Jack Massey boxed well to produce a UD12 upset over former British cruiserweight champion Isaac Chamberlain on the CBS-Riakporhe 2 undercard last Saturday, becoming the new European and Commonwealth titlist at 200lbs. Yet if you read what the 31-year-old said after getting this short-notice opportunity, you wouldn’t have been surprised with the eventual outcome.
Fed to the wolves: Massey’s musings prove prophetic
SELHURST PARK, SOUTH LONDON — The crowd stirred with growing anticipation at one stage, expecting a knockout punch to arrive after momentum shifted.
That happened just like they did during the main event, and yet, Jack Massey spoiled those bloodthirsty fans’ whishes with expert range control and cunning counterstriking to inflict Isaac Chamberlain’s third pro career defeat last weekend.
Stepping into the breach vacated by an injured now-former titleholder in Poland’s Michal Cieslak, the 31-year-old boxed astutely against a former sparring partner and benefited from staying ready as he trained with new WBC bridgerweight champion Lawrence Okolie and aggressive heavyweight Alen Babic.
Okolie, a new gymmate this year, boxed on enemy soil to finish a packed May schedule across Europe and worldwide. Babic returns next month in a step-up opportunity for Southern Area champion Johnny Fisher, so Massey – unable to secure a fight with domestic rivals – settled for a slick compromise and reaped his reward against a familiar face who, he believed, was being fed to the wolves.
“I think people will look at this, see that I’ve been given it on short-notice – people online already saying it’s gonna be a massive upset. Really, in my opinion, it isn’t.
He’s been fed to the wolves.”
Does that phrase, or the above quote, sound like it’s coming from someone who wasn’t confident of upsetting the apple cart here? I spoke to Denzel Bentley, Chris Kongo and other boxers besides about Chamberlain as a fighter and they all were unhappy at his inactivity, an issue that has hurt his development in recent years.
Since a UD12 defeat by Chris Billam-Smith in July 2022..
June 2023: Dylan Bregeon, UD8
October 23: Mikael Lawal, UD12
June 2024: Jack Massey, UD12
Chamberlain endured an almost two-year long layoff after earning a hard-fought points win over former IBF European cruiserweight title challenger Luke Watkins in October 2018, returning to fight unheralded opposition: Antony Woolery, Matt Sen and Ben Thomas on small-hall shows across a 13-month span.
Between the trio, they had a 9-10-3 record and it’s no surprise many question IC‘s tactical plans when he didn’t have much scope for seasoning against tougher opposition as the Brixton-born boxer was emerging as a pro. Nights like these, where things aren’t going his way, the need for adaptation and a different weapon are key.
Not twelve months ago, he spoke to me at length about his fight evolution and utilising world-class sparring partners as a measuring stick – both to see how far away from the elite he is, as well as learning from their tendencies too.
At the time, he said..
Sparring with those types of people and seeing how they run their camp allows me to run mine in the same way because I know, I’ve built a team my own way when I could’ve gone and joined one of these guys [other trainers’ camps], let me focus on building my own so they put everything and all their energy into me.
Some of these other trainers, they’ve been doing it for so long and have so many boxers so are just like ‘oh yeah, alright it’s your turn to do some pads, you do some skipping… or whatever,” if I wanna be the best and go to the end, I need to have a team on my level too.
He’s invested well in his strength-and-conditioning, necessary nutrition and done the roadwork to last a gruelling 12-round bout if called upon. The next stage is for him to sharpen other ways to win a fight against Euro opposition and beyond – whether making in-fight adjustments or switching tendencies to avoid predictability.
As for Massey, his defiant showing was vindication he’s always belonged at this level though what course of action his team opt into, remains to be seen. A flurry of options will finally be opening up but choosing the right one is easier said than done.
He took his licks in an unflattering 10-round decision defeat by former WBO world heavyweight champion Joseph Parker (who is now, interim titlist again…) and already boxed a harder puncher than Chamberlain in Riakporhe five years earlier.
Now, it’s up to him to bridge the gap between Euro and world championship contention. At 31 and already a decade into his pro career, he can’t afford to bask in the glory of this career-best win for too long – whether he felt it was an upset or not.
Picture source: Lawrence Lustig / BOXXER
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