Gallagher Show Designed To Get Butler And Johnson Big Fights

Joe Gallagher is best-known for his corner work but this weekend (Saturday, May 11) turns promoter to get several of his fighters out.

On the Ellesmere Port Sports Village bill, there’s the return of former bantamweight champion Paul Butler, and of now-cruiserweight but former light heavyweight contender Callum Johnson.

Both have fought at the highest of levels, Butler losing in 11 rounds to Naoya Inoue and Johnson in a four-round shootout with Arthur Beterbiev, after he’d drilled the light-heavyweight champion to the deck early on. Johnson is now rated No. 5 by the WBO at 200lbs.

“I’ve managed to dust my promoter’s hat off and I’ve got that show and it’s a chance for Paul Butler to win a version of a world title, become a three-time world champion which would be Liverpool’s first, he’s Liverpool’s first to become a two-time world champion,” said Gallagher. “But it’s the IBO. We’ve seen what the IBO has done with Chris Eubank Jr., Lyndon Arthur, it got them a seat at the table. If Paul Butler wins this IBO, then he’s a three-time world champion and then hopefully we’ve got him a big fight after that.”

Butler is 36-3 (17 KOs), and had a quick win in Manchester in his last bout. Johnson has had just a single fight at cruiser, having unretired for one last run at a title.

“Callum Johnson has had the one fight at cruiserweight,” Gallagher added. “Now he’s got to fight again and hopefully he can be in the mix domestically with the cruiserweights, especially at world title level. Lawrence [Okolie, who Gallagher also trains] has moved up [to bridgerweight], you’ve got [WBO champion] Billam-Smith there and you’ve got [Richard] Riakporhe [who fight one another on June 15]… You’ve also got Jack Massey in the [Gallagher] gymnasium.” 

Gallagher wants Johnson, 21-1 (15 KOs), to bag some activity and get a good workout in, but that is often easier said than done.

“I don’t want Callum to have a blowout,” Gallagher added. “I want him to have six rounds of a fight, he needs rounds, but the trouble is the power he carries, even up here at cruiserweight, he’s putting people over”

On the five-fight card, there are bouts also for middleweight Clark Smith, flyweight Mikie Talon and super welterweight Mason Cartwright.  

Gallagher spoke of the difficulties of putting on small hall shows, mostly that they are a lot of work for either next to no return or a painful financial hit.

“The cost of everything is going up and up and up,” he added. “We won purse bids for Paul versus Prince Patel and then he vacated, so I’ve got Paul versus Norbelto Jimenez (from the Dominican Republic), but the grandeur and the money fighters think they’ll be getting for it? No chance. 

“It’s not a TV show, and when you do go to some TV outlets or streaming services, there’s no money coming from them, they’ll showcase the event but I just think, ‘Why would I put it on there? I’ll just watch it on TV’. You need footfall. You need people paying tickets to help pay for the show.”