Bradley Rea On His 2022 Goals, Title Ambitions And Potential Middleweight Fights

Bradley Rea (11-0) announced himself on the British scene back in 2021 when he scored an emphatic first round knockout over Lee Cutler on a Matchroom undercard, most recently Rea took fight of the night on his debut for new promotional outfit Boxxer in October, with the entertaining win over Jez Smith.

"I remember my dad taking me and my brother to a gym in Old Trafford when I was about 7 years old, I was a bit of a chubby kid so I think it was just for a little bit of fitness." said Rea as he spoke about his first encounter of a boxing gym. 

"I think in my first session I cried and pretended to be ill, but slowly I started to enjoy it more and more." A few years later, his father would go on to start up his very own amateur boxing club, St Johns, based in Chorlton, Manchester. 

'The Sting' Rea, as his fans now refer to the middleweight prospect, who's style has captured the attention of the British fight fans.

"Its always nice when people want to support you and like watching you fight. I’ve always known that once I got the opportunity on the big stages I would be in some fun fights because I have an entertaining style and like putting on a show, but it’s great to see the support I have gained gained over the last 12 months. Hopefully this is just the beginning."

Bradley has chalked up 11 straight wins since turning professional in 2018, with some impressive wins over Lee Cutler (9-1) & Jez Smith (13-4-1) in 2021 with titles the next logical step in his young career.

"For me I want to start looking at titles this year. The English title is definitely my goal by the end of 2022 and putting myself is a position where I can start looking at the British (title)" Said Rea talking about his 2022 goals and beyond.

"I’m only 23 and in no rush but that’s been my goal since I was a kid to win a British title outright and hopefully I can take a few more steps towards that this year."

The middleweight division is especially strong in the UK at the moment, Chris Eubank Jr and Liam Williams are set to battle it out on February 5th, Felix Cash - current British and Commonwealth champion - returns Febraury 12th. Also Anthony Fowler is set to move up middleweight for his next fight to join the current crop of exciting fighters in the 160 pound division.

"The middleweight division is full of some great potential fights for myself." River Wilson-Bent and Tyler Denny will rematch this year for the English middleweight title a fight Rea will have a close eye on.

"The likes of Nathan Heaney and Brad Pauls are good fighters who I would be excited to fight down the line as well. This is the reason I’m in boxing to be in great fights so I’m really looking forward to the next few years of my career and testing myself against the best."

Rea, a proud Manchester City fan, has always been vocal about his desires to fight on home shows and emulate his Manchester heroes. 

"Every couple of years the people of Manchester really get behind a fighter and turn the arena into a fortress, like they did with Ricky (Hatton) and (Anthony) Crolla.

Anthony Crolla regularly headlined at the Manchester Arena

"One of the goals I set was to box at a sold out Manchester arena. I have been going to the arena to watch the boxing since I was a little kid so it means the world to me to be able to fight there." 

Bradley makes his second appearance at his home arena in February on the undercard of Amir Khan vs Kell Brook.

Get to know Bradley 'The Sting' Rea 

Favourite band?

Oasis/The Stone Roses 

Favourite song?

Talk Tonight - Oasis 

Favourite fighter of all time?

Tommy Hearns or Julian Jackson 

Favourite fight of all time?

Gatti vs Ward 1 

Biggest inspiration?

 I’ve always really looked up to Anthony Crolla and obviously Ricky as well. What they have done for boxing in Manchester is unbelievable and if I can accomplish a small % of what they have I’ll be happy. 

A venue you’d love to box at?

A packed out Manchester arena beats any venue in the world. If not that, I would say Madison Square Garden. Just for the trip to NYC. 

1 fight you want to see in 2022?

Crawford Vs Spence has to happen this year before it’s too late.

A big thank you to Bradley Rea for his time, you can catch Brad in action on the undercard of Amir Khan vs Kell Brook live on Sky Sports Box Office, February 19th.