Paul Stevenson says to get ready for ‘the long, terrible reign of Nick Ball’

Since Nick Ball beat Raymond Ford to win the WBA featherweight title in Saudi Arabia in June, there has been an ongoing discussion on the northern boxing circuit as to whether his trainer, Paul Stevenson, is the first Liverpudlian to guide a fighter to a recognized, full world title. Unless there is an unusual partnership somewhere in the world, and if you know of one, please let us know, it appears that he is. 

Stevenson has trained Ball since the very start of his career and quickly sensed that he had the potential to reach the very top.

There is no room at Stevenson’s Everton Red Triangle gym for fighters who rest on their laurels and become complacent and he still has plenty he wants to accomplish personally but he is still, rightly, proud of Ball’s achievement and believes what he has achieved this year should receive more widespread acclaim.

Less than three months before beating Ray Ford to become a world champion, Ball was forced to settle for a disputed split draw with Rey Vargas despite dropping the Mexican veteran twice and dominating him over the second half of their WBC title fight.

Although the result goes down on paper as a draw, Stevenson knows what happened on canvas. Winning a world title is an outstanding achievement but he feels that, together, the two performances are a remarkable accomplishment. 

“Every morning when I walk in, I’m smiling to Ant [Humphries, Stevenson’s assistant] saying, ‘He’s champion of the world.’ He [Ball] is walking around the gym as if it’s nothing but it is something. It’s special,” Stevenson told Queensberry.

“He beat the two best featherweights in the world back to back within a twelve-week span. People haven’t seen that since the days of Henry Armstrong. If you had a middleweight who beat [Gennady] Golovkin and [Saul] Alvarez back to back within twelve weeks, then you’d have something to talk about and compare with Nick.

“He really is special and what he’s done is really special. You show me another British fighter who you could put in with the two best at their weight, back to back, and who’d come out the other side smiling. It’s not happening.”

Ball’s October 5th defence against Ronny Rios marks a swift return to action for the new champion. After beating former super bantamweight champion Isaac Dogboe, drawing with Vargas, and beating Ford, this will be his fourth top-level fight within eleven months and Stevenson would like him to keep a busy schedule and take an iron grip on the featherweight division in the coming years.

“Liverpool, England, Britain’s got something special on their hands with Nick and I would like this to start the long, terrible reign of Nick Ball. Marvin Hagler waited a long time to get the belt. He got a bullshit draw – like Nick – and when he got the belt in his next fight, he terrorized that division and wouldn’t let anyone near it,” Stevenson said, referencing Hagler’s controversial split draw with Vito Antuofermo in 1979 . “He was like a crazy dog protecting it. That’s what we want from Nick. A long title reign and many big nights in Liverpool, Saudi, wherever we end up.”

John Evans has contributed to a number of well-known publications and websites for over a decade. You can follow John on X @John_Evans79