Does the game need a light-cruiser class?
Shakan Pitters…Ex-champ interested in the new weight division
NEWS of yet another weight division in British boxing has left me with mixed feeling.
Light-cruiserweight, with a limit of 13st 5lbs, bridges the gap between light-heavy and cruiser and comes into force on January 1.
The traditionalist in me resents any new innovation and I see yet another division adding to a landscape already muddled by the maze of alphabet organisations and lesser title belts – silver, intercontinental, international…
When I began covering boxing in the mid 1970s, only two new categories had been added to the divisions that had been there since the gloved era began. Both hadn’t been in place for long.
The first British light-middleweight title (11st) fight took place in 1973, Larry Paul beating Bobby Arthur for the belt. Des Rea gained the first Lonsdale Belt at light-welter (10st) in 1968.
The British Boxing Board of Control did briefly dabble with the junior-lightweights – Jimmy Anderson was the first champ in 1968 – but ditched them two years later, a move I agreed with at the time.
Back then, I fully supported the inclusion of light-welter and light-middle championships because they maintained the half-stone gap between most divisions. Before they were there, there was a full stone separating lightweights and welterweights, welterweights and middleweights.
For the life of me, I can’t see the point of light-fly (recognised by the Commonwealth, not Britain), super-bantam and even super-feather. We’re taking a few handfuls of pounds separating them from bantam, feather and light.
But, reluctantly, I can see the rationale behind the unveiling of light-cruiser. There’s a huge 25lbs gap (1st 7lbs) between light-heavy (12st 7lbs) and cruiser (14st 4lbs) – the biggest in the sport. Something had to bridge it.
And you know what – it could be tailor-made for Birmingham’s tall former light-heavyweight champ Shakan Pitters.
The experts seem behind it, too.
Leading Stoke promoter and manager Scott Lawton: “To be fair, I don’t like how many divisions there are in boxing, especially at the lighter weights. But from light heavyweight to cruiserweight is a really big jump and I do agree that it’s needed. Some people are really small at cruiserweight, but definitely too big to drain down to light-heavy. I think it will stop boxers making dangerous decisions. And another thing - the bigger lads can all punch, so it make for another exciting division.”
Top Eastside trainer Paul “Soggy” Counihan: “Yes, 100 per cent we need it. There is 25lbs in the light-heavy weight category - it is too wide! Our Shakan Pitters will definitely be looking to campaign at that weight, he would love to be a two weight British champion.
“When he’s out of camp and indulging in his favourite foods and drinks, the most he goes up to is 14st which is still 4lbs under cruiserweight cap and the big cruiserweights would be boiling down from 15st plus. They are too big, so adding a light-cruiser weight would be great because the cap would be 13st 5lbs and Shakan would be not be too drained making light-heavy and would be comfortable at 13st 5lbs.”
Manager and promoter Jon Pegg: “We need it for sure - 12.7 to 14.4 is too big a jump. The equivalent one weight down is like a light heavy fighting a welter.
“And the bigger you are the more you can boil off so some of these 14.4 guys are solid 16 stoners getting down and maybe fighting some just a bit too big for light-heavy.”
I’d love to hear readers views. For or against – drop me a line.