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That bloke delivering your post may have a little more going on besides mucking about with a satchel full of letters and junk mail. Don’t give him too much grief if you get your neighbor’s mail by mistake because he may just be a future super featherweight champion. That is, if you live in Manchester, England where there’s a chance that your mailman is none other than “The Punching Postman,” also known as Steven Bell. “Belly” is one of Britain’s top super featherweights and has successfully transitioned into the professional ranks after enjoying a long and heavily decorated amateur career. He recently has begun to work mornings as a mail carrier in the UK’s first city of the gloved fist and couldn’t be happier with how it’s fitting in with his career efforts.
Many thought that Steven Bell had waited too long to turn pro. The conventional wisdom was that although he had been Captain of England’s national amateur team, he was simply too old at twenty-seven to learn the professional game. How wrong the “experts” were.
Don’t miss this essential interview with Steven Bell, another exclusive brought to you only by SaddoBoxing.com.
After boxing Jus Wallie to a draw in his debut, Bell has rattled off five wins on the trot, including a most impressive showing against Haider Ali in April of last year. Ali had won a Gold Medal for Pakistan in the 2002 Commonwealth Games and remains a highly regarded prospect. Although they never faced each other in the unpaid ranks, Bell and Ali were rivals in the amateur game and it was case closed on some unfinished business with the tall Englishman taking a four round decision.
Bell is now set to face a hardened Welshman, Henry Janes this weekend in Manchester, supporting stable-mate Michael Gomez in his WBU title defense against Javier Alvarez. Bell has actually been sparring with the ex-British champion and feels that experience has armed him with the tools to step up to any challenge. “Gomez has been my main sparring partner and I think he’s just getting better and better,” exclaimed Bell. “I’m getting a lot better myself and I can see the improvement a hell of a lot but when you’re sparring against Gomez, you’ve got to be on fire. You’ve got to be on form because if you’re not he’ll hurt you and what better way to prepare for a fight than to spar with Gomez? Anything else I come up against in a real fight pales in comparison. Gomez is a world champion and he hits as hard as a mule. He’s prepared me, really, for any fight.”
Good thing, as Henry Janes will come to Manchester to do one thing and one thing only, and that is fight with everything he’s got. Bell relishes the challenge and hopes that it’ll provide him with the backdrop to sufficiently display his polished skills. “Henry Janes gave Kevin Mitchell a really tough time in his last fight,” remarked the Manchester man. “I boxed his brother Fred Janes, but Henry is bigger and stronger. Mitchell showed something different in that fight by out-boxing the guy, but I think Kevin tries to knock everyone out but he couldn’t do that against Henry Janes, so he boxed him. That’s my plan from the start, just make him look a fool and outbox him. I’ve got tapes on him so I’m prepared and I’m pleased that I’ve got him so I can show what I can do. They’re all ravin’ about Kevin Mitchell and he is a good fighter who looks like he could become something, but the style of this Henry Janes suits me down to the ground for out-boxing him. If the stoppage comes it comes but I’m just hoping to impress really and see what boxing skills I can come up with.”
While Bell does Janes firmly in his crosshairs, the sharpshooter has already made plans for the near future and hopes to have the chance to realize those aspirations. The fittest postal worker in the UK does fully understand that it’s a bit early in the game to be talking world title, so he’s realistic in hisview of one rung at a time with hopes of skipping a few here and there. “I was watching a fight last week in which a young kid coming up from Wales, Jamie Arthur was featured,” recalled Bell. “Arthur was unbeaten in nine fights and they put him in with Haider Ali, who I beat, and Ali beat him, stopped him in fact.
“Jamie Arthur was rated in the British top ten and since he lost to someone I beat, that might put me in the top ten and after six fights that’s not too bad. It’s a shame I had to get that rating due to somebody I beat beating someone else, but I’m just doing what I have to do and just get this one over with on Friday. I’m told that a Central Area title fight will happen next for me and then if all goes well, an English title opportunity will hopefully come in the middle of the year. What I’m hoping is that the final result will be a British title shot at the end of this year or the beginning of the next. Possibly, I could get the Central Area title and then go straight for the British, so hopefully we’ll work on that. My trainer Billy Graham says he sees big improvement in me and it’s about time they get me some fights that sees the best out of me. The opponents they’ve given me so far have been hard to look good against.”
Until those higher profile fights materialize, Bell plans to keep it simple. Just win fights and deliver the mail, an activity that the multi-talented twenty-nine-year-old has managed to work into his training regimen. “It’s the best thing that I’ve done, actually,” he enthused. “I usually run at night but now with being on the post, I use that as my running. I run up and down streets delivering the post. I’m out on the streets for three hours a day, walking and jogging, so it’s doing me well. It’s great for the training and great for the legwork, I feel on top of the world. When I go into the gym I feel warmed up and ready to go and after that, I’ve got all day to rest so it’s worked out well. Also, there’s quite a few of my co-workers who’ve started coming to my fights, so it’s a few more ticket sales as well. The job is hard work, but my body has gotten used to it. I’m always looking for a challenge. It’s another thing that I’ve added, that I can say that I’ve done in my life. I’ve made a film, been a postman, I’m trying to do everything before I die (laughs).”
Bell is well on his way to sorting the domestic scene and invites his fans to let him know if they’re not getting their post on time.
Richard Eberline can be reached at richardeberline@fastmail.fm
