Sam and Sean Noakes are lifting each other to new heights

By Matt Bozeat

THERE are differing accounts of why the Noakes brothers had been banned from sparring each other.

“We haven’t sparred each other for years,” mentioned Sean, the elder brother by two years at 29.

“I was always moaning about him being dirty. He was always pushing and pulling.”

That’s not how Sam remembers it.

“You’ve seen how I fight, I’m just rough and he didn’t like it,” he mentioned.

“He hit me after the bell a few times. I’ve got the videos. There was one time I had my hands down and he hit me with a left hook – and then he moans about me.”

Sean protests.

“I’ve got it on video as well,” he mentioned, “and I was halfway through the punch when the bell rang.”

Sam defined: “We are brothers and greatest mates.

“I used to be greatest man at his wedding ceremony and we by no means actually fought rising up, but when we go down to the seashore and throw stones it’s all the time: ‘I’m higher at skimming stones than you.’

“That’s the way we are.”

Sean revealed one in every of his motivations forward of his conflict with Inder Bassi for the vacant English welterweight championship final month was to “start catching that little git up.”

Sam is additional alongside in his profession having received British, Commonwealth and European light-weight honours.

He makes his first defence of the latter belt in opposition to Gianluca Ceglia on the York Corridor on Friday, September 6.

That was the place he received the vacant belt in April, dominating French veteran Yvan Mendy, who grew to become the primary to final the gap with the Maidstone mauler. Noakes had stopped his first 13 opponents.

“It was good to get the rounds in,” mentioned Noakes, who’s been with coach Alan Smith and supervisor Francis Warren since turning professional in 2019 after successful the Elite championship with Westree ABC. “I confirmed I’m not a one-trick pony.

[Denys] Berinchyk took a couple of rounds off him [three, four and four] and he’s a world champion now, so I made an announcement.”

Mendy was all the time doubtless to give Noakes rounds given he had by no means been stopped in 56 earlier fights. “I hit him with everything I could and it took it out of me,” mentioned Noakes.

“I used to be mendacity within the altering room afterwards knackered and he got here in wanting like he hadn’t even had a battle! He’s a machine.

“I acquired him a few instances, but it surely was proper on the finish of the spherical.

“I was a bit gutted the knockout streak ended, but we can always start a new one!” Which may spell bother for Ceglia. The 34-year-old Italian has misplaced to Mendy in a 21-4-1 profession and has a factors win over Vincenzo Finiello, subsequently overpowered in 4 by Noakes.

“He looks like a come forward fighter,” mentioned Noakes. “I know people can change, but if he’s 26 fights into his career and he’s still coming forward, that’s how he fights.”

That can be how Sam fights. Requested to evaluate himself with Sam, Sean mentioned: “I’m not as mad as him!

“I’m completely different. Sam is an out-and-out brawler and I’m a box-puncher.”

Sam mentioned: “We are completely different characters and it reveals once we field. He’s extra affected person. I’m not affected person.

“I all the time go on there in search of an early evening. With me, the whole lot is difficult.

“I’m more aggressive than Sean, but he has the better knockouts. He goes for the one shot and I don’t leave them alone.”

Choose of Sean’s knockout punches is unquestionably the suitable that put Colombian Santiago Garces down for a few minutes at Wembley Enviornment final January.

He additionally unravelled Robin Zamora with a perfectly-timed proper in solely 42 seconds on the York Corridor.

Sam mentioned: “I’m strong, I’m dominant. You’re aware I’m in there. I spar bigger lads and when we are grappling there’s not a lot in it. I’ve been told I have the strength of a middleweight.”

He began lifting weights in his teenagers.

“The school I went to gave me and my mate a gym membership when I was in Year 10, so about 14 or 15,” he mentioned.

“It was part of a scheme. That’s when I started lifting weights. [Friend] Josh was the size I am now back then. He was around 70 kilos and I tried to keep up with him. We would do 45kgs curls. I wanted to get big, muscly and strong.”

His present private bests embrace a 125kgs bench press, a 155kgs squat and 200kgs useless elevate.

“I haven’t got long levers [arms] so I haven’t got as far to push,” he mentioned.

Boxing was the thought of their mom, Sharon.

“I was overweight and shy and mum sent me to the gym,” mentioned Sean.

“About a year later mum sent Sam as well. He was a bit naughty and playful. Mum saw how boxing sorted me out.”

Sam Noakes remains to be European light-weight champion. (Stephen Dunkley/Queensberry)

Sam didn’t suppose boxing was for him – till he misplaced his debut. “I couldn’t be bothered with it,” he mentioned, “however after I misplaced my first battle it was a horrible, horrible feeling.

“I remember the Master of Ceremonies asking for a round of applause for the loser and I just wanted to run out of the ring. I felt horrible. After that, I took it more seriously. I decided I didn’t like losing. I don’t get scared by who I’m fighting. It’s losing that scares me.”

He solely misplaced 5 of his subsequent 52 newbie bouts and it was his success that acquired Sean again into boxing.

“I had a break from boxing when I was 16,17,” mentioned Sean. “I went out partying, I went out and acted silly with my mates. Watching Sam win titles made me want to get back into it.”

Sean turned over in 2022 with coach Micky Burke at a time when his youthful brother was constructing a status as a 135lbs wrecking machine.

Trying again on his professional apprenticeship, Sam mentioned: “I cut Chris Adaway, broke Des Newton’s eye socket and broke Naeem Ali’s nose. They are all seasoned journeymen. They get paid to take punches and give people rounds.”

Queensberry began to match Noakes extra competitively and he stored getting stoppages – till he bumped into Mendy.

Sean has been at ringside for each one in every of his brother’s fights and Sam was his loudest supporter when he met Bassi for the St. George’s belt on the Derek Chisora-Joe Joyce undercard on the O2 Enviornment final month.

“I could hear some of what Sam was shouting,” Sean mentioned, “but I was focused on what was in front of me.”

Sam proved to be a helpful ally within the construct=up to Sean’s first title battle.

“I have sparred Inder and knew he was a tough, credible opponent,” mentioned Sam. “Having that first title shows you are heading in the right direction.”

Sean wasn’t totally comfortable along with his eighth straight win (4 early).

“I was so pumped up for that,” he mentioned, “and I was a bit over eager. I might have got the stoppage if I had relaxed. He was moving backwards, making it messy.”

Sean, who’s married to Anna and has a four-year-old son Hugo, is wanting to make a title defence by the top of the 12 months, whereas Sam hopes for a world title shot in 2025.

The large home battle for Noakes is in opposition to Mark Chamberlain, the Portsmouth southpaw who’s received all 16 (12 early) and is in Turki Alalshikh’s good books.

Subsequent for Chamberlain is a battle with Josh Padley at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, September 21. “He’s fallen on his feet with Turki Alalshikh,” mentioned Noakes.

“Honest play to him. He’s a superb fighter. 

“There’s folks doing higher than me and folks doing worse than me. That’s the best way it’s. I’m simply going to preserve doing what I’m doing.

“He’s a superb fighter with a superb again hand, however once you take away that again hand, I don’t suppose there’s lots there.

“He had a tough fight with [Artjom] Ramlavs [a 10th-round stoppage last November] and I’m like Ramlavs times 10. I think he maybe likes it when it’s going his way and he won’t get it all his own way with me.”

Sean Noakes