Sam Eggington cracks it

Sam Eggington

FEW fighters can say they have made tangible progress during the recent global pandemic. But one man who can is Birminghamโ€™s Sam Eggington.
Eggington, 30-7 (18), has managed to box three times in the past 12 months and has, during this period, played his part in a โ€˜Fight of the Yearโ€™ contender as well as scored two of the best wins of his career to date. Now, with some much-needed momentum, and a new promoter backing him, Eggington fights again in Coventry on September 10, convinced he has turned a corner.

โ€œItโ€™s been a good week,โ€ he told Boxing News days after signing a promotional agreement with Hennessy Sports. โ€œIโ€™ve got a date and a contract sorted. Thereโ€™s nothing more I could have asked for. Now Iโ€™m just raring to go. Iโ€™m riding the crest of a wave and Iโ€™m looking to keep winning.โ€
Much of the appeal of signing with Hennessy Sports, of course, aside from him now being a key part of a close-knit stable of fighters, has everything to do with the fact that Eggington will continue being able to showcase his talents on Channel 5.

โ€œI think itโ€™s great,โ€ he said. โ€œAs mad as it sounds, Iโ€™ve had the old guys down the road stopping me when Iโ€™ve been out telling me theyโ€™ve watched me on TV. Thatโ€™s only because Iโ€™m on terrestrial TV. When I was boxing on other stations, I wasnโ€™t getting that.

โ€œYou have to be a boxing fan to know boxing is happening on Sky Sports. But since Iโ€™ve been boxing on terrestrial TV, Iโ€™m getting regular members of the public watching me and then noticing me out and about. Iโ€™m also getting huge viewing numbers. And sponsors love it as well.

โ€œHennessy gets behind his fighters. What he has done so far for me has been great, bearing in mind I hadnโ€™t signed for him before this week. I just gave him my word that we would get a contract sorted and he arranged the [Ashley] Theophane fight [last December] and a fight against a former [IBF] champion [Carlos Molina]. He believes in me and I believe in what he does.โ€

sam eggington
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The last time Eggington entertained the general public on terrestrial television he had to go the full 12 rounds against Carlos Molina in May. It was a fight from which he took away plenty.

โ€œHe was seasoned, man,โ€ Eggington said. โ€œIn the first round, I got a bit excited and was hitting him at will. But then he caught me with a body shot and it nearly folded me. I thought, โ€˜Yeah, Iโ€™m going to have to sit back a bit now and take my time.โ€™ He was probably setting a trap and I knew it was going to be a long night.

โ€œI thought I hurt him a few times but all he would do was take a deep breath and recover. It was crazy. Itโ€™s the only time Jon [Pegg, trainer] has said, โ€˜Look, youโ€™ve got this fight, you can have the next round off,โ€™ and Iโ€™ve agreed. There are some tough lads in Britain but nobody was as tough and durable as Molina.

โ€œWhat I did [winning by decision] was better than blowing him out in a round. I was able to show more of my game and get more from it. It was a good night.โ€

Eggington now hopes for more good nights in the future. He also hopes to one day secure a rematch against Ted Cheeseman, the current British super-welterweight champion with whom Eggington went to war last August.

โ€œI wanted the Cheeseman rematch but you canโ€™t sit about and wait for people,โ€ he said. โ€œI got put in a final eliminator for the British [title] against [Anthony] Fowler. Iโ€™m not being big-headed but I won the British title when I was 21. Iโ€™m not going to do an eliminator for it at this stage. I would have fought for the belt, whether it was Fowler or Cheeseman. I would have done that. But Iโ€™m not going to fight an eliminator for it.

โ€œItโ€™s only the rematch I want really but Iโ€™m not going to chase someone who doesnโ€™t want it. The fight was there and it was an easy fight to make. It was a crazy fight [their first encounter] and everyone loved it. A lot of people thought I won and a lot of people thought he [Cheeseman] won. It had all the ingredients to lead to a massive rematch. I was well up for it but he had better things to do. He had the British coming up against [James] Metcalf and he wants to push on from there. He didnโ€™t need to fight me again. And when you watch the fight back, you can understand why. He didnโ€™t want that again. It was a tough fight for him. I do that sort of thing daily. Thatโ€™s my career.โ€

In the future, Eggington says he is happy to offer his services as both a super-welterweight and middleweight, depending on the opportunities available. He also believes he is only getting better. โ€œI think Iโ€™m getting better, although Iโ€™m bound to say that,โ€ said the 27-year-old. โ€œIโ€™m doing more training off my own back because I enjoy it more and Iโ€™m learning more. In the past, I was just young and big for the weight. I went in there and thought let me just use my size and have a war.

โ€œBut as Iโ€™ve got older, Iโ€™ve made the weight easier, and Iโ€™ve had time to learn and take notice of what Iโ€™m actually doing in there. I think thatโ€™s now showing. Iโ€™m boxing more. Iโ€™m trying to stay out of the way a bit more.โ€

โ€œThe Savageโ€ might be a tad harder to find in the ring with punches these days but he is, thanks to aligning himself with Channel 5, certainly now easier to find in peopleโ€™s living rooms.

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