Tel Talks… to Matthew Macklin

Boxing News Terry Dooley16th September, 2009

EASY? Macklin says Barker is no match for him

Birmingham's Matthew Macklin will fight Amin Asikainen for the European middleweight title at the Manchester Velodrome on September 25. Macklin has been sparring with Alexander Sipos in preparation for the contest. I joined them for one of these sessions. Macklin grew in stature with each passing round, letting loose with combinations and using intelligent footwork to find the openings. Joe Gallagher, who trains Macklin, liked what he saw.

"That was brilliant," he enthused. "We are working on being a bit cuter for this opponent. This is a top 10-ranked middleweight and a really good operator. Wayne Elcock was ranked highly and Asikainen is ranked in The Ring top ten. I'm pleased with where we are at.

"We are getting Matthew battle hardened and giving him a taste of a common opponent [Sipos dropped a points decision to Asikainen in 2006]. We can gauge the strength and power and make sure we've ticked the boxes needed to put the masterplan into action on the night."

Gallagher believes that Macklin's underrated boxing skills will come to the fore in the contest with the Finn.

"The foot movement is coming on," he said. "We saw that in the Elcock win. These world-class guys don't just do the big things - they do small things, and they do them very well. Sleight of hand and foot is important. Matthew is becoming a promising world-class fighter. People thought he couldn't box the way he did against Elcock but he did, and people will be surprised by what they see in this fight. People will see a disciplined, thoughtful and meticulous Matthew Macklin."

"People think Matthew's all crash, bang, wallop but he is a great boxer," he continued. "He can jab, he is great with the right hand, people knew him for the body punching but he is becoming a well-schooled box-fighter. Matt will hit the world stage if he wins this one."

There is pressure on Gallagher; he wants to prove that he can move his fighters onto the European level.

"The result will speak for itself," he claimed. "We're in a results business. "I'll be judged on the 26th. It is a 50-50 fight. The nearer we get the better Matt gets and the closer it gets to being 55-45 in Matt's favour. This gym will hopefully have that blue ribbon belt after this fight."

Macklin joined us. We had once sat in this same office and talked about his upcoming fight with Jamie Moore, back in 2006, when Billy Graham trained Matthew. Macklin and Graham parted company in 2007; the 10th-round KO at the fists of Moore sowed the seeds of that split. Matthew then worked with Buddy McGirt and Richie Woodhall, before settling with Gallagher at the turn of the year, knocking out Wayne Elcock in three one-sided rounds to win the British middleweight title in March; Macklin believes that he is reaping the rewards of settling down.

"Three weeks out and I've done the right thing by moving through the gears in sparring," explained Macklin. "I've not fought for six months and at first you're out of distance, you're reaching with your shots, you can see shots but can't get them off; that's not the case now. I feel that my fitness is good and my sharpness is coming. I'm not loading up, not reaching for shots, I'm letting my hands go and relaxing into fours and fives, working to the head and body, reaching around the sides. My head movement is coming, the feet are getting better and I'm really, really happy."

The Elcock fight was a case of search-and-destroy; the contest was destined to end the moment Macklin landed cleanly. For Matthew, though, the conclusive nature of the finish prevented him from showing people what he could do; the boxer feels that he will be able to move through the gears against Asikainen.

"I'd have done more in the Elcock fight but it never really got going," he confirmed. "This won't be as easy. Amin is a world-class fighter. He'll take some bumps and bruises. He is technically very sound so I won't catch him early on. As the rounds get going I'll break him down and open up that tight defence.

"I was very versatile as an amateur. Boxing a mix of fighters, I could adapt. I went a little bit one trick pony-ish with Billy Graham. I was too much of a pressure fighter and didn't rely on my jab. On the positive side, my rhythm and my head movement improved under Billy.

"With Richie and Buddy, I tired to overcompensate by boxing too much. Joe didn't try to meddle with me before the last fight; he just got me to express myself. I think I'm turning into a well-rounded fighter. I'm not too tall, not too short, so I've got to be able to mix things up and I think I'm doing that.

"The Elcock win was my most mature performance. It was controlled aggression. I still wanted to go in there and take him out but there was a bit more guile there. More feints and more set-up on the shots."

Pre-fight perceptions that the Elcock contest was going to be a close fight were based on what Macklin had failed to do in his previous two performances. Distance fights with Francis Cheka and Geard Ajetovic had led to doubts about Macklin's middleweight power.

"I knew that I hadn't performed well for 12 months," he said. "My fitness wasn't what it could be. Sparring wasn't very good. I was fit, I wasn't in the pub or anything, but it wasn't what it could be. I could have been fitter.

"Having said that, I beat three very good fighters. I won every round against Cheka when boxing well within myself. I had a really good camp for the Elcock fight and it showed in my performance. This one is going even better, so I'm looking for a better performance. Asikainen is better than Elcock and that will bring the best out of me.

"I've always had confidence. Boxing is a marathon, not a sprint. It is not about who is getting the hype at the current moment. I was like that myself at the start of my career - I had the red carpet treatment and was thinking it was great. I didn't have a clue about boxing back them but I thought I knew it all. I then had the privilege of being beside Ricky Hatton for years and saw what it was about: the championship distance, pacing yourself and all the rest. Then I had the Moore fight, a real war, and that showed me how brutal a fight can be, but I came back well from it."

Strangely, the Asikainen fight led to a few grumbles, some British fans feeling that Matthew has swerved Darren Barker by taking the Asikainen fight. For Macklin, though, the Asikainen fight is a natural progression. Amin is a former European champion; his two losses came against world title challengers - Sebastian Sylvester and Khoren Gover.

"Step outside off the bubble and you see that this is a very good fight," stressed Macklin. "Look at the world scene, The Ring ratings and the top 10s. Darren Barker hasn't knocked anyone out except area title fighters and journeymen. In fact, he's been dropped and hurt by journeymen.

"Barker himself said that [Darren] McDermott was his most live opponent. No offence to McDermott but he went life and death with a shot Stephen Bendall, so how can he be compared to me? I fought Campas and Geard and they were coming off losses to the likes of Asikainen and Daniel Geale over in Australia. Campas knocked out Alejandro Garcia in his next fight after me.

"Anyone who is wrapped in the cotton wool of the British scene will not see it but this is a much bigger fight for me than Darren Barker. Amin is a much better fighter, proven at world level; he is a banger and has been in The Ring top 10 for three years. This fight will get me ranked with the world governing bodies. Anyone who thinks I'm swerving Barker needs to have a long look at themselves.

"He's playing catch up to me anyway. He's beaten journeymen and the odd stiff in Canada. If we fought it would be over early. He'd get the shock of his life. It would be a huge loss for him and a real test of character to see how he came back from it.

"Look, Darren's a nice lad with talent but they've gotten carried away with themselves; he's thinks that he's the man when he doesn't know anything about professional boxing. He's done a few rounds sparring with some decent fighters but I've sparred world-class guys for years - I sparred Yussef Mack in Philly and he is a top ranked light-heavyweight. Mack was trying to knock me out. I think that Barker is looking for a confidence that isn't there yet. Barker is a nice boxer but he hasn't boxed anyone. The fight would be over in three or four rounds; it would be a boy versus a man."

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