Churchill’s Boxing Gym: Putting the Fighters Through Their Paces
Lee and the WBC Cares UK coaches took five Midnight Mayhem fighters to Churchill’s Boxing Gym in London for pads, bags and, for some, their first ever spar.
On Saturday 5 September, Lee and the WBC Cares UK coaching team ran a session for some of our Midnight Mayhem fighters at Churchill’s Boxing Gym in London. Alex Pratt, Becky Johnson-Kent, Robin Hutchison, Kevin Reid and Steve Mayes all answered the bell, and the coaches made sure nobody left with anything left in the tank.
Pads, bags and plenty of sweat
The session was built around the basics that win fights: a proper warm up with the skipping ropes, then rotation after rotation on the pads with the WBC Cares UK coaches, working on stance, guard and putting combinations together. In between, it was straight onto the heavy bags to turn those combinations into power.
First time in the ring
For some of the group, this was the big one: their first ever sparring session. There’s nothing quite like climbing through the ropes for the first time with someone standing opposite you, and every one of them stepped up. Under the watchful eye of the coaches it was controlled, technical and a huge confidence boost, with the gym’s own motto printed on the ring apron for inspiration: We Shall Never Surrender.
Essex vs Kent, a preview
Having Kevin and Alex in the same gym was always going to add some spice. They meet in Bout 6 at Midnight Mayhem, Essex vs Kent, so this was a rare chance to size each other up across the gym. We’re not saying who looked sharper. We’ll let the scorecards decide on fight night.
Four months to fight night
A huge thank you to Churchill’s Boxing Gym for having us, and to the WBC Cares UK coaches for giving up their time. This was just the first: more sessions followed at Churchill’s on 10 October, with more on 7 November and 12 December as fight camp builds towards Barcelona. Sessions like this are what Midnight Mayhem is all about: people from across the industry learning something hard together, for causes close to their hearts. Every fighter is raising money for their own charity, so if you enjoyed seeing them sweat, back a fighter on the Charities page.
