-national heavyweight champion `Big’ Mitchell Rogers
laments the paucity of local heavyweight boxers around
and calls out Andre `Stone’ Purlett
By Troy Peters
With the recent installation of a new executive for the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC) local boxers are hoping that more will be done to keep them active as the sport faces an uphill task to survive locally.
Boxing cards have been few and far between. Many promoters view promoting fights now as a high-risk financial venture because crowd support has waned due to in most part the quality of fighters available.
Many local boxers have started to ply their trade overseas but those who remain in Guyana find it tough even to secure sparring partners.
One such fighter is Guyana’s heavyweight boxing champion Mitchell Rogers who believes that he has the ability to reach a far way in the fistic sport but has been left languishing in inactivity since he won the national title in July last year.
Unbeaten in five professional fights with all ending within the distance, Rogers will now have to focus regionally and internationally for worthy opponents since there are not many heavyweights around locally and of the few available, Rogers has beaten them all.
Rogers said he was prepared to fight any opponent at this time and has even thrown out a challenge to Guyanese Internationally rated heavyweight fighter Andre Stone’ Purlette who campaigns in the United States.
“Purlette said I only borrowing the title but I want him to come and get it,” said Rogers.
“I am prepared to fight anyone at this time, I know that there are a few heavyweights around the Caribbean in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago and I would be willing to take them on,” the big local heavyweight boxer who weighs in excess of 215 lbs said.
Rogers, who stopped Leon `The Lion’ Gilkes to win the National title said he has mastered the art of knockouts and its simple, “I have to be the judge of my fights, since I was an amateur I always look to end my fights early to avoid the judges making the final decision.”
Rogers, who is employed at Banks DIH Ltd., said he gets a lot of support from his employers but added that he was looking for a good manager to push his boxing career.
“I am looking for the exposure and the opening to take my game to a next level because I want to be number one in boxing,” he told Stabroek Sport.
The 28-year old boxer, who trains at the Forgotten Youth Foundation Gym in Albouystown under coach Seibert Blake, said his career was at a very critical stage, and he needed the support to move it forward.
Born in Berbice, Rogers started boxing at the age of 16 with the Guyana National Service (GNS) and had an amateur record of 30 fights with two losses.
Rogers said he is likely to be featured on a card organized by the GBBC set for the next two months.
