04.06.07 – Stoke’s Gary Reid has stepped up preparations for his encounter with unbeaten Ajose Olusegun which is scheduled to take place on 15th June at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre. Reid, who hopes to secure the Commonwealth light-welterweight title, has enlisted the support of British light-middleweight champion Jamie Moore who is currently ranked at number 5 in the world by the WBC..
The 34 year old Reid today visited Oliver Harrison’s Manchester gym in order to spar 6 rounds with Moore. At 5’8” and a natural southpaw, Moore presented Reid with similar problems to those that he can expect to encounter from Olusegun. Additionally, with over a stone weight advantage Jamie was able to test both Reid’s strength and fitness. Gary passed the test and impressed both Jamie Moore and Oliver Harrison.
“Jamie has held a Commonwealth title before and has won a Lonsdale belt outright,” said Reid afterwards, “so he’s already where I’d like to be. Who better can there be to learn from than somebody who’s already achieved my goals?”
“Because Jamie is a natural southpaw and a similar height to Olusegun he is ideal sparring for me and because he’s a lot heavier than me it made it even more difficult. It is just what I need at this stage. I really appreciate Jamie and Oliver helping me out in this way, it’s been a great help and a big boost to my confidence.”
“I’m training three times a day and have had lots of hard sparring in addition to Jamie. I already know that I’m fitter than I’ve ever been before so when I climb between the ropes at Crystal Palace I am going to be in the best condition of my life. I intend to produce the performance of my life because I intend to bring that belt home to Stoke.”
“I’m not going to talk about Olusegun, he’s just the guy that I’ve got to beat to win that title. There’s no point in starting a war of words with him, I’d rather stay focused on what I need to do on the night and what I need to do between now and then to put me in the best position to win.”
Reid faces Olusegun on a Frank Maloney promotion entitled ‘Back From The Brink’ at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre on June 15, 2007. Tickets are priced at £70 and £40 and are available from Impact Boxing on 0845 156 7168 or at www.impactboxing.com