THREE years ago, Bradley Rea weighed in at 159 ¼lbs for his English middleweight title fight against Tyler Denny. Tomorrow, the 27-year-old hopes to make the 175lb weight limit ahead of his bid to win the vacant European light-heavyweight crown against Shakan Pitters.
That 15lb shift – up rather than down – has been transformative. “I feel so much better,” says Rea, 20-1 (10 KOs). For a man once drained by the grind of making middleweight, the added pounds have brought peace of mind. He’s enjoying boxing again.
“Most importantly I’m just enjoying what I’m doing so much more,” he tells Boxing News. “It’s another weight off my shoulders. I’m not in camp 10 weeks out, having to make weight with a sweatsuit on.”
“I’ve been asking for an opportunity,” he adds. “I want to show people how much better I’ve got, how much I’ve come on, because I’m not the same fighter that boxed Tyler Denny two and a half years ago. I just wanted that chance. I’ve had a few chances come up and get taken away, but this is it now. This is my time. All the talking’s done. I’ve said what I’m going to do, and now it’s down to me to show people.”
Boxing often gives with one hand and takes with the other. In April, Rea got the call that could change his career – but it came at just a few days’ notice. With no legitimate title on his résumé, he was asked to step in for Pitters to face then European champion Daniel Blenda Dos Santos at York Hall. Pitters, 20-2 (7 KOs), had originally been scheduled to fight the Frenchman, who was removed from a February date after failing a pre-fight brain scan.
Then, in a cruel twist, fight week arrived and Pitters withdrew with a muscular injury. Rea accepted the replacement slot but was left deflated when Dos Santos refused to fight on the day of the bout. The European Boxing Union, exasperated, stripped Dos Santos of his belt.
A frustrating saga – but Rea’s learned patience, even if it doesn’t come naturally.
“I’m quite an impatient person,” he laughs. “I’ve realised I’ve been backed into a corner and forced to be quite patient.
“It’s been difficult at times, but it’s boxing at the end of the day. It’s happened to people before me, it’ll happen to people after me. I’ve had pull-outs, let-downs, changes of date date – but I just kept focused on getting the job done.”
Tunnel vision is a necessity in this sport. Rea has spent years navigating the unpredictable terrain of the small-hall scene. Not much surprises him now.
“There’s nothing stopping me,” he says. “It’s just carrying on doing what I’m doing. This time, I was assured very quickly I’d be fighting. Doesn’t matter where the venue is, doesn’t matter who I’m fighting – it’s about picking up that blue belt.”
Sheffield, London, and Galway were all original locations for the title clash. Saturday night’s fight was originally set for Pearse Stadium in Galway, with local lad Kieran Molloy on the undercard against Kaisee Benjamin. Earlier this month, however, promoter GBM Sports announced that “due to circumstances beyond our control”, the event would move. Saturday night’s venue is now Hull’s Connexin Live. Rea’s only concern is that the fight goes ahead.
“I’ve fought in Hull before, a few years ago,” Rea recalls. “It is what it is. As long as it’s a ring and I’m fighting for that title, I don’t care. They can’t put me on the moon. I’m not bothered. Might happen one day – a fight on the moon for that Turki [Alalshikh] – but I’ll be there, as long as there’s no more pull-outs.”
Back on Earth, the European light-heavyweight title has long been a prize with British fingerprints. Don Cockell won it four years before he challenged Rocky Marciano for the heavyweight crown in 1995. Since then, Chris Finnegan, John Conteh, Tom Collins, Crawford Ashley, Clinton Woods, Nathan Cleverly, Danny McIntosh and Dan Azeez have all lifted the belt. Rea or Pitters will become the 10th Brit to claim it.
“It’s a very prestigious title,” says Rea. “There are a lot of belts in boxing that, let’s be honest, don’t really mean much. But this one does. It carries weight. Once I win that title, no one can take it away from me.”
Rea, who stands 6ft 4ins, has always enjoyed a height advantage – until now. Pitters, at 6ft 6ins, is the tallest opponent of his career.
“I just see it as another challenge I’ve got to overcome,” he says. “I’m looking forward to it. It’s something new to deal with.”
Sparring has been tricky to source, but Rea remains self-assured. He’s not just aiming to beat Pitters – he wants to stop him.
“That’s what we train for, that’s what we’re planning for,” he says. “People might think this fight goes the distance, goes to points – but it’s down to me to show them what I can do. Since moving up, I feel stronger, I’m hitting harder, and people might not expect that. I’ll let them know early on that I can hit hard.”
And when the work is done? A reward awaits. During camp, Rea keeps things clean – sticky rice, beetroot, cucumber, honey, sriracha, and chicken or mince. But he’s got a post-fight meal in mind.
“I’m allowed to eat a bit more during camp now, so I don’t go mad afterwards,” he says. “I like Thai food, and I’m a big fan of Mexican. And I’ll get my hands on a big bar of Dairy Milk, too.”
Rea admits that middleweight left him “running on fumes”. These days, he enjoys his food – and his boxing – far more. A small treat at the weekend. A big prize on the horizon. His appetite is only growing.
