BEST OF THE BEST!
Burns plans to achieve lifetime ambition of title clean sweep
ACHAMPION motivated by money may achieve his heart’s shallow desire. A challenger who fights for honour and titles, for the right to call himself the undisputed best of the best, can earn rewards that last longer than any fortune.
Enter Ricky Burns, who has been talking about unification bouts almost from the moment he first became a world champion in 2010. The veteran — who says he can still recall his first amateur bout, still remember the feeling of that medal being hung around his 12-year-old neck — is driven by the idea of winning every prize up for grabs.
That is why Scotland’s only three-weight world champion, a man whose previous triumphs at super-featherweight and lightweight never got him close to a clean sweep of those divisions, is putting so much on the line tonight.
His WBA super-lightweight belt versus Julius Indongo’s IBF and IBO titles. Winner takes all. It’s easy to understand why the 34-yearold Scot knocked back more lucrative offers, invitations to mix it with fighters of more obvious box-office appeal, in order to face a dangerous African with punching power rarely seen in the 10-stone division.
The thought of standing in the ring at Glasgow’s SSE Hydro with all three titles to his name? The prospect of WBO/WBC champion Terence Crawford then calling to propose a super-unification clash?
Those are the rewards that drive Burns, whose self-effacing manner should never be mistaken for a lack of ambition. However uneasy he may be with fame, he has always been open about his craving for notoriety among peers.
So, at some point during a packed undercard, the famously shy former mechanic from Coatbridge may pop his head around a back-stage door and soak up a little of the big-night atmosphere, just about accepting that most of the 8,000 fans in attendance have come to see him; he still finds that kind of thing hard to comprehend.
By the time his ring walk comes around, all such thoughts will have been banished.
He will be fully prepared, mentally and physically, for the first unification bout ever held in Scotland. He will be ready to rumble.
‘This is a more dangerous fight than the others that were offered,’ conceded Burns. ‘But the rewards for winning this one are so much better.
‘When the unification was offered, it was always top of my list, because these big fights — the unification bouts — had been spoken about at super-featherweight and then lightweight. Now we are on them.
‘I can remember my first fight. It was in the gym at Fordneuk Street in Glasgow. I was only 12. I think I only got a medal but it meant the world to me at the time. I think I stopped the boy in the second round.
‘I had so many amateur fights and so many trophies. My brothers used to fight as well, so they have probably been put up in the loft. Back then, I wanted to do something I enjoyed.
‘When I left school, I was a mechanic but, as soon as I was qualified, I sat down with my mum and dad, who agreed it was OK for me to pack in my job and concentrate on boxing.
‘I never even thought of nights like this. When you turn pro, you want to win world titles. You then win them. I always said I don’t see the big deal with it.
‘I’m just a normal guy. I like to keep myself to myself. Winning the world title fights and now this … I try to put that to one side. I just want to get on with it.’
If it’s an exaggeration to suggest that the streets of Coatbridge will be deserted when Burns is on, there is no denying the fact that he is loved in his home town.
Anyone with a connection to the place will tell you that Ricky remains a champion who is admired as much for his courtesy and kindness as his devastating combinations.
Looking a little uncomfortable even as he brings up the subject of support, Burns revealed: ‘Sometimes when you get to the venue and you are sitting in the changing room, someone will open the door.
‘You’ll go out to have a look and you can just hear the crowd all singing. You just think: “Listen to them”. That makes you sit up and when you walk out in it, then obviously it does give you a big lift.
‘But as soon as I get in the ring, I try to block it all out. I just want to concentrate on my opponent.
‘I’ve always said there have been a few moments during fights in Glasgow when you’ve been caught, you’ve been hurt or you feel like your opponent is getting on top of you, then he crowd get behind you. If you land a shot, they make so much noise that it spurs you on.’
Indongo has the strength to test the restorative powers of a home crowd, having knocked out 11 opponents while compiling a record of 21 wins and no losses.
His last bout, when he claimed those IBF and IBO titles from Eduard Troyanovsky in Moscow, is a case in point; the Russian may still be swaying from the big left hand that ended his defence. At half an inch taller than the 5ft10ins Burns, the Namibian southpaw
throws the dangerous overhand left a fair bit, although the fact that it comes from a long way back should make it easier to spot and, in theory at least, avoid.
In terms of professional experience, there is no contest, with 34-year-old former policeman Indongo maintaining his amateur status — he fought for Namibia at the 2008 Olympics, reaching the last 32 — until 2009.
His manager, Nestor Tobias, cautioned against making any assumptions about a fighter who rose almost without a trace, saying: ‘People say Julius is not known but he has come a long way with a 21-0 record — and people will know who he is after this fight.
‘They were talking about it being a lucky punch in Moscow. But you are responsible for your own luck in boxing. It doesn’t fall from heaven. The bottom line is that Indongo did what he had to do and, if he gets the opportunity to do it again, he will.’
Burns faces an awkward, dangerous opponent in his 48th professional bout. That’s OK, though. This is what he does. Puts himself in harm’s way, seeking to prove himself better than the other guy. Better than all of the other guys.