ULTIMATE BOXXER, an exciting new boxing tournament which starts with eight fighters and concludes with one winner, all on the same night, takes place this evening at the Manchester Arena.
If you enjoyed Prizefighter, you’ll like this. The winner will get ยฃ16,000, a life-changing sum that is certain to deliver exciting bouts, particularly when one considers each of the welterweight contestants are young and unbeaten.
QUARTER-FINALS (will be broadcast LIVE and FREE on UNILAD’s Facebook at 7.15pm)
KAISEE BENJAMIN (146 1/4lbs) vs SAM EVANSย (147 1/4lbs)
DREW BROWN (147lbs) vs JIMMY COOPER (146 1/4lbs)
TOM YOUNG (145 1/4lbs) vs BEN ELAND (145lbs)
ANDY KREMNER (146 1/4lbs) vs ISAAC MCLEOD (146lbs)
SEMI-FINALS and FINAL will follow LIVE and FREE on 5 Spike at 9pm
KAISEE BENJAMIN (Sunderland)
Age: 22
Record: 4-0-0 (1 KO)
Amateur pedigree: Won 20 of 25 amateur bouts, won the ABA Novice championship boxing for Eastside ABC.
Trainer: Paul Counihan.
Cutman: Jon Pegg.
Strengths: Is a real box of tricks, very hard for opponents to read. He says there are traces of Vasyl Lomachenko in his boxing. He switches stances, throws punches from everywhere and can punch with both hands.
Weaknesses: Has a risky but exciting style of boxing โ he drops his hands and switches stances.
Punch power: On his pro debut, he flattened tough-as-old-boots Paul Cummings and as an amateur, he had a puncherโs reputation.
Speed: Has quick hands and good feet.
Stamina: Untested. Has yet to get out of second gear in his pro career yet. He stopped his debut opponent and has dominated a pair of experienced journeymen who couldnโt fathom him out.
Anything else: Is a member of MENSA for people with high IQs โ and works as a part-time model. Knocked out all his opponents on his way to the final of the ABA Novice championship in 2015. Didnโt knock out his final opponent, but dropped him on the way to a wide points win. Coaches at the Eastside gym regard him as one of their best prospects.
SAM EVANS (Wednesbury)
Age: 21
Record: 9-0-1 (3)
Trainer: Errol Jonson
Cutman: Paul Mann
Strengths: All out aggression and heavy hands
Weaknesses: Prone to cuts. Suited to longer fights where he can break opponents down.
Punch power: He carries good power in both fists and can turn it on when he needs to, recent back-to-back stoppages of two hardened pros will send a warning to his Ultimate Boxxer rivals.
Speed: He may not be the fastest Ultimate Boxxer contender, but what he lacks in speed he makes up with abundance in raw strength.
Stamina: Good. Has finished strongly in both six and eight-round fights. He drew his last fight, over eight rounds, with a good finish.
Anything else: He was trained by Ricky Hatton for his first 10 pro fights. Hatton said that Evansโs slipping, rolling and hooking style reminded him of himself.
DREW BROWN (Northampton)
Age: 21
Record: 7-0
Amateur pedigree: 42 bouts for Far Cotton Amateur Boxing Club in Northampton
Trainer: John Daly/Spencer McCracken
Cutman: Jon Pegg
Strengths: Loves to fight. Starts fast and throws lots of combinations. He will be big for the weight. Brown has been campaigning at super-welterweight.
Weaknesses: His tendency to get into a fighter means he sometimes forgets to jab.
Punch power: No KOs yet in his pro career, but scored a knockdown in his last fight and throws plenty of punches.
Speed: Good hand speed and pumps out punches in threes and fours.
Stamina: Drew likes to start fights fast, win the opening round, and has proved he can fight at a good pace in shorter fights.
Anything else: He started boxing aged 10 and trains at the same gym as womenโs world champion, Chantelle Cameron.
JIMMY COOPER (Southampton)
Age: 25
Pro-record: 6-0-1 (1 )
Amateur pedigree: Started boxing at 11 and went on to have 83 bouts and represented England. Defeated Mitchell Smith and Reece Bellotti.
Trainer: Steve Tyrell
Cutman: Glenn Bradley
Strengths: Height, reach and heavy hands. Is a skilled combination puncher with a wealth of three-round experience from the amateurs
Weaknesses: Is just settling into the weight having started his pro career at super featherweight, but more weight could mean more power.
Punch power: Has a whirlwind 27-second win on his record, but every other fight has gone the distance. Throws lots of quality punches.
Speed: Throws fast rat-a-tat combinations
Stamina: Has yet to go beyond four rounds in pro career, so untested.
Anything else: Jimmyโs uncle, Gary Cooper, was British light-middleweight champion in the 1980s. Jimmy had a spell training with Tony Sims and sparred the likes of Ricky Burns.
TOM YOUNG (Leeds)
Age: 24
Record: 4-0-0 (1)
Amateur pedigree: None. He had seven white-collar fights and won the lot
Trainer: Michael Marsden
Cutman: Mick Marsden
Strengths: Aggression. He loves to fight.
Weaknesses: Is still a bit raw technically. Lacks ring experience.
Punch power: Only one KO, but heโs known as a volume puncher.
Speed: Quick fisted and likes to let punches go.
Stamina: Trainer Marsden says he can keep churning out punches for round after round.
Anything else: Was with Leeds United FCโs Academy when he was a teenager.
BEN ELAND (Stoke)
Age: 28.
Record: 4-0-1
Amateur pedigree: Had a handful of amateurs in his teens, then took a break and came back to have unlicensed fights before turning pro.
Trainer: Scott Lawton.
Cutman: Gareth Taylor.
Strengths: Flashy boxing skills.
Weaknesses: Can sometimes get dragged into a scrap when he could get the job done with his boxing.
Punch power: Not a dynamite puncher, but a sharp hitter.
Speed: Is slick. Sharp hands, good feet.
Stamina: Has yet to go beyond four rounds.
Anything else: Should have plenty of support from Nottinghamshire, where he grew up, and Stoke, where heโs lived for the last eight years.
ANDY KREMNER (Manchester)
Age: 25.
Record: 9-0 (2)
Amateur pedigree: 29 bouts and boxed in multi-nation events in Europe.
Trainer: Matthew Hatton.
Cutman: Ronan Carter
Previous fights: Won all nine pro fights, two inside the distance.
Strengths: Loves to fight! Throws a lot of punches and looks to have a good engine. Beat a 3-0 fighter in last fight, so full of confidence and has an experienced trainer in Hatton.
Weaknesses: Defence is a bit leaky. Will take a punch to land one.
Punch power: His body punches were too much for Ricky Rose in his last fight, but really, heโs a volume puncher.
Speed: Good. He throws his punches in fast bursts
Stamina: Regards his engine as one of his strengths. Believes he can throw punches non-stop for three rounds, then do it again โ and again.
Anything else: Works for the fire service in Manchester. Has had breaks in his career because of shoulder injuries.
ISAAC MCLEOD (Sunderland)
Age: 23
Pro-record: 9-0 (3)
Amateur pedigree: Won 60 of 69 bouts, including gold at the European Youth championship and silver at the World Youth championship
Trainer: Darnell Smith
Cutman: โTony or Peter Sims.โ
Strengths: Slick skills and boxing IQ. Heโs only 23 – but has been boxing for a long time.
Weaknesses: Gets dragged into fights and has been cut.
Punch power: The nickname is โCan Bangโ and heโs a stiff hitter with both hands.
Speed: Sharp hands and feet.
Stamina: Unproven, but fought five times in seven days during his amateur career.
QUARTER-FINALS (will be broadcast LIVE and FREE on UNILAD’s Facebook at 7.15pm)
KAISEE BENJAMIN (146 1/4lbs) vs SAM EVANSย (147 1/4lbs)
DREW BROWN (147lbs) vs JIMMY COOPER (146 1/4lbs)
TOM YOUNG (145 1/4lbs) vs BEN ELAND (145lbs)
ANDY KREMNER (146 1/4lbs) vs ISAAC MCLEOD (146lbs)
SEMI-FINALS and FINAL will follow LIVE and FREE on 5 Spike at 9pm