Rear View Mirror – A look back at the career of Bradley Skeete
Gazing in his Rear View Mirror, British Boxing News columnist, Donald C Stewart, goes over the tale of a former British, Commonwealth and European Champion who was a dogged competitor but never seemed to get the biggest of breaks: Bradley Skeete.
I have always believed that stars are made under the radar, in that maelstrom of finding their feet and harnessing their hands to the tiller of advancement. Fortunate people see the legends before they gain that moniker. It is by watching fighters fighting people close to their own abilities, where you can hear the audience scream that the winner’s – and sometimes the loser’s – fan base gets bigger. Small Halls, undercards, before the main events, on the Freeview section, they all count.
Bradley Skeete, 27-1, 12 KOs was a welterweight, disciplined, hot and a bit of a minor legend because of his exploits under that radar. He showed dedication to a sport that should have brought him riches financially but instead brought more admiration and plaudits than mansions and sport cars.
Hailing from Tooting, Skeete made his professional debut in October 2010 winning on points against Billy Smith at the legendary small hall mecca of York Hall. On the 15th of December, little over two years later he took the southern area welterweight title at the ExCel Arena in London by stopping Chas Symonds. Early in 2013, back at York Hall he defended it successfully on points against Peter McDonagh.
His domestic rise continued to an English title – November 2013, at the Copper Box on points against Colin Lynes – then he took on the mercurial Frankie Gavin at the Excel Arena in November 2014 for the British and Commonwealth titles. Gavin was the tarnished golden boy of British boxing; Britain’s first ever world amateur champion who did not seem that fussed about a professional career. The fight went the distance and Skeete suffered his first professional loss on a unanimous decision that brought more shaking heads to the table than nodding ones. It may have been unanimous in the judges’ minds; it was certainly not that for the boxing fraternity.
It was not to be the last time that Skeete was to suffer at the hands of officialdom.
European honours were then to follow as Skeete beat Anzor Gamgebeli for the WBO European welterweight title at the 02 in February 2015 with a first-round knockout. Skeete successfully defended that title three times – in the Wembley Arena in the May of 2015 when Brunet Zamora retired in the 6th, in the Wembley Arena when he stopped Mark Thompson, who dislocated his hip, in the 3rd round just over 4 months later and then at the Hilton in Mayfair, in the November when he beat Stevie Williams on points.
The problem Skeete seemed to have was that in a division filled with “names” in the UK, he was not that fashionable. An honest pro with a good skill set he was just not seen by many as the guy who would produce world honours and drag in the crowds. So, when he was announced as the opponent for Sam Eggington, a guy with similar standing and reputation, but with bigger backers, in 2016, many predicted he would come a cropper, and this was to be him providing Eggington with a platform; how wrong they were.
Skeete produced a masterful performance and put Eggington, who was the darling of the ghettos in the UK, back into the box from whence he came. Held in Eggington’s backyard in Birmingham in March 2016, Skeete left with the British and Commonwealth welterweight belts as reward.
Skeete then defended his British title three times to become the proud owner of the Lonsdale belt. Before that he defended his WBO European title in Cardiff when he stopped Alexander Lepelley in the 7th round in July 2016, then dispatched John Thain on points in Brentwood, Shayne Singleton on points in the same venue in June 2017 and then in July, at the Copper Box, Dale Evans went the 12 rounds with him, but Skeete won handsomely.
Around this time, I was contacted by someone in Spain as I had tipped Skeete to win his next significant contest – in Bilbao, against Kerman Lejarraga for the EBU welterweight title. Respectfully they disagreed with me and warned me about this unbeaten and similarly under the radar fighter. Skeete had impressed with those impressive domestic wins, but I was proved totally wrong.
On the 8th of April of 2018, Skeete took on Lejarraga, but was stopped, after the third knockdown, when the towel flew in from Skeete’s corner in only the second round.
It seemed like the summit, the pinnacle of his career had bene reached. Skeete almost got to fight Jeff Horn for a world title, before the Australian team took on Gary Corcoran instead, with Horn stopping Corcoran in the 11th. The riches were within his fingertips, but Skeete was not to grasp hold of them.
Later that year, as he sought to rebuild, but lost a WBO international contest, back at Brentwood when stopped in the 2nd round by Diego Ramirez.
Obviously, COVID then intervened and any further regrouping was delayed. His career was clearly on ice as it seems he never received the call to fight inside a venue with no spectators or outside in the Hearn garden. Or maybe he was too expensive or just didn’t fancy it. Instead, he awaited his chance in 2021, got a win to get rid of the rust and then took on the man tipped for the top in the welterweight division – Hamzah Sheeraz.
It was to be his final fight in a professional ring.
Fighting for the WBO European title, the contest was halted in the 9th round with Skeete deemed unable to continue. Sheeraz, deducted a point for hitting Skeete on the floor in the 8th, took Skeete out in the next round. I howled at the TV, people protested about the unfairness of it, and nothing got done. Sheeraz fouled Skeete and Skeete did not have sufficient time to sort himself out – should Sheeraz have been disqualified, or Skeete given time to recover?
Boxing people love a debate.
Skeete was sickened and decided enough was enough. It was not the end anyone wanted, and it was decidedly unfair to Skeete. As the fall out played out Skeete, in March 2022, announced his retirement as a professional boxer.
Since then, you can see him in the corner of various fighters, supporting and helping which, given the man’s experience, is great to see. The next generation developing with the guidance of someone who was there, did most of it, had an exciting time of it but was done dirty, in his eyes, by the sport has a lot to give. That he feels he can give it, is testimony to the sport’s pull and the honesty of people who just want to serve it, change it and see it all the better for it.
More articles by Donald C Stewart