Clarke interview: ‘Boxing is a business – fighters don’t have management’
T
he sound of the primary bell can be a supply of aid for Frazer Clarke at York Hall tonight.
Headlining towards the skilled Mariusz Wach — who has gone the gap with Wladimir Klitschko and Dillian Whyte — the 31-year-old appears to be like to place a testing month behind him following the collapse of his much-anticipated heavyweight conflict towards Fabio Wardley.
“It’s been a massive challenge,” Clarke tells Standard Sport. “There was a period of 10-14 days where I definitely lost myself. I couldn’t leave the house without someone talking about.”
The pair had been ordered to battle for Wardley’s British title, however Clarke’s promoter Ben Shalom withdrew him on the day purse bids had been set to happen.
That determination was met with vital criticism — the backlash sufficient for Clarke to delete Twitter from his telephone — and it was not one which the 2020 Olympic bronze medallist welcomed.
“I was very upset,” he admits. “I felt that I was being held back. I was ready to take the blinkers off.”
Shalom claimed that Clarke, a adorned novice and 6-0 as knowledgeable, wanted extra rounds earlier than taking a title battle. It is straightforward to wonder if a concern of shedding the purse bids, and the business penalties of that, was simply as vital.
“Without wanting to chuck anyone under the bus, I feel like the rounds thing might have been a bit of a scapegoat,” Clarke says. “I felt comfortable going into that fight.
“But the only thing that got damaged was my pride. I haven’t lost a fight, I’m still in good health.”
Could he perceive if Sky Sports had been reluctant to threat him preventing on rival platform DAZN? “It’s a bit s*** for me, but if I was the man behind Sky, I’d want my fighter on my channel,” he admits.
Clarke jokes boxing more and more resembles “an Eastenders episode”, as promoters commerce insults and drama exterior the ring take centre stage, however there’s a severe level on the teachings he has learnt since turning skilled final yr.
“Amateur boxing, that’s the sport,” he explains. “Professional boxing is a business. It’s run by people who look at numbers, not fighting people.
“Some pros like to think they’re in control, but these are the people paying you. You’re going to do as you’re told. You’re going to be made to believe you’re doing what you want, but you’re only doing what you’re allowed to do. People don’t want to believe it, but that’s the reality.”
A center floor between broadcaster, promoter and fighter isn’t simply discovered. Less sophisticated is what occurs when Clarke steps by the ropes and has his future completely in his personal arms, hoping to maintain climbing a ladder he believes results in the very high of the division.
“I don’t go around screaming and shouting it, but I want to be a world champion,” Clarke says. “People say there’s no chance — with the right management, I will definitely get to that stage.”