Every fighter celebrates a big win differently.
There might be a big night out or two – or three in some cases – with friends and a week of cheat days but it generally doesn’t take too long for the phone to stop ringing, the congratulatory messages to taper off and for life to return to normal.
A month on from his British middleweight title victory over Denzel Bentley, Nathan Heaney has continued to get regular reminders that his life has changed.
“I keep getting random messages from people with the Kazakhstan flag in their name saying I’m gonna get banged out by Janibek [Alimkhanuly],” Heaney (18-0, 6 KO’s) laughed when talking to BoxingScene.com.
“That’s the weirdest thing. I’d probably say I get one message every three or four days from a Kazakh user saying that I’m gonna get knocked out. Or they put my record up with six knockouts and a laughing face next to it. I don’t need to knock you out to beat you. It is funny though.”
A fight with the unified WBO and IBF middleweight champion isn’t on the agenda just yet but the fact that Heaney is being mentioned in the same breath as the unbeaten Janibek shows just how much last month’s win over Bentley [who lost a competitive decision to the Kazakh in November 2022] meant.
For years, the unbeaten 34-year-old from Stoke has heard the not so quiet whispers that he was being protected and kept unbeaten because of his large and loyal fanbase and that he would get found out as soon as he stepped up a level.
So, more than a few eyebrows were raised when Queensberry decided to match one of their biggest ticket sellers with the dangerous Bentley.
A heavy underdog entering the fight, Heaney was a revelation, controlling the range and never allowing Bentley to build any momentum. When the heavy handed Londoner did get through with a solid shot, Heaney made sure to answer right back. It was a performance of tactical nous and poise that shocked many seasoned onlookers.
“I’ve always said that if you’re a British champion you can go on to do anything,” Heaney said. “Most British champions are high quality fighters who can perform on the world stage. For me, the first massive step was the British title. It was only a couple of years ago when I started thinking I could win the British title it just depends who’s put in front of you. The fact that I did beat Denzel Bentley meant it wasn’t a standard British title fight. This was a guy who was being lined up to fight Janibek in a rematch potentially. If it’s possible for him to be on the world stage and then I beat him convincingly, then it’s possible for me to be on the world stage.
“Me and Steve [Woodvine, his trainer] just knew what makes Denzel Bentley great and what makes him not so great. Every person I’ve watched – even Janibek – as soon as they hold their feet with Bentley he punches holes in them. People can say he was flat and this and that but I don’t agree. I believe I made him perform the way he did.”
Suddenly, Heaney’s bucket list has had an extra ‘To Do’ added to it. From the moment they first pull on a pair of gloves, every fighter fantasizes about winning a world title but for years Heaney pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and focused on his boxing dreams of winning the British middleweight title and fighting in front of his fanatical supporters at the home of his beloved Stoke City.
Mission accomplished. He had the Lonsdale Belt on his mantelpiece for Christmas and it seems to be a matter of when, not if he gets to achieve his dream of walking out to fight on the pitch at the Bet365 Stadium.
Beating Bentley has expanded Heaney’s horizons and, suddenly, those world title fantasies have worked their way to the forefront of his mind.
If he can just string together a win or two more, it is almost inevitable that he will get a title shot and he will have earned it in the ring rather than by selling tickets.
“Before, my supporters deserved that event but now I’ve proved that as a fighter, I deserve that event too,” he said.
“For me, the ideal plan would be to defend the British title early in 2024, fight at the ground in the summer and if I win that then ideally I’d love to fight that Janibek. Las Vegas, Saudi, I don’t care. Anywhere. I’d love just to fight for a world title. I’d be the first person from my city to do it.
“I’ve looked at Janibek and he’s very good but this is why I want to put a bit of a spotlight on Steve [Woodvine]. He’s turned what people thought was a bang average fighter who was area level at best into a British champion through all the work he’s done with me and the tactics he comes up with. I know that Steve would come up with the exact gameplan to work against Janibek. I’ve got ideas anyway because I’ve seen him against Bentley. The reason why he did so well for six rounds was because he just boxed. Then his corner made a mistake. They said he had to push Bentley back. That’s when Bentley came back into the fight. If you can force Janibek to do that somehow……..It’s mad even thinking about it but I’d love to fight him.”
Heaney hasn’t won everybody over yet. The whispers will start up again. He took advantage of an out of sorts Bentley. He enjoyed a once on a lifetime night. He will be found out once he steps above British level. Heaney will ignore them, retreat into the gym with Woodvine and they will set about proving people wrong again.
“I do love it that people still don’t think I’m good enough,” he said. “The motivation I had in that fight, that underdog mentality. It’s legit. I do like it and I think I’m always gonna be like that.
“This year is quite an exciting year. Before, you’d be thinking about which fights might come up but now I do believe in myself more. It wasn’t a fluke the way I beat Bentley.”