ROCKY FIELDING has a dilemma on his hands. It is a few weeks before
his September 21 assignment at the Liverpool Olympia, but the rising
super-middleweight may struggle to meet the demands of his growing
fanbase.
“I’ve only been given 350 tickets,” he sighs.
Indeed, Fielding has already developed a profile as an archetypal
crowd-pleaser, and when he loads up on left-right combinations, plants
his feet and asserts his authority, his Olympia faithful create a din
more reminiscent of a stadium fight rather than a small hall tussle.
What will the English champion do to appease his supporters?
“I’ve been asking around for a few more tickets,” Fielding tells Boxing News.
“But my fans will always find a way - they even come through the fire
exits sometimes! I’ll occasionally see them at ringside or the free bar
and I’ll say: “You lot only got the £40 tickets, how did you get in
here?” They’ll reply: “Ah, don’t worry about it, we find a way.”
Granted, Fielding knows all about getting into events on the snip. In
the late 1990s, he befriended the revered trainer John Smith, and
attended fights for free in exchange for holding spit-bucket duties in
the corner. “Smithy still takes me to events today!” the Scouser laughs.
But one moment stands out from Fielding’s time shadowing the pros. As
a wide-eyed 11-year-old, he was photographed with Alex Moon’s
Commonwealth super-featherweight title after rushing into the ring
during a post-fight scramble. Fielding now has his own chance for
Commonwealth gold when he tackles the crafty Ghanaian Mohammed Akrong.
“I visited my mum’s recently to pick up the photo of Moon’s belt,”
says the 26-year-old. “I placed it on the mantelpiece and every time I
look at it, it reminds me of my years following Smith around the pros. I
always thought to myself, I’d love to fight for one of those belts one
day. It’s amazing to think that now I’ve finally got that chance.”
Along with his waves of local support, another man hoping for a
Commonwealth scalp is Fielding’s trainer Oliver Harrison. The
52-year-old already counts Jamie Moore, Amir Khan, Tony Dodson and
Martin Murray as past and present alumni, and began coaching Fielding in
2010, shortly after he decided to turn pro. Although the pair initially
struggled with communication – “I listened to the crowd more than
instructions” – they have nevertheless blossomed into a unique
partnership.
With Harrison’s methodical approach and Fielding’s gun-slinging
enthusiasm, the Liverpool prospect has already won the Prizefighter
tournament, as well as a host of English title clashes against Carl
Dilks and Wayne Reed. In that case it is no surprise Fielding has
generated such a following. Why, though, did he choose the arduous,
daily commute to Salford in order to work with Harrison?
“I just wanted to train away from Liverpool. When you stay in
Liverpool, because everyone knows everyone, if you have a bad spar or if
you get cut, it spreads all over town in no time. There were a lot of
good coaches around, but they all had big stables, so I wanted to find a
coach who would look after me properly.”
As an amateur Fielding enjoyed stints at the Salisbury ABC, the
Stockbridge ABC and the Rotunda base in Kirkdale, and continues: “When I
turned pro I travelled around to a few gyms to see how I’d feel, but
once I stepped into Oliver’s ABC I just remember seeing how busy it was.
I looked around the gym and saw photos of all these great fighters with
their titles – Khan, Moore, Murray...
“I remember during my first spar I did about a round and 30 seconds
until Oliver called me over to stop. I had no idea what was going on. I
didn’t know how I’d be received. I just remember glancing over at Derry
[Mathews], who simply shrugged his shoulders at me. Thankfully, once
Oliver sat me down he told me he was really impressed. He’s a coach I
trust and I’m really happy with him.”
Fielding, who also fought for England in the unpaid ranks, paints
Harrison as a relentless workaholic. Come sunrise, the trainer is
already in the gym, setting up equipment, tidying up, and jotting down
training plans for his stable. After all, Harrison has always been known
as a master tactician and, in April, he and Murray almost upset WBC
middleweight king Sergio Martinez.
“The tactics were spot on,” Fielding attests. “Oliver’s idea was to
rough Sergio up, get him reeling and force him to retire on the stool. I
thought Murray just nicked it. I’ve always monitored Oliver’s fighters,
and I hope what he’s done for Murray can rub off on me. He really
studies boxing and to be honest the gym’s never shut - I don’t think he
even goes on holiday. Sometimes he does send his missus and kids away
though!”
The starlet vows to stay with his current cornerman for the rest of
his career, proclaiming: “After my family, Oliver is the person I trust
the most and someone who wants the best for me. We’re so close, we’re
together every day in the gym, and aside from that we’re always talking
on the phone and texting. He hasn’t rushed me into anything and always
does what’s right.”
Promoter Eddie Hearn has also played his part. “He always said we
could fight for the Commonwealth title,” reveals Fielding. Hearn pulled
off another trick when he placed his fighter at ringside in June, as
Liverpool’s Paul Smith tore into Dodson in six bloody rounds to take the
British title.
Unsurprisingly, talk is rife of a derby showdown between Smith and
Fielding. “I’d like the fight but I say let Paul defend his belt a few
times or maybe go for the European title. He’s had 30-odd fights and
been around the block a bit, so he deserves it.”
But Fielding turns up the heat when asked about the Sky Sports
pundits, Johnny Nelson and Glenn McCrory, who argued that the Smith
fight is a bridge too far at this moment in time. “On Sky Sports they
only see me in fights where the other guy isn’t fighting back. If they’d
seen me at all before Prizefighter, they’d say: “Yeah, you’re sound,
you’re ready.” Even on the night I won the tournament, all three of my
opponents came to knock me out and they all came to win - that’s when I
perform to my best. Maybe after this fight, then we’ll see whether they
think I’m ready for Smith or not.”
First of all, Fielding will need to deal with Akrong, a defensively
gifted fighter with a highly slung guard and a mean right cross. The
African, 19-5 (15), made his debut in 2003 - seven years before his next
opponent - but has campaigned for the most part against journeymen with
losing records. Harrison will need to be on top form regardless.
“He’ll [Harrison] tell me what to do and we’ll establish how to win
the fight,” Fielding stresses. “I’m sure Oliver will give me the correct
tactics because he studies the game so closely. We plan on working to
the body, getting his hands down and then taking him out. I think
Akrong’s there for the taking. I want to make my dreams a reality and
win this Commonwealth title. The next year or so is going to be
exciting.”
Still, it is always exciting when Fielding is around. The softly
spoken Liverpool man is already crafting a reputation for his knack of
loading up on combinations, as well as his ability to finish off a
wounded opponent. If Akrong suffers a similar fate, you can guarantee
Hearn, Harrison and the Liverpool public will tear the roof off of the
old Olympia, whether the fans snuck in through the fire exits or not.
By Alistair Hendrie
From Boxing News (September 2013) http://www.boxingnewsonline.net/latest/feature/rocky-fielding-can-achieve-lifelong-ambition-by-beating-mohammed-akrong
