Seen the expression ‘Three things in life are certain, death, taxes and …. ‘?
You tend to add in your own funny or inevitable third thing and in the case of the boxing Cope brothers the end bit could well read ‘Lee Connelly’.
Punch-lines is not sure whether Lee is invited round to the Cope home for Christmas Dinner but the Derbyshire boxer is very familiar to the Hartlepool family.
Luke Cope is the next in line to tackle the 34-year-old who goes under the moniker the ‘Violent Vegan’ (we kid you not) at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle on Saturday night.
It’s great to see Luke (pictured left at the weigh-in) back after a three-year absence and perhaps no shock to report that another LC is in the opposite corner.
When Adam Cope returned after his own hiatus from the sport, Connelly was the opponent, Adam winning 40-37 at the Rainton Meadows Arena last November.
Luke and Adam’s elder brother, Peter, fought Connelly twice, beating him 60-55 at the Borough Hall in 2015 and then 59-57 at the 2017 Summer Rumble.
Connelly, as the Copes know, is not a fighter you can take any liberties with, so this is a tough comeback fight for the former Gus Robinson Developments ABC star, who is part of the Natural Progression Boxing Academy in Stockton.
“He must be sick of the sight of us,” laughed Luke.
“Lee’s a tough man, I’m expecting some hard rounds.”
But what can we expect from the great mover?
“A win, 100 per cent,” he told punch-lines.
“It’s been a long time, three years out, so looking forward to getting back under the lights again.
“I’ve never left the gym, but in terms of fighting Covid had got in the way plus a couple of niggling injuries.
“It’s brilliant to be on such a big show as well and hopefully there will be many more to come.”
Cope has got the invite to the BOXXER and Sky Sports event thanks to Hartlepool neighbour Savannah Marshall who is headlining with her third defence of the WBO world middleweight title against Femke Hermans.
And Luke can’t wait t0o repay his thanks with a win.
“It was Savannah who got me on the show so I’m thankful to her for that,” he said.
“All the work has been done so I’m looking forward to getting in the ring again.”
Luke will be looking to join Adam on four victories and says having his brother back in action has been a real boost.
“It’s motivation for us both, we push each other on and help each other,” added Luke.
Words: Roy Kelly Picture: Tom Collins
