Auckland boxing promoter fights for young talent

Joseph Parker is the exception not the rule. Anything below the very top echelon and boxing in New Zealand is a grind. Just ask Craig Thomson, the Auckland promoter who will fight a former UFC title challenger in order to create pathways for emerging New Zealand talent.

Parker's career was built in unusual fashion; Duco Events managing to market every one of his 24 undefeated fights on pay-per-view. It was a New Zealand first. David Tua crafted a following by fighting in the US, while Shane Cameron toured New Zealand to stage local shows before banking serious cheques.

These days, New Zealand heavyweight Junior Fa is following Tua's footsteps, forging a 13-0 record after signing a promotional agreement with US promoter Lou DiBella.

Opportunities for Kiwi boxers to fight on headline cards here and boost their profile are now slim; Cameron's show in Auckland next month which will be televised on Sky a rarity. Finding credible opponents can be difficult enough, and money for such a brutal exercise remains paltry.

This is where Thomson comes in. He has travelled to Idaho this week to meet a series of casinos about the prospect of investing in emerging Kiwi fighters by putting them on boxing cards in the States.

The only catch was he agreed to fight former UFC middleweight title challenger Dennis Hallman over six rounds on Thursday in an event at the Coeur d'Alene Casino promoted by former American heavyweight Chauncy Welliver. American cruiserweight Patrick Ferguson (10-0-1) headlines the card in fight for a WBC regional belt.

"I said why not," Thomson, who is 8-0 as a pro, said. "Kiwi fighters don't get to fight in the States everyday so it's a nice little story to tell the grandkids about one day.

"For me it's about establishing and strengthening connections in the US so we're then in a position to bring some of our better fighters who work their way through the New Zealand system and push them into the US market. It's not quite the hotbed it used to be but it's still one of the hubs of professional boxing.

"Smaller fish have to swim upstream to get any momentum."

The pathway for most New Zealand professional fighters involves attempting to build a record at home. Many are then found out when jumping in the deep end abroad.

Thomson hopes his eight-day trip will help bridge that gap for the likes of Panuve Helu, the young (10-1-1) Auckland cruiserweight scheduled to fight on Cameron's card on April 5, and again in Thomson's eight-man tournament on April 28.

Helu went six rounds in sparring with Kiwi Commonwealth Games gold medallist David Nyika in Hamilton on Wednesday. By June or July, he could be off to the US.

"They're interested in the talent in the South Pacific. They recognise Pacific Islanders are athletes so they're keen to get one or two up this way and see what they can do. If they show some talent they can push through the US rankings and maybe kick on. Instead of treading water back home in New Zealand hoping for opportunities and jumping at whatever comes up it's more getting embedded in the US and building a name from the ground up."