fighter for most of his rise to fame, but he's been fighting in small hole shows for years, so he grabbed every opportunity by the scruff of the neck. .
Denny has been keen to compete since the beginning of the year, and although his momentum has slowed due to the postponement, he insists he will enter the Cash match firing on all cylinders.
“I needed some rest after the fight with Macaulay McGowan. I didn't think I was good at boxing,” he said. “I fought Brad Lea in November, Brad Poels in February and McGowan in the first week of May. We won the championship and were ready to go again after Christmas, but if they had told us we would have to wait but then be headlining Resorts World, we would have been happy to wait.”
The happier and more confident a fighter is, the more dangerous he definitely becomes. It took him eight years before Denny became an overnight sensation. Although he himself can't pinpoint exactly what has changed so dramatically, he believes that hard work, determination, and being part of a thriving gym all played a role. I did.
“It's hard to pinpoint it. I think several things happened at the same time,” he said. “I won the fight and the whole gym was buzzing. Liam Davies was also there. I think he’s one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the country at the moment. I’m training with you guys.’ Like that. I want to surpass him. We joke a little about who's the best at the gym. I admitted that after he beat Eric Robles in a round or two, but that was until June 22nd. To get back to the top, you have to deal with your cache in good style. ”