Andy Lee has been handed an acid test as he looks to bounce back from the first defeat of his career when he headlines the next Ladbrokes.com Fight Night in his native Limerick on July 19th.
Lee will face Philadelphia puncher Willie “The Gladiator” Gibbs and the American is predicting a nightmare return to the University Sports Arena in Limerick for the hometown hero next month.
“I’m still scratching my head about this fight,” said a bemused Gibbs. “I mean the guy just suffered his first defeat and now they want him to suffer a second one straight away. It doesn’t make sense to me but I’ll do what I have to do and that’s come to Ireland to destroy Andy Lee.”
Gibbs will touch down in Shannon next month with the credentials to back up his impressive talk. The former USBA middleweight champion has a record of 20 wins and just 3 defeat’s with 16 of those wins coming via knockout.
A cousin of pound for pound great Bernard Hopkins Gibbs believes he shares more than a family tree with his fellow Philadelphia native. “Bernard came through the hard way and ended up right at the top of the game I’m going to do the same. I’ve had setbacks in my career with managerial and trainer problems but this is a great opportunity for me to beat an up and coming kid and make the world sit up and take notice of Willie Gibbs again. Beating Andy Lee will put me back in the boxing atmosphere and can take me to a world title fight and that’s my goal.”
Gibbs had been in training for a July 12th date in Dublin against Matthew Macklin but when that fight fell through he was only too happy to switch his focus to Lee.
“I don’t know what his team are thinking of with this fight. Do they honestly believe I’m going to come all the way to Ireland to lie down for him? I saw Lee’s last fight and he’s a good young fighter who’s shooting for his dream like the rest of us but he ain’t ready for me. The fact that they even think they can take me shows they’re underestimating me. That’s a slap in the face for me and it’s all the motivation I need.
“Rest assured I’m going to be packing my A game into my suitcase. People are saying that Lee can’t afford to lose this one well neither can I so I’m going to be a dangerous man in that ring. If it’s God’s grace for me to land that right hand then I know I’ll take him out. I broke my right hand early on in the fight when I won the USBA title but still knocked the guy out in the last round with a double right hook.
“I’m an old school fighter and I go in there and give blood, sweat and tears because that’s what the fans pay to see. The only problem next month is that the tears will be from Lee’s people.”
Despite his bold prediction Gibbs believes Lee to be a good fighter. “I haven’t seen that much of him yet but from what I have seen he seems to be a good kid. I’m certainly not going to question his heart because any man that gets into that four cornered ring has heart.”
Gibbs has been to Europe before having competed in Russia, Germany and Poland during his amateur days but he says there will be a new addition to his luggage this time around. “I’m definitely bringing the mask to Ireland,” said Gibbs referring to the Gladiator style mask that always identifies him as he makes his ringwalk. Ireland hasn’t seen the mask and they haven’t seen Willie Gibbs either. Everyone there is in for a big surprise.”
Lee however will he hoping that vociferous home support can see him record the 16th win of his pro career and get him back to winning ways. The Shannonsider made an emotional homecoming to his native city in February headlining the first ever professional boxing event in the city with a demolition of Argentina’s Alejandro Gustavo Falliga.
However in his next outing Lee suffered the first setback of his career with a shock defeat at the hands of Brian Vera in Connecticut in a fight that was televised live coast to coast in the U.S.
Now Lee has the opportunity to get back to winning ways in front of his home town support but with Gibbs in the opposite corner it promises to be a huge test for the Athens Olympian.
