STANDING 6ft 4in tall with an all-action fighting style and a self-confessed ‘Jack the lad’ personality, Jack Cullen is hard to miss. Nonetheless, the 25-year-old English middleweight champion has managed to sneak up on his rivals in a competitive domestic division.
Cullen’s popularity has been steadily rising in the North West but the assured yet aggressive performance he put in to outbox and outfight the previously unbeaten John Harding Jnr in August grabbed the attention of a nationwide audience watching on Sky Sports and a large, rowdy following from his hometown of Little Lever caught the eye of show promoter, Eddie Hearn. Almost overnight, Cullen made himself a very visible player.
Cullen, 17-1 (8), may have made an impression much sooner had he not been sidelined for the latter part of his amateur career. Owner of one of the best nicknames in the sport, “Little Lever’s Meat Cleaver” spent his late teens labouring on site during the day and learning in the gym at night. Rather than providing him with a craft to fall back on, a serious accident almost cost him absolutely everything.