UK BARNBURNERS

Our countdown of the Top 50 British fights continues with numbers 40 to 31

*Criteria – fight must take place in the UK and include at least one British boxer 40 JOE CALZAGHE (CARDIFF) vs MIKKEL KESSLER (DENMARK)

NOVEMBER 13, 2007. MILLENNIUM STADIUM, CARDIFF. WBC AND WBA SUPER-MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE (12 RDS)

Both Calzaghe and Kessler were undefeated, and both men had a viable claim to be the world’s number one. In a bout high on skill, the Welshman won comfortably on all three cards (116-112 twice and 117-111), although Kessler played his part, boxing with high quality throughout. There were 50,000 people present in the arena and it was beamed live to a US TV audience. With little in it during the first half of the contest, Joe - who proved his quality once and for all - stepped up the pace considerably from round seven, leaving Kessler struggling to find a way to respond. Although the Dane still had his moments and troubled the Welshman more than once, it was Joe that finally won the technical battle between the two and he finished the bout unscathed. Kessler, on the other hand, had considerable damage to both eyes.

BN said: “It was a fascinating and entertaining contest focused more on skills than thrills. It was over the second half of the match that Calzaghe established his superiority, when his engine kicked into another gear. Kessler simply couldn’t contain or nail him.”

39 CARL FROCH (NOTTINGHAM) vs GEORGE GROVES (HAMMERSMITH)

NOVEMBER 23, 2013. MEN ARENA, MANCHESTER. IBF SUPER-MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE (12 ROUNDS)

THIS contest, the first of two great fights that the two contested over a six-month period, is mainly remembered for its controversial ending. In my view, the stoppage was a very good one, and the bout itself was sensational. Groves meant business from the off and he smashed the Nottingham fighter to the canvas at the end of the first round with a booming right-hander. Froch eventually started to dominate proceedings in the ninth round and after a vicious flurry of shots the bout was stopped, much to the disgust of the hard man from Hammersmith, who with his excellent skills and immense bravery, at least succeeded in winning over what had been an extremely hostile crowd. Froch left no doubts in the return, when he flattened Groves in the eighth.

BN said: “Froch retained his crown with a ninthround stoppage that could be debated long into the night. It was an extraordinary end to one of the most ferociously contested title fights to take place on British soil. Despite the magnitude of this event a fight stopped too soon remains the lesser evil compared to one left too long”.

38 DILLIAN WHYTE (BRIXTON) vs DERECK CHISORA (FINCHLEY)

DECEMBER 10, 2016. ARENA, MANCHESTER. HEAVYWEIGHT CONTEST (12 ROUNDS)

WHYTE, seven years younger, was still on the way up, and Chisora was fighting to stay relevant. It was no surprise to see shenanigans during the build-up, with Del Boy hurling furniture and the British Boxing Board of Control (who considered cancelling the bout) fining Chisora £25,000 and removing the British title from the occasion. When the action turned to the ring it remained violent and brutal. Chisora’s power frequently had Whyte in trouble and when having to take big shots himself, Dereck’s response was to shake his head and encourage the Brixton man to engage in a tear-up. The action never relented and after 12 rounds of furious warfare, Whyte took it on a split decision that not all agreed with.

BN said: “The exhibition was eye-wateringly awe-inspiring, one that reminded everyone why boxing – when on form – is the greatest sport in the world, and the undisputed king when it comes to thrills and spills. Anyone unaware that boxers are indeed a different breed should sit down and watch that bout. After weeks of letting the sport down, Chisora and Whyte did it proud.”

37 NIGEL BENN (ILFORD) vs ANTHONY LOGAN (JAMAICA)

OCTOBER 26, 1988. ROYAL ALBERT HALL. COMMONWEALTH MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE (12 ROUNDS)

THIS contest only lasted two rounds and is the shortest of any in the top 50, but what a contest it was. It provided an early indication of Benn’s extraordinary ability to come back to win after looking hopelessly beaten and showed us all just what an exciting and entertaining fighter he was. Logan was no mug and he could hit. Quite how hard he could hit became evident after only one round when Benn, after attempting to blast his man out quickly as was then his custom, he seemingly ran out of steam and was knocked down for the first time in his career by a short right hand. He was all over the place in the second, with Logan pressing for a stoppage, when suddenly, out of nowhere, Benn found the dramatic finisher.

BN said: “It has to go down as one of the most dramatic turnarounds ever seen in a British ring, with the normally dominating Benn on the receiving end of heavy punishment for the first time in his professional career before the spectacular one-punch ending. It was surely the most exciting fight of the year, and one that made a nonsense of the television companies not to broadcast it.”

36 KOSTAS PETROU (BIRMINGHAM) vs ROCKY KELLY (TOOTING)

APRIL 13, 1985. DOLPHIN CENTRE, DARLINGTON. VACANT BRITISH WELTERWEIGHT TITLE (12 ROUNDS)

A FORGOTTEN contest from the days when the Leisure Centre reigned supreme for bouts at this level. Rocky Kelly [below] was almost a legendary figure at the time due to the way in which he approached every contest, and Petrou, an unfashionable fighter, gave the Tooting lad every opportunity to demonstrate his all-out aggression. The second, fourth and sixth rounds were outstanding as Kelly tried to overwhelm his man but Petrou stood up to everything and came back with more. When it finally looked as if the Birmingham fighter was getting on top then Kelly surged again, finding the strength from who knows where. After receiving a nasty cut, Kelly was eventually stopped in the ninth round, having given everything.

BN said: “If ever the cliché about it being a shame there has to be a loser is true, then this fight is that occasion. Both men fought with the sort of courage and fierce determination that left one breathless as they took it in turns to get on top, fade and then rally, all at a ferocious pace. It was a magnificent performance from both men and the sort of fight that comes along

35 FREDDIE WELSH (PONTYPRIDD) vs JIM DRISCOLL (CARDIFF)

DECEMBER 20, 1910. AMERICAN SKATING RINK, CARDIFF. LIGHTWEIGHT CONTEST (20 ROUNDS)

WELSH and Driscoll were both Welshmen and there was no love lost between them. Driscoll had a reputation as a classic boxer, with an excellent left jab being his principal weapon. Welsh was born in Pontypridd but had moved to the US as a young man and it was there that he learnt his trade. Such was the enmity between the two that he quickly got drawn into a ruckus and exchanged heavy blows and fouls galore with the rules of the game quickly forgotten. Welsh’s infighting particularly irked Driscoll, who was expected to box his way to victory, and he lashed out in retaliation as his temper became worse. In the 10th round he butted Welsh before pushing him across the ring. This was enough for the referee and Driscoll was thrown out leaving the question of supremacy between the two, which had so fascinated the boxing world, unanswered.

BN said: “A disastrous ending to the most exciting fight of the year. It was early apparent that this was a genuine needle contest. A wild, vicious, disappointing, disastrous duel, leaving us in no better position to judge the relative merits of the two men.”