Boxing is a hurt game. The simple idea of boxing is to hurt not get hurt. More simply put, render your opponent unconscious. So why would you enter into a fight with little chance of winning? Some do it for fame, money, pride or ego but journeymen fighters take this pride to another level.
What is a journeyman?
A journeyman in other sports is a player or sportsperson who travels from team to team, playing a small role usually, to help out and facilitate other more prominent stars.
In boxing, this works in a similar way whereby boxers will travel across their country of origin (in some cases abroad) and will be an ‘away’ fighter.
An away fighter is the one who comes in to specifically take on the home fighter who is usually a decorated amateur or very large ticket seller.
Every world champion and famous boxer in the modern day has had to take on these fighters from Anthony Joshua to Ricky Hatton.
So it seems like the pay isn’t great, the risk is very high (physically speaking), no crowd support and no title prospects. Who would even want to become one of these journeymen?
Well lots of people actually, most notably and famously known as ‘Britain’s Greatest Loser’ is Lewis Van Poetsch also known more affectionately as Poochi.
Poochi has had 170 fights and a remarkable 152 losses, usually this would indicate a bad standard in other sports but in Poochi’s and many other journeymen boxers, this is a stamp of approval.
“Most journeymen, are a lot better than our record suggests.”
The Start For Poochi
Poochi grew up loving the sport of boxing and had plans to become a seasoned pro and attempt to fight for titles but he realised the dark truths and hassles of the sport in his first bout.
“It’s an absolute nightmare, running around chasing people for money, advertising every five minutes and people taking the piss out of you because you’re constantly posting about your fight coming up.”
But just two fights later another option became apparent to Poochi.
“So then it was my third fight. I took on a week’s notice. My manager at the time was Keith Mayo and he said to me
Do you want a fight on Friday in London, York Hall?
I was like how do you want me to sell “x” amount of tickets In a week in London? I’m from Lydney.
He no no no your the away fighter, you won’t have to do that because you’ll be away for a fight.
So I was like, hang on a minute, why have I been wandering around selling tickets? When I could just turn up and fight. I’m gonna do it the hard way. If I’m going to get anywhere I’m going to do it the hard way”
So that’s what Poochi did. Poetsch fought on away cards for his next two fights winning both on points and proving you can win away from home.
Boxings Dark Secret
This was where he felt the true darkness of being the away corner in a fight.
“I got on the end of a couple of bad decisions like the one in Derby and the one in London was pretty bad.”
Then he truly found out the struggles of being away with a TKO loss to Ryan Toms and in the words of Poochi himself “Toms gave me a bit of a bit of a pasting”. The fight ended in a cut stoppage resulting in the first finish loss of Poochi’s career.
Poochi’s Turning Moment-
Despite the loss Poochi started to get a reputation as an away fighter and that reputation earned him a call-up to the TV ranks on Sky Boxing.
“Got a two-week notice phone call to fight Curtis Woodhouse on Sky. So I was like this is the chance. This is the big one.”
“So I said to Richard (Poochi’s manager) right win against Woodhouse on a Matchroom show and get in Eddie Hearns’s ear. I’ve got a bit of charisma, a bit of personality. I’ll use that get in his ear and see if I can make it happen that way”
But he also saw his shining light moment as a window of opportunity.
“Lose again and I’ll go on the journeyman route. It was my full career hanging in the balance. I’ve put a bit of pressure on myself because I didn’t know if I had the toughness to operate at that sort of level anyway.”
“Turns out I did, I won one a couple of rounds, made it a really good account of myself and my stock rose but essentially I lost fair and square. I was like that’s it I’m a journeyman now.”
Building Into The New Role
The turning point had happened in his career from prospect to teacher, because that’s the real role of a journeyman, to teach the new generation of fighters how to handle themselves and guide them from the amateurs to the professional ranks.
“I like to think that it’s to educate these kids on what it’s like to fight without headgear on, what it’s like to fight with the small gloves on and what it’s like to do the longer rounds. There’s little tricks of the trade that you do in the pros, which you don’t do in the amateurs and there’s all that. It plays a good role.”
Early Frustrations
Poochi always thought of his career as more of a teacher than as a competitor but despite the knowledge of how the home corner is favoured it still would frustrate him.
“What did bother me was the times where I did think screw it, I’ll have a go tonight and I’ll put it on the kids. I’d think that I was winning fights quite comfortably and then it would go the other way, that’s when it got to me. I used to say to Richard what’s the point what’s the point in trying when you time and time again are on the end of bad decisions.”
As his career went on and he became more seasoned in the game Poochi started to become more content with the decisions whether against or in favour of him.
“As time goes on, you realise that’s part and parcel of that. You shouldn’t have to think like that. But at the end of the day that’s part and parcel of being the away corner, it happens. I’m not here to slate anyone’s scorecard that’s ever scored me by the way, especially in my position nowadays, it’s just part and parcel of the sport we’re in unfortunately.”
The Risk Vs Reward
One thing that he did keep a keen eye on was his health and the risk of taking 170 bouts worth of punches but despite the large amount of time spent in competitive bouts, he believes that the British Boxing Board of Control do a good job of keeping fighters safe.
“British Boxing Board of Control are very good, you have to have an annual brain scan and if there’s any discrepancy on there, then there’ll be flagged straight up and your license will also be revoked.”
Unusual Risks
But even with a yearly brain scan and pre/post fight checkups, the unnerving amount of time between the ropes must have lasting damage compared to boxers who haven’t had half or even a quarter of the fights that Poochi has.
“I always have said this to people who go and say, You had loads of fights and you still have all your faculties intact and stuff. How?
I would fight a couple of times a month. For six rounds. If you compare a boxing match of four to six rounds, at the sort of level I was competing at, to what sort of sparring people do in the gym. A boxing match is a lot more cagey and you don’t take as many shots generally, there’s a lot more grappling a lot more holding. I’ve always thought that most of the damage that goes on long term is done in the gym”
This is not just a running theory but one backed by sports experts like Tris Dixon who believe it in sparring and training for a fight which causes long-term brain damage. The risk of boxing is still very real when getting in the ring no matter how much sparring is done outside but it’s something Poochi had to live with and not in fear of.
“That’s always in the back of your mind (talking about the damage boxing causes), but you can’t live like that, especially in this game.”
The Beginning Of The End
This mindset was actually tested late in Poochi’s career and played a role in his retirement from in-ring action after a yearly brain scan came back with a discrepancy.
“If I’m being completely honest with you and myself, I was ready to retire probably about a year before I did. So I got I had a discrepancy in my brain scan on my last medical which was I think it was like June 2021. So when I found out it was a discrepancy I thought this is probably nothing but we want to go get another check to see if we can okay my boxing license. I was like right. I’m not putting any pressure on this. My boxing career is in the hands of the boxing gods now, if I pass this test, I’ll carry on for another year.”
Poochi ended up carrying on for another year, after passing the brain scan, but there were signs that he felt were warnings to stop.
“I actually put a string of wins together. Last six fights I think I won at least four of them personally. So then that’s when the phone stopped ringing because if you’re a journeyman and you win, especially a few in a row, then you’re definitely not getting any work. The only fight I could get was a lad called Andrei Dascalu and he was very good, very sharp. He just took me apart. That was when I realised, I might have lost a step. I honestly felt like I’d lost it overnight”
The Final Straw
This was further reinforced by his next fight which came after a two-week holiday in America.
“I was jet lagged, I’ve been drinking for like a week or two on holiday and I got put down. I tried telling myself it was because I’m jet lagged or because I wasn’t in the gym I was on holiday but I was so far off the pace”
“Then the week after I was I was pencilled in to fight in Barnsley and I got up in the morning and thought, I’m not gonna go tonight. I’m not in the right headspace for it and if last week is anything to go off it could be a long night for me.”
With all these warning signs Poochi still was undecided by his future in the boxing ring but it was one man who helped him come to a decision.
“Ironically, it was boxing day, and my dad went for a pint. I said yeah I’m done.
He said you’ve paid your dues in boxing enough is enough you’ve got nothing to prove”
But something inside him just didn’t want to finish his career on a low and more importantly on an odd number of 169 fights. So Poochi made a phone call and called in a favour with an old friend.
One Last Dance
“Chris Sanigar promotions had a show coming up in Bristol. So I was like perfect, I’ll be in the home corner If that’s alright with you guys? My little send-off fight, if you got one of your journeymen that can have a little dance around with me that’d be great”
Although his final fight of 170 was a big occasion Poochi never saw it as a send-off bout, but just as something nice to do. During the interview, Poochi changed his mind about this seeing it as potential closure for his illustrious career.
“I guess I think implicitly that gave me a little bit of closure to my boxing career. It’s nice to go out on a win with my mom and dad being there. They would join me in the ring at the end and give me a hug and we were all crying. Like I’m getting choked up now thinking about it. But yeah, it was the last bit of closure.”
“You put the nail on the head there, it’s given me a little bit of closure and having that last little send-off and thank you goodbye to boxing on my terms. People get retired from boxing, I didn’t want to be that guy I had a good career, and boxing was good to me. I wanted to retire from boxing. I didn’t want to be bitter towards it.”
Retirement Plans
The passion for boxing has continued since retirement from in-ring action not as a coach or trainer but as a referee and judge.
“There’s nothing more in the world than boxing and there’s nothing else in the world that I’m more passionate about and have an expert opinion on.
So I want to stay in boxing but one of the reasons I became a referee was because the shoulders and elbow have been playing up, punching the punch bag and stuff. It was really uncomfortable for me towards the end. I’ve hit the punch bag a few times since and it’s still really uncomfortable. So for me to be a coach wasn’t viable. The whole management thing I didn’t know if I had the patience for it.”
After speaking to the boxing board it turned out they were doing a recruitment for the southern area and just like that it was a “light bulb moment”.
Poochi is now on the road to becoming an in-ring referee but admits it’s a very long process.
“For the B class license class, that’s your fully fledged refereeing licence, which could take anything from three to six years maybe depending on your progress. So it is a very long progress.”
Poochi has more in-ring experience than most in the board’s jurisdiction, so a move to refereeing was almost inevitable.
The thought of one of the most experienced and generous journeyman within the British boxing scene continuing his boxing journey by giving back to the new generation of fighters is almost poetic.
From student. To teacher. To professor.
Featured image credit to https://www.bbc.com/sport/boxing/65038500
