Coldwell Boxing: Five To Watch In 2015

On the verge of nailing down the biggest challenge of his career against quality Japanese operator, Tomoki Kameda, Doncaster’s Jamie McDonnell has the opportunity to put British boxing on the map when he heads to Las Vegas in spring for the likely unification bout.

McDonnell has performed as the underdog on several occasions so the daunting task facing him is something he has rehearsed plenty of times. McDonnell has been plying his trade at world level for a number of years now and he’s as ready as he’ll ever be to face the threat of the bantamweight division’s elite. Last year there was talk of domestic battles with Paul Butler and Scott Quigg but both meetings failed to materialise, McDonnell, managed by Dave Coldwell, will be a wanted man throughout the lower weight categories if he defies the odds against Kameda.

A product of the working class environment that gave the boxing world John Conteh and Paul Hodkinson, Kirkby’s Robbie Davies Jnr is hoping to emulate the brilliant success that his regional icons captured in years gone by. Davies has enjoyed a solid start to his professional career with a series of straightforward victories.

With domestic titles firmly in his sights, 2015 will be the year that sees Davies make the transition into championship class as he looks to establish himself as one of the leading guys in the talent-laden 140lbs division.

Rossington’s Maxi Hughes introduced himself to fight fans in style at the backend of last year as he was held to a controversial draw against touted prospect, Martin Ward, in a British title eliminator last year. With only one loss on his ledger, a points defeat to Scott Cardle in 2013,

Hughes has put himself in the perfect position to challenge for honours at super-featherweight. A rematch with Ward is likely next where Hughes should start slight favourite and victory there would put the talented Yorkshire man in the mix amongst the leading names domestically.

A new addition to the Coldwell Boxing team who is desperate to make a big impression in 2015, Coventry’s Jordan Cooke has made the perfect start with two impressive victories during the infancy of his paid career.

From a city crying out for a big boxing star since Errol Christie hung up his gloves, Cooke could well be the man that drags boxing back to the Midlands city. The lightweight has a big following and 2015 could well be the year that sees Cooke get his hands on his first professional title depending on his professional apprenticeship. The early signs look good.

Back in September, in front of a congested Manchester Arena, Macclesfield’s red hot prospect – Liam Hanrahan, had his unbeaten record brutally ripped from him as he suffered a third round stoppage against Krysztof Rogowski. Acknowledging the defeat and erasing basic errors that led to his downfall, Hanrahan can still compete in title class this year.

The popular super bantamweight was looking like a true star coming up the rankings before bumping into Rogowski and it is vital that he learns from his mistakes. Time is on Hanrahan’s side and with his huge following always on hand to support him, he’ll be hoping to give them reasons to cheer in 2015.