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Matt ‘Spice Boy’ Hill is adamant the Real Contender will be the Real Thing.
Matt, pictured sparring with Andrew Rafferty and watched by coach Ben Murray, is one of four fighters taking part in BoxInBusiness’ first ever Real Contender competition.
The four will clash in two semi-finals, with the winners meeting in the final for the title of the Real Contender.
It is all part of BoxInBusiness’ next white collar boxing show on October 8th at the Royal Showgrounds in Trinity.
Matt says the primary function of the evening is to enjoy it and to raise money for charity, but admits there will be a seriously competitive element to the Real Contender competition.
“First and foremost nobody wants to see anyone get hurt, but I’d love to win it, sure I would. I was a rugby player for many years and the sportsman element within me will always be there. I’m certain it is the same for the other three lads.
“We would all want to win the Real Contender. All the others are very good fighters, but maybe Nathan Taylor is the most technical. I’ll have to make sure if I meet him he can’t use his technique against me!”
Matt, pictured above, is a financial controller at Ardian, a French-based private equity company, but he has sport in his blood.
“I played rugby at Exeter University and for Jersey second XI but I took part in a BoxInBusiness white collar show in 2011 and loved it. I couldn’t keep coming into work with black eyes from rugby so I thought it was time for a change, so I took up boxing as a form of exercise.
“I’ve always been a big fan of the sport and Ricky Hatton was my hero, so to be actually in the ring is a dream come true.”
Matt will go up against Nathan Taylor, Tom Le Seuer and Andrew Rafferty in the Real Contender, with the semi-final draw made on the day of the weigh-in on October 7th.
He will be raising money for two Jersey-based charities, Wet Wheels and SCBU, the baby unit at the hospital.
He said: “It was important to me to raise anything I could for Jersey, which is why I chose those two charities.”
So what about the ‘Spice Boy’ nickname? “That was given to me by Ben Murray, our head coach at BoxInBusiness. Needless to say, I’d happily change it if I could think of a snappier nickname. Any help gratefully received!”
The Real Contender will be part of BoxInBusiness' next show, which will include 16 other fighters and with a special guest appearance form world lightweight champion Anthony Crolla.
Ben Murray said: "It promises to be a fantastic event and with Anthony Crolla coming it makes it extra special. He was a massive hit earlier this year and to have a world champion coming to Jersey is incredible."
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