Gary Lockett
Encyclopedia
Gary Lockett is a retired professional boxer
from Cwmbran
, Wales
, who fought in the middleweight
division.
, Andrew Murray
, Jim Rock
and Neil Sinclair
.
February 2002 saw Lockett fight WBA No. 4 ranked Kevin Kelley for the WBO Intercontinental title. The Welshman came from the brink of being stopped with a badly cut eye to knock out Kelley with an overhand right in the 4th round.
In April 2002 Lockett suffered the first defeat of his professional career when he dropped a 12-round split decision to Yuri Tsarenko of Belarus
, for the WBO Inter-Continental light middleweight title. Lockett gained revenge for this defeat with a 10-round points victory in a rematch in May 2003.
After the Tsarenko rematch Locket continued his winning ways, putting together a streak of six further victories over some lightly regarded fighters and journeymen when in March 2006 he faced off against Gilbert Eastman for the vacant WBU middleweight title. Lockett won the title in emphatic fashion with a first-round TKO victory. He made his first defence of the belt against Ryan Rhodes
in July 2006, winning a unanimous decision over 12 rounds. Since then he has made one further defence of his belt, a third-round TKO victory over Lee Blundell. These performances along with additional non-title wins against Ayitey Powers and Kai Kauramaki led to Lockett being ranked as the #1 contender by the WBO for their middleweight
title.
and WBO middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik
. The bout took place on 7 June 2008 at the Boardwalk Hall
in Atlantic City, New Jersey
, and as well as his WBC and WBO belts Pavlik’s Ring magazine belt was also on the line. Lockett was considered by many boxing pundits and fans to be a big underdog going into the fight and few predicted that he would even be able to last the distance let alone have a chance of winning. Ultimately this proved to be true and Lockett was unsuccessful in his attempt to take the titles away from Pavlik, hitting the canvas three times before his cornerman Enzo Calzaghe
threw in the towel in round 3 to end the fight.
Lockett confirmed his retirement from professional boxing in September 2008.
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
from Cwmbran
Cwmbran
Cwmbrân is a new town in Wales. Today forming part of the county borough of Torfaen and lying within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire, Cwmbrân was established in 1949 to provide new employment opportunities in the south eastern portion of the South Wales Coalfield. Cwmbrân means Crow...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, who fought in the middleweight
Middleweight
Middleweight is a division, or weight class, in boxing. Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s. In the bare-knuckle era, the first middleweight championship fight was between Tom Chandler and Dooney Harris in 1897...
division.
Professional career
In his first professional fight in September 1996, Lockett defeated Ernie Loveridge by KO in the first round on a card that included Eamonn MageeEamonn Magee
Eamonn Magee nicknamed the Terminator is a former boxer who is now a trainer with the Breen Team in Belfast...
, Andrew Murray
Andrew Murray (boxer)
Andrew Murray is a professional boxer. Murray is the former Irish senior champion and currently fights as a professional in the Lightweight division. He is currently ranked number three in the EBU's European rankings.-Amateur career:At the age of ten, Murray began boxing as an amateur at the...
, Jim Rock
Jim Rock
Jim Rock, nicknamed the Pink Panther, is an Irish professional boxer and current IBC middleweight and Irish super middleweight champion....
and Neil Sinclair
Neil Sinclair
Neil Sinclair aka Sinky is a professional boxer. He usually fights at light middleweight or the divisions either side.-Amateur career:...
.
February 2002 saw Lockett fight WBA No. 4 ranked Kevin Kelley for the WBO Intercontinental title. The Welshman came from the brink of being stopped with a badly cut eye to knock out Kelley with an overhand right in the 4th round.
In April 2002 Lockett suffered the first defeat of his professional career when he dropped a 12-round split decision to Yuri Tsarenko of Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
, for the WBO Inter-Continental light middleweight title. Lockett gained revenge for this defeat with a 10-round points victory in a rematch in May 2003.
After the Tsarenko rematch Locket continued his winning ways, putting together a streak of six further victories over some lightly regarded fighters and journeymen when in March 2006 he faced off against Gilbert Eastman for the vacant WBU middleweight title. Lockett won the title in emphatic fashion with a first-round TKO victory. He made his first defence of the belt against Ryan Rhodes
Ryan Rhodes
Ryan Rhodes is an English light middleweight boxer. Rhodes took up boxing at a young age, training at Brendan Ingle's gym in the Wincobank district of Sheffield.-Professional career:...
in July 2006, winning a unanimous decision over 12 rounds. Since then he has made one further defence of his belt, a third-round TKO victory over Lee Blundell. These performances along with additional non-title wins against Ayitey Powers and Kai Kauramaki led to Lockett being ranked as the #1 contender by the WBO for their middleweight
Middleweight
Middleweight is a division, or weight class, in boxing. Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s. In the bare-knuckle era, the first middleweight championship fight was between Tom Chandler and Dooney Harris in 1897...
title.
World title shot
It was announced on 13 March 2008 that Locket would be the next opponent for the unified WBCWorld Boxing Council
The World Boxing Council was initially established by 11 countries: the United States, Argentina, United Kingdom, France, Mexico, Philippines, Panama, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Brazil plus Puerto Rico, met in Mexico City on February 14, 1963, upon invitation of the then President of Mexico, Adolfo...
and WBO middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik
Kelly Pavlik
Kelly Pavlik is an American professional boxer. He was The Ring, WBC, & WBO middleweight champion from when he beat Jermain Taylor on September 29, 2007 until he lost his titles to Sergio Martinez on April 17, 2010....
. The bout took place on 7 June 2008 at the Boardwalk Hall
Boardwalk Hall
Boardwalk Hall, formally known as the Historic Atlantic City Convention Hall, is an arena in Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States...
in Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...
, and as well as his WBC and WBO belts Pavlik’s Ring magazine belt was also on the line. Lockett was considered by many boxing pundits and fans to be a big underdog going into the fight and few predicted that he would even be able to last the distance let alone have a chance of winning. Ultimately this proved to be true and Lockett was unsuccessful in his attempt to take the titles away from Pavlik, hitting the canvas three times before his cornerman Enzo Calzaghe
Enzo Calzaghe
Enzo Calzaghe MBE is an Anglo-Italian boxing trainer. He is the father of Joe Calzaghe and the head trainer for Team Calzaghe at the Newbridge boxing club...
threw in the towel in round 3 to end the fight.
Retirement
In the immediate aftermath of the Pavlik defeat Lockett stated that he would be considering whether or not he would continue his career, as he admitted that in his own words he had “never been a lover of boxing” and struggled to see how he could motivate himself for further contests after fighting for a world title. After several months off to recuperate and reflect on his ring future, which included starting a new career as an online boxing columnist for the BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Lockett confirmed his retirement from professional boxing in September 2008.
External links
- Lockett's record @ boxrec