Back in April 4, 2015, Luke Blackledge made his dream come true by winning the Commonwealth Super Middleweight Championship in his hometown of Blackburn. His national ranking rose, and he added that belt to the WBC ranking title he had won the previous year. At that time, only Erik Skoglund and Rocky Fielding had defeated Blackledge.
Fast forward to today, and the Darwen man is facing struggles in his boxing career. Shortly before our interview, Blackledge lost to 3-0 prospect Francis Kershaw.
“I’m just fighting on the street for a few pounds right now,” Blackledge said. “I still love him. If I wasn’t fat, I would fight every week. If I could make weight, I would fight every week.”
“I still love training and I love going to the gym with the players,” the 33-year-old added.
After four rounds, Kershaw added Blackledge’s name to his list of victories.
The only downside is that Blackledge got a cut, which means he will be out of action for the next four weeks.
While some away corner fighters are content to move around the ring, avoiding trouble and earning money, Darwen’s best fighters are determined to show their skills and give their all.
Last year, he traveled to Bolton and ended Wycombe King’s three-game winning streak. Opponents should be careful – he won’t accept defeat easily.
“Journeymen who just go backwards and just box. They don’t really fight, do they?”
“I’ll show them a trick or two.”
Now he’s giving back to the sport that gave him such a great night. Despite his lack of amateur background and growing up exclusively on the unlicensed scene, with the support of veteran boxing manager and promoter Steve Wood, Blackledge successfully defended his Commonwealth title for the second time, outpointing Liam Cameron.
“I thought it would never end. Before that, I was living and sleeping boxing. I was hungry. Money didn’t mean anything to me at that time. It was more about winning the title,” Blackledge reflected.
He had to pay around £4,000 to African promoters for the chance to fight for Commonwealth gold.
“We had to make a deal with the promoter and surrender, but then we fought for the Commonwealth title which was surrendered,” he revealed. “That was when I fought Liam Cameron. He was a top-10 fighter. ABA champion. It was a tough fight.”
“If I hadn’t been on my A game, I would have been buried.”
Cameron was the favorite that night, but Blackridge emerged victorious. However, he then lost his focus and suffered as his strength waned.
“I was very disciplined and trained until I actually got there,” he said. “When we won the Commonwealth and played for Great Britain (against Callum Smith), when I got there I put my foot on the gas and started partying and going out. I felt like I had accomplished it. It’s hard to get to and if you don’t stay away from the ball, it’s easy to slip off.”
Losing to Callum Smith in 2016 marked a downturn. Blackledge continues to devote himself to the sport, but he acknowledges that he doesn’t have the same dedication as before.
“I don’t have enough dedication. I don’t have anything left where I used to live.”
He continues to fight and provide valuable lessons in the ring to young professionals, something he is proud of having achieved despite having no amateur experience.
“I’ve had a really good career,” he reflected. “I went to Germany and Denmark and sparred with Arthur Abraham, Martin Murray, Karl Froch, Tony Bellew and Billy Joe Saunders.”
Now, with support from Jordie Paul, Matt Bolton, Kevin Murray and AJ Woods, the former champion will box in away corners across the country.
