Canterbury Bid Of £l500 Purse

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30840, 27 August 1965, Page 13

Canterbury Bid Of £l500 Purse

(By Our Boxing Reporter.] The battle between the Canterbury and Wellington Boxing Associations to stage the Murphy-Santos New Zealand professional light-weight title is still raging.

Neither Canterbury nor Wellington have signed up either Murphy or Santos for the bout.

The New Zealand Boxing Council chairman (Mr H. N. Hunt), confirmed this, the Press Association reported. “We can make Murphy defend his title, but we cannot tell him where he has to defend it,” Mr Hunt said. Murphy should have recovered “from his hernia operation now and should be fit to fight.” Wellington proposes to hold the bout on November 3. Canterbury proposes to stage it on December 2.

It is understood that the New Zealand Boxing Council has written a letter to Murphy instructing him he must defend his title before a date late in November. It seems unlikely that the council would veto a bout shortly after the set date.

Santos has agreed, according to his manager-trainer

(Mr R. Grimmer), to fight in Wellington and has accepted a guaranteed purse of £1250.

Mr Grimmer is also reported as saying that since the Wellington offer was made, Canterbury had stepped up its offer to a purse of £l5OO. But he is sticking to his acceptance of the Wellington offer. Murphy has already declared that he wants to fight in Canterbury and he wants more than a £1250 purse. The president of the Canterbury Boxing Association (Mr E. G. Pocock) last evening said “negotiations are still continuing.” The Boxing Council may have to step in if Santos signs articles with the Wellington association and Murphy with the Canterbury. It is evident that Canterbury will get the bout because Murphy wants more than a £1250 purse; he wants to fight in Christchurch, and he is the titleholder.

Santos will § et more money for winning or losing out of a £l5OO purse (£9OO or £600) at Christchurch than out of a £1250 purse in Wellington (£750 or £500). The bout will attract more persons in Christchurch. If Wellington want to go up to £l5OO it would have to raise admission prices or face a possible substantial loss.