Stars come out for Joe's big night

The Joe Frater 40th anniversary boxing show on Monday night was a huge success. Some of the sport's biggest names gathered at the Winter Gardens, Cleethorpes, to pay tribute to one of the its big characters. Here, Sports Writer Trevor Green interviews some of the stars.

One of the guests at Joe Frater's celebratory night will stir the memories of many Grimsby fight fans. Among those present was Carl Thompson, who defeated the town's Steve Lewsam in a British cruiserweight title fight back in 1992.

And Thompson still has crystal clear recollections of that memorable night.

He said: "I remember hitting him a lot in the body.

"I knew I had sapped his energy and eventually he had to call it a day.

"He probably thought I would be easy to beat. I think he got a bit of a surprise.

"Joe Frater was the only promoter who could get me a title fight at the time.

"He set up the fight with Steve Lewsam so I thought I would come back and show my appreciation for that."

While the happy memories came flooding back, he is not so fond with the state the sport currently finds itself in.

"It is not in the greatest shape," he blasted.

"TV runs everything. It's a bit of a shame."

Meanwhile, Earnie Shavers was on hand to offer some advice to up-and-coming young fighters in the Grimsby area.

Shavers fought Muhammad Ali, and is known as having one of the hardest punches in history.

Now aged 60, Shavers has clearly looked after himself well over the years, and appeared in great shape.

And he says that young prospects need to be 100 per cent dedicated if they are to get anywhere in an unforgiving and potentially brutal business.

He said: "The fight game is a 24 hours a day life. If you don't play by the rules you will get hurt.

"You need to eat the right food, don't smoke, don't drink, don't take drugs. You have to live like a monk and be focused all the time."

Dave "Boy' Green was another who was happy to reflect on a successful career and offer an insight and advice to those who may want to make a living from the sport.

Green - the former British and European welterweight champ - fought Sugar Ray Leonard for the WBC World title in 1980 and also got in the ring with Carlos Palomino.

He said: "I started in 1974, had 41 pro fights, won 37 of them and retired in 1981.

"I had a cracking career. The best I ever fought was Sugar Ray Leonard. That guy was special.

"I could have trained for years for that fight and I still wouldn't have beat him.

"When I started out, my ambition was to win a Southern-area title. I ended-up winning British and European titles.

"I owe a lot to my manager Andy Smith, who was brilliant.

"You have got to avoid smoking and drinking - that's where a lot of boys go wrong. Many potentially great sportspeople go by the wayside.

"But it helps if you have somebody who is genuinely interested in what you are doing and cares about you. My manager was always there for me."

While he still loves boxing, Green admits that a little of the passion he has for the sport had disappeared over recent years.

He explained: "There are now about five different boxing boards, with five world champions.

"Before, if you fought a world champion, you were fighting the best in the world. That is not always the case now, which devalues things."

Also at the event was general secretary of the British Boxing Board of Control, Simon Block.

The top official came out in defence of his sport, and refused to concede it what on the ropes somewhat.

He said: "We went through a peak in the mid 1990s, but there are always peaks and troughs.

"There has, perhaps, been a decline since then, but only a slight one.

"There are some big fights coming up, like Ricky Hatton against Kostya Tszyu at the Manchester Indoor Arena. It is a 20,000 sell-out and, if Hatton wins, the knock-on effects will be fantastic."

Block went on to pay tribute to Frater.

"He has been promoting fights for about 15 years, so the anniversary is a special event.

"Also, I want to get around as many events as I can, so it is like killing two birds with one stone for me.

"There are always big names at Joe's shows.

"At the last one there was Alan Minter and Ricky Hatton. It is great for the Grimsby area."

Even those who could not make the Cleethorpes date on Monday night wrote to wish Frater all the best.

Barry McGuigan, who was tied-up with Sky Sports responsibilities, and 'nipper' Reed, the former chairman of the British Boxing Board of Control, could not attend.

Frater has often stated that this was going to be "his year", and it has certainly been a success so far.

In February he met boxing legend Joe Frazier at a show in Peterborough, and the pair had a chance to chat.

The former World heavyweight champion - who fought Ali three times, winning once - even invited the Grimsby-based promoter to stay with him in America.

Frater's biography - detailing his experiences of life and work in the area since arriving from his native Jamaica in the 1960s - is close to completion and is expected to go on sale later this year.