Elcock targets European Assault by Tom Podmore Oct 10th 2007

New British champion Wayne Elcock is targeting an assault on Europe after toppling two-time world title challenger Howard Eastman in Coventry two weeks ago. The thirty-three-year-old Midlands middleweight – Birmingham's first Lonsdale belt holder since Rob McCracken held the strap at the same weight twelve years ago – is confident he can take over Eastman's mantle as Europe's premier eleven-stone-six fighter. Elcock is understandably walking on air after ripping the Battersea-based puncher's title away with a twelve-round unanimous decision at a partisan and passionate Skydome Arena on September 28. The Brummie scrapper started the fight as betting underdog but made a mockery of those pre-fight odds as he outboxed, outworked and outpunched the former Continental champion throughout the thirty-six-minute contest. Eastman, hurt on a number of occasions, tried desperately to get a foothold in the contest but couldn't match the fire or stamina of the former English and WBU boss and lost his proud record of never tasting defeat to a British fighter. And now the ardent Birmingham City supporter, rated eighth in the European Boxing Union's latest rankings, wants to test himself against Europe's elite. First is likely to be a maiden defence of his newly-acquired Lonsdale belt in the Second City early in the New Year, and then he could meet Dudley's unbeaten Midland Area champion Darren McDermott in a Birmingham-Black Country showdown. A showdown with Solihull's Matthew Macklin, also a fervent Birmingham City fan and fighting in Dublin on October 20, is another battle that would do huge business in the Second City and certainly whets the appetite. The Irish-rooted Brummie, who is pushing for the British Boxing Board of Control to make him mandatory challenger, has admitted he'd love nothing more than to square off with the new champion at the city's National Indoor Arena (NIA). And Elcock, 18-2 (8), admits: “As far as the first defence of my title is concerned, there are two Midland lads in the queue – Matthew Macklin and Darren McDermott. "I could be facing any one of them, which would be tremendous news for the Midlands and especially Birmingham if Matt was the one I ended up fighting. “If Darren is the mandatory challenger then the fight will happen and it's got to happen in Birmingham. “I'm not interested in making a defence against Steve Bendall, however. What would be the point? The first fight wasn't even close and it wouldn't be any different this time around. “If he had made it close then there would be some justification for a rematch. But he was never in the fight and now I must move on with my career.” However, he insists he isn't prepared to hang around for fights with McDermott and Macklin for too long and is setting his sights on the European champion, Germany's Sebastian Sylvester. Sylvester, in his second reign as EBU king, slayed common foe Steve Bendall inside three rounds last year, but the Greifswald fighter holds no fear for the Shard End puncher. “Listen, I'll fight absolutely anyone,” Elcock admitted to me at Pat Cowdell's dinner show on Monday night, “but I've got to get the right fights for me and my career. “I'm 33 now and can't hang around forever and tread water. I must try and get those European and world title shots somewhere down the line and make myself financially secure. “Sure, fights against McDermott and Macklin would be good for the Midlands and for British boxing, but who have they beaten to earn a crack at my title? “Darren Rhodes, with all due respect, is the best boxer they have beaten –someone I knocked out in a round in 2005. “But if big-money is brought to the table, then why not? I would love to have the Lonsdale belt to keep and know I have the all-round ability to dispose of them both and retain my title.” And the former ABA finalist, rated fourteenth in the world in the independent ratings, has even loftier ambitions before he hangs up the gloves. “I have ambitions to hold the Commonwealth title, the European title and a respected world title before I call time on my career. “Sylvester is the fight I want first. He is a good fighter, a good champion, but he is beatable and I'd seriously fancy my chances against him. “I'm rated in the European top ten so there is a good chance the fight with him can be made in the future,” said the Brummie, who welcomed his second child, Wayne Lewis, into the Elcock fold three weeks ago. “Eastman was still world-rated so it means I will be ranked in the governing bodies top 30 now and maybe I can get a crack at one of the genuine world belts in the next couple of years. “But I'll sit down with Paddy (Lynch, trainer) this week and we'll see what is in the pipeline.” The British title strapped around his waist is the culmination of eight years hard work for the Shard End fighter – involving a lot of tough, 50/50 fights from the off. “I've always had to do things the hard way,” he said. “I beat Valery Odin, a big light-heavyweight who was unbeaten, when I was weighing a few pounds over the light-middleweight limit. “I was then thrown in with Darren Rhodes, outpointed over four, when he had lost only one of 13 and I was only in my third. “I outpointed Yuri Tsarenko, who was on a eleven-fight unbeaten run and had just beaten undefeated Gary Lockett, in only my tenth outing. “I beat Anthony Farnell for the WBU title in his backyard (Manchester) and thought my chance to win the British title had gone forever after the disappointing performance I put in against Scott Dann. “I still kick myself over that showing as I know I would have won that fight if I'd brought my A-game. “I'm not a man of excuses but Paddy had a turn the day before and I wasn't myself in there. “I think my recent performances against the men I've been in with have redeemed that showing.” Elcock's win over the former undisputed world title challenger saw him get praise in almost all quarters, especially from a magnanimous Howard, trainer Rob McCracken, who doubted Wayne had it in him to win, and Mick Hennessy, Eastman's promoter. Wayne said: “After the fight, Howard told me that he'd never met a fighter who brought so much fire and intensity as I did. That was nice of him to come and say that. “He has been a great servant for British boxing and should have won a world title, but its now time for me to see how far I can go up the ladder. “Eastman's promoter also came into the dressing room afterwards and said that he thought I would have knocked out any British middleweight if I performed like that. “Rob is a top bloke and he said he was proud of me for what I had done for Birmingham. “He was one of the people I always looked up to as a young boxer and he was great role model.” Instead of letting the praise go to his head, Wayne is regularly watching the DVD of his fight with the ‘Battersea Bomber' to look for areas in which he can improve and take his performances to the next level. “My career is going only one way, as I have had only 20 fight and there is a lot more to come from me,” he continued. “It has only just started to sink in what I have achieved and I fought exactly to plan. “Paddy, however, has already told me that there were a couple of things he was disappointed about and they would cost me at a higher level. “I knew that I made a couple of mistakes but I will improve. “I need to have fear before I step into the ring and that is why I need to keep on taking hard fights. “When I'm prepared, both mentally and physically, I'm confident I could take the scalp of anyone.”

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