The life of a journeyman

Lewis Van Poetsch

LEWIS VAN POETSCH campaigns as a professional boxer for the love of the sport. His attitude is infectious, energetic and far from what one might expect of a fighter with 60 losses to his name. Heโ€™s a journeyman and during a fantastic chat about his unusual and eventful career, he also spoke about the gargantuan importance of journeymen and their role at the beating heart of British boxing.

โ€œIn my opinion no one will ever understand it. People say to me โ€˜whatโ€™s a journeyman?โ€™โ€ van Poetsch says, voicing a frustration that seems to have dogged him repeatedly. โ€œSo I break it down for them and they say to me, โ€˜Yeah but doesnโ€™t the competitive side of you want to win?โ€™ Iโ€™m like, โ€˜Yes but also itโ€™s a job. If Iโ€™m keeping the promoter happy, the prospect happy, the fans happy, I get to go in there and entertain the crowd, so Iโ€™m happy. The promoters ticket-seller wins, heโ€™s happy. Prospectโ€™s happy. The fans are happy โ€˜cos their mateโ€™s won. Everyoneโ€™s happy. If I go in there and start knocking everyone outโ€ฆโ€

Letโ€™s be clear. Van Poetsch can box. Many up and coming fighters can attest to that and heโ€™s taken on some big names. While it may be confusing for the uninitiated to consider that a man who habitually loses most of his bouts is a good boxer, it definitely is the case. Consider the regularity with which van Poetsch fights, (sometimes at a rate of three bouts a month) compared to that of a prospect (more like a bout every three months). Consider the fact heโ€™s fought at every weight from light-middle through to light-heavyweight, the fact he does so at short notice.

So, the role of a journeyman is not only a tough one, but a skilful one, as fighters on the road are forced to manoeuvre through tricky rounds against primed prospects, sometimes with only days in notice. As journeymen go though, โ€œPoochiโ€ sets himself apart from the crowd. He says it started as a Halloween costume, but his Charles Bronson moustache soon became part of an interesting stylistic flourish. Van Poetsch enters the ring in an old-fashioned (bath) robe, a flat cap, and some retro boxing boots, to accompany the remarkable moustache he now always sports. He walks out to Little Richardโ€™s 1955 hit, Tutti Frutti, works the crowd and loves every moment. He tells me, โ€œThe crowd just started eating it up! It works for me. Itโ€™s got a few headlines. Thatโ€™s what boxing is at the end of the day, itโ€™s entertaining.โ€

Thatโ€™s not the only thing that sets the Gloucestershire man apart from the crowd though, heโ€™s also served as an active soldier in Afghanistan, come under fire, lost friends and survived. โ€œI smashed my basic training,โ€ he tells Boxing News, citing it as a maturing experience. โ€œThey got all the little kid stuff out me from being at school.โ€ After his training, Poochi explained, he was eager to get into the action. โ€œI wanted to go to Afghanistan,โ€ he says, โ€œso I joined the battalion that was going next and got straight out there.โ€ Thankfully he returned unscathed and says that his time in Afghanistan was โ€œdefinitely a positive experienceโ€.

journeyman

โ€œItโ€™s something I can say Iโ€™ve done, and Iโ€™m proud to say Iโ€™ve done, and Iโ€™ve got a medal to prove it. Iโ€™ve done my bit for my country. Iโ€™m proud to say I went to Afghanistan with the Rifles and the British Army. Itโ€™s a tough time out there, itโ€™s hard work because youโ€™re busy all the time and thereโ€™s a constant threat. It wasnโ€™t not a positive experience. It was a positive experience and something Iโ€™m proud of.โ€

Van Poetsch then has quite a story to tell, having served overseas before taking up the life of a professional fighter and juggling his boxing and his work as a barber is tough, he says: โ€œBusy. I work full time and obviously I train full time as well. Itโ€™s about the balance between work and rest. Itโ€™s good though, I enjoy being a journeyman. Iโ€™ve fought all over the country and in different countries, itโ€™s good.โ€ His storyโ€™s not over yet though and while heโ€™s a proud journeyman, no longer worrying about world titles, he definitely has ambitions within boxing and an infectious love of the sport.

โ€œMy ultimate goal is to get to a hundred fights, unscathed, and then go from there really. I havenโ€™t got an exit plan to leave from boxing anytime soon to be honest. I go through phases with boxing, one minute I f****** love it, next I canโ€™t stand it. I hate training, I hate making weight, I hate the process of the fight night, I hate getting my hands wrapped. But I take a few weeks off, recharge my batteries and I canโ€™t wait to do it again then. Itโ€™s addictive. Itโ€™s like a drug. Getting a bit of money for it too? Thatโ€™s a bonus.โ€

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