Best boxing city for world champs for its size in the UK

Newbridge Wales once upon a time.

 

I'm assuming you mean the gyms they trained out of or do you actually mean the city's they lived in. I.e Callum and Beefy trained in Manchester but were from Liverpool

 

Incredible really when you take into consideration Newbridge is a village mate .

 

Probably Belfast.

Sheffield does well too.

 

Sheffield in the 80s/90s/Noughties/2010s

 

Incredible.

Once made a visit in the week leading up to the Calzaghe v Evans Ashira fight in Cardiff.

It was about 45 mins drive from Cardiff and the gym was a small old school boxing gym when we eventually found it after mistaking it for an old Rugby changing room pavilion. You could just about taste the hard graft standing in the gym.

Nobody would believe 3 world champions were made in this gym or at this location.

 

If you're talking Metropolitan areas, probably the Cardiff/South Wales Valleys area:

- Jimmy Wilde
- Joe Calzaghe
- Jim Driscoll
- Freddie Welsh
- Howard Winstone
- Jack Petersen
- Steve Robinson
- Nathan Cleverly
- Robbie Regan
- Barry Jones
- Gavin Rees
- Lee Selby

Yeah, it's expanding it a bit more than "Cardiff", but people are generally happy to throw in Greater Manchester fighters as one, which is twice the size of the Cardiff/Valleys Metro area.

The level of global boxing talent to come out of that part of the world is insane. 4 HOF fighters and a host of titlists and world class fighters.

Excluding pioneers, there are only around a dozen or so British fighters in the IBHOF, and four of them are from South Wales.

 

Best: Belfast, Liverpool, Sheffield

Worst: Birmingham, Bristol, Leicester, Bradford

 

Bath, often pronounced Barth darling has produced many great champs.

 

Yes mate 40 years ago i remember it , the pale blue corrugated hut .

 

I was in the Royal Oak Pub Broadway only the other day a pub i hadn't been to in 35 years and it was fantastic seeing all the old photos are still on the wall , Driscolls gym is still above it .

 

Liverpool have had a few champs.

Paul Butler
Tony Bellew
Robin Reed
Paul Hodkinson
John Conteh
Liam Smith
Callum Smith
Nick Ball ( @ash234 had to remind me)

Am I missing anyone?

 

Add Nipper Pat Daly to that list, mate. He was a phenomenon – arguably one of the greatest young talents ever to come from these shores. Unfortunately he was badly exploited by his manager/trainer, cutting short his career before he was even 18. I read a recent biography on him written by his relative, boxing writer Alex, and it really shows just how special he was.

 

Nick Ball