Boxing bouts back at Banks’s after pandemic

Not since before the pandemic has BCB Promotions staged their own show and they are aiming to come back with a bang.

The Stadium Suite will play host to a Sunday afternoon spectacle on September 12, with local fighters among the six appearing in the home corner.

Walsall’s own Levi Ferguson, a two-time Midlands welterweight title challenger, is the most experienced of them and has twice seen the finish with the area crown on the line.

Kaisee Benjamin and Conah Walker thwarted his efforts to claim the belt on those occasions, leaving Ferguson determined to redress the balance.

He had reeled off five points successes since the start of his pro career three years ago and, at the age of 26, has plenty of time to rebuild his record.

Ryan Woolridge will become the first graduate from Great Wyrley Boxing Club to turn pro, joining the super welter division. Woolridge, nicknamed ‘Rhino,’ is also from Walsall.

Ethan Collins is another boxer on a maiden voyage into the pro code, entering at welter, and will be making the short trip to the Stadium Suite from Dudley.

Collins has a good grounding, having been trained by former professional boxing champion Darren McDermott as an amateur.

He’s also studied the Boxing Education Diploma in Sporting Excellence at the University College Birmingham, the only course of its type in the Midlands.

Bradley Thompson’s amateur exploits precede him, as a three-time national titleist who boxed for England, winning a silver medal at the 2017 Junior Three Nations tournament.

He claimed England Junior titles in two consecutive years and added England Youth honours, finishing on 81 amateur contests with 66 victories for Donnington Boxing Club.

The 19-year-old flyweight, from Telford, already has one pro victory under his belt, too, dropping Steven Maguire on route to a fourth-round TKO in May.

Andy Owen is equally up and running after his pro introduction at light heavyweight in June, getting Richie Carter’s Pro Boxing Stable going with his performance.

Owen, who lives in Perton, had Carter leading him into battle for a stoppage of his own, with opponent Ryan Hibbert retiring after the second round.

Tom Brennan, from Tewkesbury in Gloucestershire, has three pro bouts of experience as a super welter and is looking to get back to winning ways.

Brennan, 29, made his paid now in 2019 with a points win over Mac Pemhiwa, but suffered over-the-distance losses to Paul Kean and Michael Hennessy Jr during 2020.

Both of his defeats came after a step up to six rounds, with just a point between him and Hennessy at the final bell when they clashed on a Channel 5 televised card last August.

Tickets for the Stadium Suite bill are now on sale, priced at £40 standard or £75 VIP ringside with buffet, and can be purchased from the Boxers direct or by calling the BCB Box Office on 07493 582 261.