Powell out - Moore to fight 'Iron' Sebastian Lujan by Terry Dooley Mar 30th 2007

After negotiations for a bout with Sechew Powell broke down Jamie Moore's manager Steve Woods looked far and wide for a replacement opponent who would fit the criteria for a step-up in class for Moore following his win over Matthew Macklin last September. Step forward Argentine Sebastian Andres ‘Iron' Lujan who has agreed to step in against Moore in Altrincham on Friday the thirteenth of April. Jamie had desperately hoped that this date would be unlucky for Sechew Powell – the American who has fought Kasim Ouma and Ishe Smith - yet as Steve Woods explained to BBN, it seems that Powell did not, ultimately, fancy the job against Moore. As Woods explained to BBN, Jamie still has a chance to test himself against a fighter with title experience. Names aside that title ethos is behind the thinking for Jamie's coming year, peerless at British level he deserves the chance to test himself fully at higher levels. Powell was offered favourable terms to come over to Manchester and fight Moore yet he had not wanted to risk a loss or, as he claimed, his ranking against Moore. The fact that the WBC ranks Moore higher than Powell suggests that when it came to the crunch the fight was a high-risk, small-reward assignment for the ‘Iron Horse'. If Powell did not want the fight, you cannot blame him for his reticence. After his thrilling win over Matthew Macklin last September Jamie finds himself at the toughest juncture of his career. Moore wants to make that step-up into world-title class yet a lot of the guys in the top ten will not risk their rankings by fighting one another. This is the curse of modern boxing contention and all Moore can do is keep chipping away until he is ranked so highly the big fights become easy to make. Jamie will be disappointed, as he explained to BBN, the last year has been an amazing one for him, he has kept busy and welcomed a daughter, Olivia, into his family, he wanted to celebrate all this by taking Powell's scalp. Moore will crack on against Lujan though about that there can be no doubt. Jamie had been in the gym training hard only three days after his last fight; a points win over Mugurel Sebe. Lujan fits the bill for the step-up in class and Jamie made it clear to BBN that the point was to get fights that would excite him and push him. Lujan is coming off a win over fellow Argentine Roberto Hernan Reuque (who is listed as Jamie's next opponent but is not the man in the frame) for the WBA Fedalatin welterweight title yet, more importantly, Lujan recently went the twelve round distance against Sergiy Dzinziruk in Germany for the WBO Light Middleweight Title. Consequently Jamie has something to aim for in this fight, it will be a good form guide as to his world-title aspirations. Jamie told BBN that in his last outing he had felt no ill effects from the war with Macklin. In going eight rounds with Sebe, whose brief seemed to be survival, Jamie had felt frustrated by his opponents' tactics but was happy to be back in the ring after his brief injury lay-off. More importantly Jamie is keeping busy and managed to get into action before Matthew Macklin perhaps suggesting that his tactics in the big win had kept him fresh for a busy 2007. All in all, whilst it is disappointing that Powell will not be in the other corner, this coming fight suits Jamie; he can keep busy and raise his profile in victory. As Carl Froch is increasingly showing, if the title door is closed you just have to keep on knocking until you knock it down. The Moore-Lujan bout will be part of a competitive card as a whole bunch of VIP and Frank Maloney fighters make their bow on this Sky televised show. In the co-feature Dale Robinson, 19-3-1 (9), and Chris Edwards, 10-12-2 (3), will square off in a rematch for the British Flyweight title. Their last fight saw Robinson on the wrong end of a stoppage defeat in eight rounds. This extra spice should make the return bout an interesting affair as Robinson gives everything he has to resurrect his career whilst, on the other hand, Edwards, as Moore did, looks to consolidate his standing at this level. As usual with Flyweights the punch count will be high yet this fight will also feature some heavy-handed attacks and if it finishes in Robinson's favour a rubbermatch could well be on the cards. Lower down the bill Mark Thompson, 10-0 (5) will be looking to reaffirm his ‘KO Kid' reputation as the Sky cameras look on. At a recent fight Mark had chatted briefly with BBN and promised that his KO run would be back on its feet after consecutive distance wins. Mark was at pains to point out that he will not just go kill-crazy come the thirteenth, he will merely press on like Jason Voorhees in the hope that the KO comes. One thing he was sure of is that, in his words: “This is going to be a bad luck Friday the Thirteenth but it will be my opponent suffering not me!” Despite the risks taken in the co-features perhaps the most cut-throat fight on the bill will feature Danny Harding, 5-0 (0) as he aims to repeat his surprising points win over touted prospect Chris Pacy, 3-1 (1). Danny had surprised many on the undercard of Moore-Macklin by beating Pacy fairly and squarely, using his movement and combinations to punch out a points win over four rounds. BBN spoke to Danny at a recent show. Danny was getting ready for a fight with Jason Nesbitt and had confided that he was due for a change of trainer prior to this Pacy rematch. Danny now trains with Nigel Hardman, once of Shannon's Fighting Fit Gym, and Nigel tells me that Harding is looking good and hoping to repeat his win over Pacy. This is a risky fight in its own sense as a loss for Pacy will be disastrous whilst on the other hand a repeat win for Harding should be enough to bring some decent fights his way. Trainer Hardman is a whiz on the pads and with technique work so Danny should be sharp enough to use the combinations and movement that beat Pacy last time out to get another win. This time they will fight over the six-round distance and at some point Pacy is going to have to put both his arms around the problems Danny presents to him. Jamie Moore will not be the only fighter on the card fighting with one-eye on future fights. If Wayne Pinder, 23-1-2 (7) comes through his comeback fight an assignment in Wembley against Patrick Maxwell, 13-1 (10), two weeks later beckons. As long as Wayne boxes with his eye on the immediate target, his comeback opponent, friday the thirteenth will provide Wayne with a chance to sharpen-up ahead of the Maxwell clash. Finally the VIP roster will keep a BBN favourite busy as well as giving a promising new signing or two a run-out. Former ABA Champion Gary Sykes, 2-0 (1), holds two amateur wins over prospect John Murray and has joined the VIP stable after a year of inactivity. VIP promoter Steve Woods told BBN that Sykes would not be overly burdened with undue hype. Previously Sykes had been tagged the ‘Yorkshire Oscar De La Hoya' and such hype is nice to hear but hard to wear. Sykes is now being given a chance to join an active stable and build on the two wins he holds so far. BBN watched Sykes fight last year, his fast hands hold promise and it will be interesting to see how fares in this his new beginning. Another new addition is Rendall Munroe, 10-1 (4). Munroe gave Andy Morris a stiff fight last year up in Scotland, his promise in this fight marked him out as a someone who could again contest domestic titles. In the Morris fight Rendall showed fitness and flashy punching at times and it will be interesting to see his future development. Another familiar face on the bill is another BBN favourite Alex Matvienko, 6-0 (2), the one-man riot responsible for some excellent small-hall fights over the past year and half. Alex got his combinations going in his last fight yet is chomping at the bit for three-minute rounds so he can show that his work rate is high-energy throughout. Alex gets his wish on the thirteenth as he fights over four three-minute rounds. So far Alex has a winning ledger, he is an active and intense fighter who has caught the eye of many fans around Manchester. You can expect a committed effort from the Oliver Harrison trained fighter who mixes the combination punching Oliver is renowned for with the type of intensity fans appreciate in a fighter. On a night of decent matches the fight of the night accolade may be taken up by the bout between John ‘Fireworks' Fewkes, 14-0 (2), and Gary O'Connor, 7-1 (1). Fewkes showed in his last fight against Craig Watson that he wants to fight the upcoming names in his division and the fight with O'Connor promises to be a microcosm of the intensity of the bill as two young fighters meet head-on. Fewkes seemed buzzed at the end of his last fight yet his defence is generally compact and tight - barring the odd showboating session. O'Connor will be eager to find out whether Fewkes can be caught again and the result should be a fight that catches fire early and burns right through to a tight conclusion. Overall it will be a night on which prospects of all levels and styles collide in closely matched fights. At the top of the pile Jamie Moore will hope that Friday the thirteenth of April is the night when a new spectre rises in the light-middleweight division in the shape of the committed Manchester southpaw who showed in the fight with Macklin that he can box clever as well as brawling cruelly. Tickets for the show are available online with ringside tickets costing £65 and standard tickets costing £35 and can be bought from: www.vipboxingequipment.com

Go back Comment on this article | Send to a friend | Print

There are no comments. Click here to be the first who comment on this article.