River's journey comes to an end

THE MIDLAND BOXING BEAT WITH MIKE LOCKLEY

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Coventry welterweight Warren Leybourne got his professional career off to a flying start against an angry Josh Morris, inset top right

(PICTURES: MANJIT NAROTRA/BCB)

RIVER Wilson-Bent, Coventry’s former marauding middleweight champ, has made it official and announced the time for retirement has come.

The statement comes only weeks after Brendan Norman, the trainer who has been with River from the very beginning, publicly cast doubts over whether the crowd-pleaser would box again.

The fighter with a heart as big as a bucket has been inactive since losing in three rounds to thunderous punching Shakiel Thompson for the IBF European and WBO Global belts last September.

At 31, River can walk away with his head held high. In a 24-bout career, he fought the division’s iron, captured the Midlands title with a truly spectacular KO and won a “fight of the year” gong. He was never in a bad contest.

There was talk of a final farewell performance - a “gimme” win against limited opposition on home soil - but the gladiator wanted no part of it.

River, one of the game's true nice guys, said: "I didn’t want to fight a journeyman, I’ve never got up over fighting a journeyman, I've always wanted to sell people good stuff. I didn’t want to sell them that kind of stuff for my last one.”

Wilson-Bent, who trained out of the respected Bulkington gym, sidestepped no one during an exciting, rollercoaster career.

In 2020, he gave TV viewers the punch of the year - a pulverising straight right - to poleaxe Troy Coleman in three for the Midlands title.

He faced world ranked dangerman Hamzah Sheeraz, former European champ Tyler Denny twice, gave former American amateur star Ammo Williams trouble and featured in a thriller with Ryan Kelly for the Commonwealth silver belt.