Traie gets Midlands cruiser title chance

Traie Duberry with Manning. Title chance after only three contests

ASTON cruiser Traie Duberry has landed a Midlands title chance after only three bouts and less than seven rounds of competitive action.

That a measure of the muscled boxer’s potential.

The Midlands arm of the Board of Control this week nominated Traie to face Boston’s Tom Pogson for the vacant belt, with the bout to take place by the end of September.

It will be 28-year-old Duberry’s first real pro test after feasting on fighters with losing records. He has looked mightily impressive doing it.

Last month Bosnian Admir Oglic was simply blown away in two.

Pogson has won all his pro bouts on points, but is also facing a big step-up.

News of the bout underlines the Midlands Council’s commitment to keep the area title action flowing.

There was a time when I grumbled about champs who had gone an age without putting their Midlands belts on the line or vacant titles that were near mothballed.

Under Matt Harris, that’s certainly not the case now.

By the end of September, there will have been 13 Midlands title fights in the space of a year. You have to go back many, many years to beat that figure, certainly before my time.

Matt and his fellow members should be applauded.

Will Duberry grasp the opportunity or is manager Anthony Manning plotting a different path to glory for his star? Does he feel Traie needs more rounds under his belt before taking the leap to championship class?

Watch this space.

Traie, scheduled to fight on Manning’s May 4 show at Eastside Rooms, Birmingham, is being groomed for big things.

Manning told me: “I know he has the talent, but he’s still a bit eager. He has all the attributes to do it in his own time rather than chasing time.

“Traie knows the fights he wants to be in and he will be in them with the right guidance. He is the next generation to put Birmingham on the map.

“He needs a bit more experience, he just needs to get the rounds in. In sparring, he is giving everyone a run for their money. I’d like to see him fight for a title by the end of this year or early next. Either way, it’s less than a year away.”

It’s a lot closer than that, Anthony.