Rivers title bid again hits troubled waters

Tyler Rivers…hopes to fight for title on February 7. Picture: Aidan Hewitt

IF you buy the old adage, “the greater the struggle, the bigger the reward” then Tyler Rivers has some exceptional nights waiting for him.

It’s hard not to feel for the welterweight whose bid to fight for – let alone win – the Midlands title appear jinxed.

Rivers was to have faced Zach Evans for the belt last September, only for Evans to pull out.

He was then matched with Elliot Sowe for the title on Scott Murray’s February 7 boxing bonanza at Cannock Chase Leisure Centre. Sowe withdrew following a family bereavement.

Nuneaton’s Danny Costello was prepared to fill the gap, but the Board of Control felt he lacked the required championship credentials. I agree with our governing body on that one: it’s not so much the fact Costello has only four bouts – we’re in an age when novices fight for Midlands titles, it’s more the two years that have passed since his last outing.

“It’s no fault of Danny’s,” Rivers pointed out. “He was game for it and gutted when it didn’t happen. I just don’t think the Board would pass him.”

Birmingham’s unbeaten Dylan Clift was then approached. He, however, is chasing other title opportunities and Rivers is again in limbo.

“It’s a joke,” said Leicester’s Tyler, who trains at Eastside gym, Birmingham.

To their credit, leisure centre show promoter Scott Murray and matchmaker Jon Pegg are committed to securing a title opportunity for Tyler. The 25-year-old has trained and dieted during the Christmas break in the hope someone can be found.

Time, however, is running out. Rivers, who has lost two of eight, is a realist: the odds of finding a suitable opponent lengthen with each week.

He said: “I’ve lost to a journeyman, there are no knockouts on my record, there shouldn’t be a reason for turning me down. I don’t understand it, it’s annoying.

“It’s got to the point, I don’t blame fighters for going on the road. I used to look at journeymen and think, ‘I wouldn’t do that, why are they doing that?’ I’m not saying I’d do it, but I understand why they do it.

“I have kids to feed, I need money. OK, I had a good amateur career, but I didn’t think I’d be avoided. I’ve never really knocked anyone out, I don’t see myself as this avoided fighter, but there seems to be a bit of a pattern.”

In search of a payday, Rivers is in the mood to again roll the dice. In September, he took a big step-up, faced former British title challenger Mason Cartwright in Blackpool and performed well in a losing, distance contest.

“I just want to take my chance with a good prospect on a big show,” he added.

Jon Pegg stressed the search for a title opponent continues and names are being considered to present to the Board.