Treasure Hunter

Matt Bozeat wonders whether Rowson has unearthed another gem as he previews a value for money small hall show.

EVERYONE thought Black Country manager PJ Rowson had lost his marbles after he declared he’d found the future British middleweight champion fighting in the back room of a snooker hall in some place called Trowbridge. As it turned out, he was right about Nick Blackwell and on Friday (March 8), we will discover if he’s right about Brad Foster as well. He’s a former kickboxer from some place called Lichfield.

From the start, Rowson said Foster would claim British honours, and at just 21 years old, he gets the chance to win the vacant super-bantamweight belt when he meets Barnsley’s seasoned Josh Wale on Stefy Bull’s promotion at the Metrodome in Wale’s hometown.

The Board originally paired Foster, the Midlands Area champion with a 9-0-1 (3) record, with Jazza Dickens for the title vacated by Thomas Patrick Ward. Following Dickens’ withdrawal, Wale jumped at the chance to become a two-weight British champ. He previously made two defences of the bantamweight title, and was a proud holder of the belt.

“When I was eight years old, my dad [Mick Wale] took me to a local show where Jonjo Irwin was fighting,” Josh told BN. “He was the British champion and my dad said: ‘That Lonsdale Belt is the best belt in the world’, and I told him: ‘I will win it for you one day.’ At one stage, it looked like I wouldn’t get there. I was a nearly man, but I promised my dad.”

The joy Wale showed upon winning the vacant title with a close unanimous points verdict over Jamie Wilson in July 2017 was shared by many in the trade. A pro at 18, Wale has always been the most honest of fighters who takes on anyone– including Kid Galahad and Stuart Hall – and no matter what’s been thrown at him or how badly he’s been cut, he has seldom taken a backwards step.