Fight fans in Elgin were treated to a rare pro exhibition before roaring local hero Fraser Wilkinson on to Scottish title glory.
With Andrew Smart’s Scottish welterweight title fight at Elgin Town Hall cancelled, Inverness City ABC head coach Laurie Redfern accepted an invitation to provide a special contest.
Elgin’s Wilkinson, 22, went on to become the super-welterweight champion by defeating Arbroath’s Corey McCulloch, 29, to make it six pro wins in a row.
Ahead of the main event, two of Redfern’s rising professional stars put on an entertaining exhibition – in a match-up which would normally never happen.
Exhibition ‘worked a treat’ – Redfern
Southpaw star Calum Turnbull, 23, went toe-to-toe with club-mate George Stewart, 20, who have begun their pro careers with three wins apiece.
Redfern explained there were benefits all-round by taking two of his top punchers through to Moray as part of their progression.
He said: “I don’t think I’ve ever encountered two pros having an exhibition within a title pro show, so it was great to put this in for the public in Elgin. They were cheering and really seemed to enjoy it.
“It was great for our boys to be part of a night where Fraser won his title. Hopefully, it won’t be too long before we have our boys going for titles at the Drumossie Hotel.
“It was great for (the boxers’ manager) Stevie McGuire to give the bout the go-ahead and it worked a treat.
“It also helped to strengthen our links with Elgin and it highlights to other promoters we’re happy to be part of other north shows, which means we wouldn’t have to travel to Glasgow or the central belt for example.”
Inverness City boxers had a real go
Redfern said the approach was for Turnbull and Stewart to display attacking intent, with a sense of caution mixed in for good measure.
He added: “The promoter David McAllister asked how we got them to fight as they did in an exhibition, which are normally touch and move, but I told them to get stuck in without getting hurt.
“It was a case of one had a go then stepped back for a bit then the other boxer had a go. It was really entertaining and was useful to both. The crowd really got going.
“They are different weights. George is 62 kilos and Calum is around 54 kilos, so it would never go as a match, so this was a unique exhibition. I was chuffed.
“Calum and George will be going for Scottish title fights, so this was a fantastic atmosphere for them to sample after already getting professional wins under their belts.
“Elgin Town Hall is a venue I’ve personally had a lot of success even when I was based in Shetland. The Northern District Championships used to be held there too and we won plenty of them, eight when I was in Shetland and five from Inverness. It was good to be back.”
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