John Murray tells Jon Thaxton: “I’ll fight you in October” by Terry Dooley Jul 31st 2007

Jon Thaxton has indicated, via recent statements directed towards Amir Khan, that he is not afraid of taking on the young guns in the British Lightweight division. Lonsdale title-holder Thaxton has stated that he is willing to fight Commonwealth King Khan in a one-fight deflection deal whereby the older man will appear on a Sports Network bill with the blessing of Sky, his current TV backers, and his promoter Mick Hennessy. Without any disrespect to Amir or Jon it would seem that Thaxton has more chance of fighting Imran Khan in October than he has of fighting Amir in October, especially as Khan will not be old enough to contest the British title until he turns 21 in December. Bang goes the double-title showdown. Also if, as rumour suggests, Khan is to take on Graham Earl in December his October bout will not be a fight with Thaxton. Bang go both the Earl and Khan fights. It seems that the latest statement from Thaxton is yet another round in the verbal, and endlessly verbose, stand-off between Hennessy and Frank Warren whose inability to work together is unlikely to end in time for Thaxton-Khan to be made in 2007. With that said, and with Jon keen to take on the young pretenders to his throne, BBN spoke to John Murray, himself a Hennessy fighter, about his availability for a fight with Thaxton in October. John is as keen as mustard, although definitely not yellow, about the fight. John Murray: “Yeah I'd fight Jon. Everyone in Britain recognises Jon Thaxton as the Number 1 lightweight and his stock and standing has never been higher in the sport as it is now. It would be great for me to fight the best in Britain and if I beat him then I will become Britain's undisputed number 1 lightweight.” Murray took part in a BBC London radio phone-in with Jon last week via conference call and as Thaxton spoke of his desire to fight Commonwealth Champion Khan Murray's mind began to tick-over. JM: “I was sat there on the phone listening to Jon saying that Khan won't fight him and Graham Earl has pulled out against him so no one wants to fight him. I thought to myself, 'I will fight you if no one else will'. Jon is a great fighter who nearly beat my favourite fighter Ricky Hatton so that tells you about his quality and the respect I have for him. Thaxton is a man and Amir disrespected him by saying he would beat him and Earl easily. I'm saying I respect Jon and would love to fight him and hopefully beat him but I'd learn from him as well. “Look, I know it wont be a easy night as I was ringside when he beat Lee Meager for the title and he looked good but I have seen a way to beat him and if I can put that game plan into play on the night then I should become British Champion by beating one of the best [fighters] around.” Murray said that he read the negative reactions Khan's boasts had earned Amir earlier this year and whilst speaking to BBN John was careful not to come across as brash or cocky, merely confident and bullish. Given Thaxton's desire to take on Khan, Murray feels the older-mans warrior spirit and skills would make a Thaxton-Murray fight both viable and entertaining. JM: “I am the young gun. I'm 22 and the WBC Youth Lightweight title-holder. I'm Britain's Boxing Writers Young Boxer of the Year for 2006 and I'd be going in against a very respected strong and capable Champion who can take you out with either hand and has plenty of ring craft - Jon is as cute as a fox. I won't disrespect Jon but I think I can give him a good fight and give the fans a good fight. “I think it would be a great fight [and] I would be the first of the three touted prospects - myself, Khan and Kevin Mitchell - to fight for the British title and that is a dream for any fighter as the title means so much.” John feels a little bit disappointed that his UK ranking has slipped a place due to the inclusion of the recently returning Michael Gomez, who Murray sparred this earlier year. Despite rumours that Murray dominated the sparring John refused to be drawn on the issue by BBN and made it clear that his disappointment at the ranking situation (Gomez wants to be ranked at Super-feather but is yet to weigh in on that limit in his two comeback bouts) is tempered by his admiration for Gomez. Murray explained that he understands that Gomez is highly ranked based on his career achievements and, furthermore, that he looks to Gomez for inspiration every time he thinks about taking on Thaxton in Jon's hometown of Norwich. JM: “It's [fighting Thaxton] a tough task but not mission impossible I feel I could go into his own backyard in Norwich and come away with that lovely belt of his just like my friend Michael Gomez did against Alex Arthur in Scotland when few gave him a chance. Whatever happens I can look myself in the mirror and say I have shown Jon respect. I just want the opportunity to test myself against him, especially now he is looking to fight us young guns!” Certainly, with Amir out of the picture until December, there is, evidently, a space in Thaxton's diary in October and with both Murray and Thaxton promoted by Hennessy there are no barriers to making this fight. It would please the fans, the TV Company and, ultimately, would show the mettle of both fighters – it may even put Norwich on the map. If Hennessy and Jon are serious about Jon fighting the best the fight should be made, if it is not made you have to ask if Jon, a solid professional, and his promoter are looking for a seat on the Amir Khan gravy-train before age derails Thaxton. John's Brother Joe, the talented England amateur bantamweight, is currently in Hong Kong training for a week before going to Beijing next week for a tournament with the GB team as preparations for the 2008 Olympic qualifiers begin.

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John Murray will be number1 Aug 13th 2007, 16:53:48 by n3vs ive known John for a number of years now,trained and sparred with him and for me if he fights any of the lads mentioned he will have too much for them as he really has'nt shown his full potential as yet and when he steps up in class,providing he stays focused he WILL beat these lads who both box unorthadox dropping their hands by their sides. No disrespect to the other fighters as amir does have speed and skill and Thaxton akward and strong as an ox-When his trainer joe gallagher puts the gameplan into motion and its stuck to there,s no stopping john or his younger brother joe who also will go far in the boxing game   Who's willing? Aug 1st 2007, 04:46:57 by bigroe Everyone is talking about no one wants to fight him or the the other. Theres a guy out there who is willing to fight anyone in the lightweight division but no one wants to give him the chance. Is it because they know that he is a lot better than his record suggests. He has served his time and done it the hard way. He is willing to fight anyone in the division but give him the right amount of notice, not that of a journeyman who comes in to get beat. His name is Peter McDonagh and he easy to get hold of. Why not give him a go?????