By John Hannen
When the fighting’s finished, so could be a career at title level, after Jason Booth and Michael Hunter have contested the British super-bantamweight title this Friday at the Seaburn Centre in Sunderland.
With both boxers aged 31, and with long careers behind them, this fight really has a ‘winner takes all’ feel to it – more glory nights for the victor, a very long road back for the loser. Frank Maloney promotes this cracking crossroads clash which also features local hero and Olympian Tony Jeffries and a host of talent from the North East on a jam-packed undercard.
Michael Hunter, 29-1-1 (13), is the former British and European super-bantamweight champion whose solitary loss (KO5) came in an IBF world title challenge to Canada’s classy Steve Molitor in November 2006. Since losing to the Canadian, Hunter has been ‘missing in action’ and the career momentum he’d generated has been lost. The man from Hartlepool promised to be straight back after the defeat but the reality is that he’s fought just three times since, where he has appeared a shadow of his former rampaging self.
The combination of the passing of Michael’s mother and the loss to Molitor saw the all-action Hartlepool man become disillusioned with boxing. So much so that, after a lacklustre win against tricky journeyman Youssef Al Hamidi in early 2008, Hunter actually retired from the game. Since then though, a change of heart has seen him resume his career with a points win over Frenchman Osman Aktas (currently W33 L17 D5) in December 2008, in his last outing. Hunter is also back in his favoured super-bantamweight division after briefly flirting up at featherweight and insiders believe he has whipped himself into fantastic shape for this must-win fight.
In Hunter’s defence, there’s no doubt he’s been used to a bigger stage. So during this comeback period it’s possible that, psychologically, he may have felt he’d left the combination of small halls and fighting journeymen behind him. If however, Michael under-performed due to a lack of motivation rest assured this won’t be a factor when he meets reigning British 8st 10lbs king Jason Booth.
Talented, Nottingham stylist, Jason ‘2 Smooth’ Booth won the aforementioned super bantamweight title in April of this year, beating Mark Moran in six, on cuts. Tellingly though, in the 13 years that he’s been a pro, Booth has competed for the majority of his career as a flyweight or super flyweight.
So, while the classy, current champion Booth, 33-5 (13), has also previously held titles at flyweight (British, Commonwealth), super flyweight (IBO) and bantamweight (Commonwealth) highlighting the quality fighter he is, in this forthcoming contest against Hunter, he’s naturally the smaller man.
However, if size isn’t in Booth’s favour in this contest then career momentum, and recent form, certainly are. The man from Nottingham will definitely enter the arena as the fighter whose star is in the ascendancy. Since losing to Ian Napa for the British bantamweight title back in July 2006 (a fighter he had previously beaten), Booth has won six fights on the spin – fighting twice as many times as Hunter in the same period.
Additionally, Booth’s acquired his moniker for good reason – against Hunter he’ll deliver confusing angles, good footwork and sharp counter punching in an attempt to nullify the come forward aggression of his opponent. Booth says that he’ll live up to his nickname and be ‘2 Smooth’ for Hunter but acknowledges that he needs to stay relaxed, not get tense and, crucially, needs to be at his best to win. A little soberingly though for Booth, the last time he suffered a career loss, Ian Napa was busier, persistent, and pressured constantly – all attributes that the ‘old’ Michael Hunter had in abundance.
Boxing might be a sweet science but it’s not an exact one. ‘Styles make fights’ and common opponents are not always a great indicator of how a future fight will unfold. In spite of this, Booth’s last fight was a 12 round, title defence, points win against Rocky Dean who, the champion admitted, gave him a really tough night (Booth won at a canter though – Ed). In contrast, Hunter demolished Rocky in one round back in 2003. Obviously, a lot of water has passed under the bridge since 2003 but Dean’s record highlights a fighter that rarely gets beaten early, just three times in 11 losses over a ten-year career. Also, of interest but perhaps little else, Hunter and Booth have actually faced each other previously as amateurs with each winning one of their head to head clashes.
Hunter’s aggressive, exciting style has attracted a loyal and vociferous following – for example, Molitor acknowledged the Hartlepool crowd as the most hostile he’d faced. With Friday night’s clash taking place in Sunderland, just ‘up the road’ from Hunter’s hometown, expect the man from the North East to be ‘fired up’ by a large support. Booth, though, is a seasoned, experienced and travelled professional and shouldn’t be affected by the likely hostile atmosphere.
There’s no doubt that if this fight was taking place a few years ago then Hunter would have been the clear favourite – it isn’t and he isn’t. Key to the outcome of this fight seems to be, how much does he have left? Michael’s talking a good game. Any questions about ‘lifestyle’ are countered with the answer that alcohol and poor diet have been substituted for a nutritionist, and he assures that he’s back to his old self and is desperate to win his old title back.
Equally, Booth’s a very accomplished fighter, highlighted by the fact each of the five defeats on his record have come in title fights of one sort or another. In addition, ‘2 Smooth’, who has also battled back from alcohol related problems, is in excellent form and if victorious can expect a shot at the European title, a huge incentive for a fighter who surely has to be near the tail end of his career.
So – who wins this fight? It’s a very difficult one to call and a genuine case can be made for either man. For me, it all depends on which Michael Hunter turns up. I’m prepared, though, to throw the recent form book out of the window, go against the pundits and perceived wisdom, and take a rejuvenated and focused Michael Hunter to beat the brave but smaller Booth on points, or even by stoppage in the later rounds.
What is much easier to predict, for sure, is that the future prospects of each man hangs in the balance of this keenly anticipated title showdown.
