Circle of life: The unexpected joy of Lyndon Arthur vs. Bradley Rea

There can’t be many columns that work an Elton John power ballad and a couple of Jim Watt quotes into a piece about Lyndon Arthur, but if you'll stay with me for a moment.

Circle of Life, his anthem from The Lion King, was one of the most iconic soundtrack songs of its era, replete with a spiritual message about continuity, legacy, and destiny.

It's a song that slaps hard from the Rocket Man, one of his seminal cuts with a strong afterlife, and alludes that everything in this life is interconnected. 

I’m pretty sure Arthur is not an Elton John fan, but thanks to a valiant Saturday night effort against Bradley Rea, the Manchester boxer now reigns as European champion.

That’s the same title trainer and mentor Pat Barrett captured way back in 1990, four years before Simba felt the love tonight.

See what I did there? 

Barrett walked into the Collyhurst and Moston Lads Club at the age of sixteen, where irascible trainer Brian Hughes MBE saved him from the streets and turned him into a winner.

Hughes was a father figure, a mentor and guiding light for dozens of lads who maybe didn’t have their own role models at home. 

Arthur too – thanks to Barrett - is the archetypal fighter for whom the boxing gym provides the sanctuary, discipline and structure in life he might otherwise be missing.

His talent and dedication have helped him escape from a potential life of bullets, blue lights and jail time across the North of England - and this weekend, he made good once more.

Arthur faced pound-for-pound star Dmitry Bivol in December 2023 as he challenged for the WBA light-heavyweight title, losing a lopsided unanimous decision.

In his last fight before Rea, he lost a trilogy bout to Anthony Yarde under the towering stands of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. It meant Saturday's stakes were high for the star.

Another loss at 34 - a second on the spin and a third in four fights - would leave him a light-heavyweight gatekeeper, taking short money for big risks against touted prospects.

Yet the fighter who endures in this brutal business is the fighter who accepts both joy and sorrow as essential and inevitable parts of their journey.

As well as talent, Arthur has the cojones and mental fortitude. Because of this, he still remains relevant on the light-heavyweight scene, a boxer with a point to prove.

Sandwiched between a couple of dubious decisions, Saturday’s fight was an unexpected classic. Boxing can be a murky business – always has been, presumably always will be.

Yet when the matchmakers get it right, there isn’t a sporting spectacle quite like it, and both men played their part in a bout that paid fitting tribute to late local hero Ricky Hatton.

Manchester City fan Rea, decked out in club light blue, made a blistering start. He hurt Arthur in the second round and dropped him with a left hook that was "bang on the chin".

(For the full effect, imagine these words in the thick Scottish brogue of Watt, a man for whom hyperbole behind the microphone has never been a lacklustre issue.)

A bout that screamed the distance when signed appeared in danger of an early climax as Arthur, in his beloved United Red covered up, less by design, as his foe poured it on.

Less Ali-esque rope-a-dope tactics, he seemed to be genuinely struggling to handle the two-fisted bombardment he faced in the early going.

Queensberry/Leigh Dawney

Arthur looked in further trouble in the third, and was staggered again in the fourth as a couple of meaty Rea left hands found their target with incessant offensive power.

Over halfway to the midpoint, it seemed only one winner could be on the cards - but time and again, 'King Arthur' has shown grit and stoicism when the house has tried to fold.

With other ideas in mind, he found a foothold and was sensational in the second half of the contest, flashes of his ability to operate with time and distance brought to the fore.

There's a case to be made that, when in the mood, Arthur has the best jab in England. Certainly, as he pieced Rea up alongside uppercuts and sneaky rights, you could believe it.

The vagaries of his performances are frequently something to behold, enhanced in no small part by his capricious nature inside and outside the ring; a true boxing enigma.

He can look sharp and in control, then be dominated and seem disinterested. For Barrett, it must be frustrating when his star clearly has the talent to deliver these turnarounds.

But the no-nonsense trainer could not disguise his pride and admiration from the corner as his man took over matters down the stretch, a true performer in a captivating fight.

I was so engrossed in the spectacle, I didn’t hear my Chinese takeaway at the door. I guess when you watch a fight as gripping as this, fried rice and everything else can wait.

To paraphrase a further Watt bingo classic, Arthur was “starting to look the boss in there” by the time the championship rounds rolled around, starting to hurt Rea with his moves.

That jab can win fights on its own, but his uppercut is a really underrated weapon, and it was nice to see him throw that straight right hand at times too.

But that jab. Rhythmic, meditative and as Rea will no doubt testify, painful if you are on the receiving end of it. By the end, it was a close affair, with both having given their all.

Like all the best fights, human moments existed alongside the violence, as the two warriors showed grudging respect to one another as the action ebbed and flowed.

After boxing so well, Arthur didn’t need showmanship when the bell sounded. He didn’t scale any turnbuckles. There was no grandiose screaming into the DAZN cameras. 

In fact, he didn’t even raise his hand, electing to offer fist bumps to Team Rea in the opposite corner. It was tight but the 115-113, 115-112, and 114-114 majority decision felt right.

It was the type of contest where there are no real losers. Rea is young enough to come again at the age of 27 and will do well to study how his opponent paced himself.

Given the effort he put in across a pulsating dozen rounds, he will be gutted with the result. It’s not the losing that hurts, you see, it’s the almost winning. 

For his part, Arthur had captured his own European belt Manchester, matching the achievement of his trainer 35 years before. It’s the circle of life, and it moves us all…