Morgan takes risk in search of reward

Success doesn’t come without risk in boxing so Bowyn Morgan has no qualms about putting his newly acquired world ranking in jeopardy.

Morgan (21-1), the No 2 in New Zealand’s pound-for-pound rankings behind Joseph Parker, broke into the IBF’s top 15 for the first time last month.

But the explosive welterweight will risk that ranking for a potentially massive reward when he fights American Charles Bellamy (28-4-2) in Christchurch on March 28.

A victory against Bellamy – in a 10-round battle for the IBF Pan Pacific title – will push Morgan close to the top 10 in the IBF rankings and within reach of a genuine world title shot.

The IBF champion is undefeated pound-for-pound star Errol Spence Jr (26-0).

Morgan will take on the highly rated Bellamy, a US fighter who is now based in Japan, as professional boxing makes its return to Wilding Park for the first time since major damage was done in the February 2011 earthquake.

Morgan’s trainer and fight promoter Phil Shatford has allayed fears the fight would not go ahead because of coronavirus travel restrictions, with alternate travel plans already actioned to allow Bellamy to arrive in New Zealand.

Morgan, who turned professional in late 2014, has been chipping away, mostly under the radar of the mainstream sporting market, with the New Zealand boxing scene often dominated by heavyweights.

A former Commonwealth Games representative, Morgan, 31, says the Bellamy fight is a career-defining night for him and the kind of opportunity he has been craving as he enters the peak of his career.

‘‘If I lose this fight, then I don’t have what it takes to be running it with these top guys. It’s almost like it gives me a bit of clarity with where I’m at,’’ Morgan told Stuff.

‘‘It’s a step up but I should be able to beat him and I have to if I want to belong at this next level.’’

Shatford shared Morgan’s thoughts on March 28 being decisive in their decade-long journey.

‘‘It’s the toughest fight of Bowyn’s career by a long shot,’’ Shatford told Stuff.

‘‘To achieve anything in boxing you need to be prepared to take the risk of losing and this is a big risk.’’

Morgan was never going to shirk a tough opponent. He was livid – after three months of training twice a day, six days a week – that his last opponent, the badly overmatched Nelson Tinampay, did not live up to his so-called reputation last October and quit in the second round after a flurry of heavy shots.

Ahead of the toughest fight of his career, Morgan isn’t just expecting the fight to go 10 rounds, he anticipates he could be in deep water late in the fight.

Bellamy went 12 rounds with twotime WBC super welterweight champion Jermell Charlo (31-1) in 2014. He’s never been dropped and his four loses have all gone the distance.