While the boxing world eagerly awaits the Ricky Hatton-Floyd Mayweather super-fight this weekend, another British boxer will be preparing for his own world title shot. Wayne "Mad Dog" Elcock faces "King" Arthur Abraham in Switzerland with the German's prestigious IBF middleweight belt at stake. A victory would also cap a remarkable turnaround in fortunes for the 33-year-old from Birmingham, who has won 18 of his 20 bouts to date. By Elcock's own admission, the fight has been overshadowed by Hatton's Las Vegas showdown, but he is far from bitter. "Yes, I've been out of the headlines preparing for this fight, but Hatton deserves all the attention he's getting and it really isn't a problem for me," he told BBC Sport. With many in the game talking about a "Golden Era" for British boxing, Elcock could become the nation's seventh world champion if he triumphs in Basle. A promising footballer as a kid, Elcock made the difficult decision to pursue a career in the ring and eventually won over his sceptical father as he enjoyed some success on the amateur scene.
Unfortunately, aged just 17, the first cracks started to appear as "wine, women and song" crept into Elcock's lifestyle and boxing began to take a back seat. "I was having more fights out of the ring than in it," he said. "I went right off the rails, big time." This was a pattern that continued up until 1995, when he lost his closest friend, Leroy Wright. The 19-year-old committed suicide, sparking a major turnaround in Elcock's life. "It would be an understatement to say this shook me to the core," Elcock notes on his official website. "His words rang through my head day after day as he was always telling me to get my act together and take my boxing seriously." Despite knuckling down and surprising everyone by reaching the final of the ABA Championships, a controversial defeat to John Pierce led to Elcock turning his back on the sport again.
Source: BBC Sport
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