Alex Arthur

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Alex Arthur, MBE Born 26 June 1978 in Dumbiedykes (Edinburgh) and raised in Drummond Street on the South Side of the city, is a Scottish former professional boxer and political candidate for the Alba Party [1] [2].

Competing from 2000 to 2012, he held the WBO and WBO interim super featherweight titles in 2007. At regional level, he held the British super featherweight title twice between 2002 and 2006, and the Commonwealth and EBU European super featherweight title from 2005 to 2006.

He ran as a regional candidate in the 2021 Scottish Parliament election as a member of the Alba Party, but quickly sparked controversy due to his online comments mocking travellers, an AIDS survivor, and spreading COVID-19 misinformation.

Amateur boxing career

Arthur was a member of the Leith Victoria Amateur Boxing Club in Edinburgh.[3] He represented the Scottish team[4] at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where he competed in the featherweight division.[5] At the Games he won the gold medal following victories over Kassim Napa Adam of Uganda, James Swan of Australia and Marty O'Donnell of Canada in the final.[6][7]

Professional boxing career

Early professional career

Arthur had his first professional contest in November 2000 when he defeated fellow debutant Richmond Asante at the Wythenshawe forum in Manchester. Also on the card that day were fighters of the quality of Anthony Farnell, Junior Witter, Matthew Hatton, Michael Jennings and Jamie Moore.[8]

After winning 11 fights in a row and picking up a couple of fringe titles on the way, Arthur managed to get a crack at the vacant British Super Featherweight title when he challenged Dewsbury's Steven Conway at the Braehead Arena in Glasgow on 19 October 2002. The win established Arthur as a force on the domestic scene and he followed up the victory with two defences against Carl Greaves and fellow Scot Willie Limond. One more victory would have given him the Lonsdale belt for keeps and that was when the undefeated prospect with a record of 16–0 ran into Longford's Michael Gomez.

Michael Gomez fight

Michael Gomez fought Arthur for the British and WBA International super featherweight titles in front of a sold out Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland in October 2003. This was the first professional boxing card in the city for almost 20 years.[9]

A war of words was waged between the two fighters prior to the fight, Arthur had stirred up the animosity between the pair stating in an interview that Gomez "gets involved in wars with journeymen" and that "looking deep into Gomez's eyes at the press conference, I'm not sure even he believes he can win. He'll be so fired up I expect it'll take me eight or nine rounds but, if his resistance has gone as people are saying, it could be a lot sooner" and "I see about 20 ways to beat him. I'm just looking forward to shutting him up.".[9][10]

Arthur, who was looking to retain the Lonsdale Belt, was seen as a rising star in British boxing and was being groomed to be a future world champion. Arthur was a strong favourite to defeat Gomez and this fight was seen as a stepping stone against a Gomez who had been through too many battles and abused his body too much.[11][12][13]

Gomez proved his critics wrong when on the night of the fight Gomez arrived in prime condition and with aggression, determination and desire.[12][14] Eventually, Gomez won this bad tempered contested fight with an explosive knock out of Arthur in the fifth round.[15] Arthur's performance in the early rounds and his resilience before the KO saw the bout hailed as one of the best fights in Britain for a decade. Boxing promoter Frank Warren called the fight "the greatest contest seen on these shores since Nigel Benn beat Gerald McClellan in 1995".[16]

Comeback

File:012 - AAA.jpg
Alex Arthur in 2008

He made his comeback the next year on 27 March 2004 by stopping Michael Kizza in the first round for the IBF Inter-Continental super featherweight title. He made two defences of that fringe title before lining himself up for a shot at Commonwealth Super-Featherweight champion Craig Docherty. To make matters more interesting the British title was now vacant again meaning that the Docherty fight would be for the British and Commonwealth Super-Featherweight titles. The fight took place at the Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh and ended with Arthur knocking Docherty out in the 9th round. Arthur was once again a force to be reckoned with.[17]

European Champion

To fully seal his comeback Arthur's next fight was against the reigning European champion at super feather Boris Sinitsin. He managed to defeat the experienced Russian with a wide 12 round decision and so held the British, Commonwealth and European title belts at the same time.[18] He put all three of them on the line in his next fight against fellow Scot Ricky Burns winning another 12 round decision.[19] It was however the only time he would defend all three at once, his next two fights saw him only defend the European title against mandatory challenger Sergey Gulyakevich and Spain's Sergio Palomo.

WBO Champion

On 21 July 2007, he stopped Koba Gogoladze in the tenth round to win the interim WBO super-featherweight title. He made his first defence on 15 December 2007 against fellow Brit Steve Foster Jr. In what was supposed to be an easy tune up fight, Arthur struggled to win a close unanimous decision. It was a terrible start from the champion, for the first four rounds he was getting beaten to the punch and taking heavy blows from Foster. He regained his composure in the middle rounds and even knocked down his opponent in the 9th with a body shot. However two rounds later in round 11 Arthur got floored himself after taking a right hand that knocked him straight through the ropes. He managed to regain his composure and won a close decision.[20]

Following the Foster win Arthur geared himself up to take on Dominican Joan Guzmán who held the full version of the title. However, Guzmán decided that he wanted to move up a weight division and chose not to compete against Arthur. This decision by Guzmán meant that the interim titleholder was now recognised as the organisation's world champion.[21][22]

Arthur however surrendered the title in his very next fight, losing a unanimous points decision to England's Nicky Cook at the MEN Arena in Manchester on 9 September 2008. Arthur claimed that he had been "robbed" he also added "It was three English judges – in England. A fighter knows in his heart if he has won or lost a fight and I really thought I had won",[23] Other observers however thought that the decision was fair and that Cook fully deserved his win.[24][25]

Second comeback

Since losing to Nicky Cook in 2008 Arthur went on to win against Mohamed Benbiou on 19 June 2009 via TKO in Round 1 at the Bellahouston Sports Centre in Glasgow, Arthur then lost on points to Nigel Wright on 5 December 2009 at the Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle. In 2010 Arthur had 2 back to back wins against Peter McDonagh on 4 September 2010 and Jay Morris on 4 December 2010 both in Glasgow.

Arthur was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2012 Birthday Honours for services to boxing.[26]

Amazing Alex Arthur Promotions and Retirement

File:The Queen’s Baton Relay is travelling all over Scotland (14236005198) (Arthur).jpg
Arthur at a publicity event ahead of the 2014 Commonwealth Games

In 2011 Arthur went into promoting with his own AAA Promotions. His first event took place at the Meadowbank Stadium in Edinburgh on 27 August 2011 where Arthur fought Aleksander Vakhtangashvili and won via TKO in the fourth round. On 14 April 2012 AAA Promotions staged their second and final event again at the Meadowbank Stadium where Arthur faced Michael Frontin and won via points after 8 rounds.

On 26 June 2013 Arthur officially retired from boxing after 14 months without a fight.

Professional boxing record

Template:BoxingRecordSummary

No. Result Record Opponent Type Round, time Date Location Notes
34 Win 31–3 Template:Flagicon Michael Frontin PTS 8 14 Apr 2012 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland
33 Win 30–3 Template:Flagicon Aleksander Vakhtangashvili TKO 4 (10) 27 Aug 2011 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland
32 Win 29–3 Template:Flagicon Jay Morris PTS 8 4 Dec 2010 Template:Flagicon Braehead Arena, Glasgow, Scotland
31 Win 28–3 Template:Flagicon Peter McDonagh PTS 8 4 Sep 2010 Template:Flagicon Kelvin Hall, Glasgow, Scotland
30 Loss 27–3 Template:Flagicon Nigel Wright PTS 8 5 Dec 2009 Template:Flagicon Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle, England
29 Win 27–2 Template:Flagicon Mohamed Benbiou TKO 1 (8) 19 Jun 2009 Template:Flagicon Bellahouston Sports Centre, Glasgow, Scotland
28 Loss 26–2 Template:Flagicon Nicky Cook UD 12 6 Sep 2008 Template:Flagicon M.E.N. Arena, Manchester, England Lost WBO super featherweight title
27 Win 26–1 Template:Flagicon Stephen Foster UD 12 15 Dec 2007 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland Retained WBO interim super featherweight title
26 Win 25–1 Template:Flagicon Koba Gogoladze TKO 10 (12) 21 Jul 2007 Template:Flagicon International Arena, Cardiff, Wales Won WBO interim super featherweight title
25 Win 24–1 Template:Flagicon Sergio Palomo TKO 5 (12) 4 Nov 2006 Template:Flagicon Kelvin Hall, Glasgow, Scotland Retained EBU European super featherweight title
24 Win 23–1 Template:Flagicon Sergey Gulyakevich TD 7 (12) 29 Apr 2006 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland Retained EBU European super featherweight title
23 Win 22–1 Template:Flagicon Ricky Burns UD 12 18 Feb 2006 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland Retained British, Commonwealth, and EBU European super featherweight titles
22 Win 21–1 Template:Flagicon Boris Sinitsin UD 12 23 Jul 2005 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland Won EBU European super featherweight title
21 Win 20–1 Template:Flagicon Craig Docherty KO 9 (12) 8 Apr 2005 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland Won Commonwealth and vacant British super featherweight titles
20 Win 19–1 Template:Flagicon Nazareno Gaston Ruiz UD 12 3 Dec 2004 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland Retained IBF Inter-Continental super featherweight title
19 Win 18–1 Template:Flagicon Eric Odumase RTD 6 (12) 22 Oct 2004 Template:Flagicon Royal Highland Showground, Edinburgh, Scotland Retained IBF Inter-Continental super featherweight title
18 Win 17–1 Template:Flagicon Michael Kizza KO 1 (12) 27 Mar 2004 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland Won vacant IBF Inter-Continental super featherweight title
17 Loss 16–1 Template:Flagicon Michael Gomez TKO 5 (12) 25 Oct 2003 Template:Flagicon Meadowbank Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland Lost British and WBA Inter-Continental super featherweight titles
16 Win 16–0 Template:Flagicon Willie Limond TKO 8 (12) 12 Jul 2003 Template:Flagicon Braehead Arena, Glasgow, Scotland Retained British super featherweight title
15 Win 15–0 Template:Flagicon Patrick Malinga TKO 6 (12) 22 Mar 2003 Template:Flagicon Braehead Arena, Glasgow, Scotland Won vacant WBA Inter-Continental super featherweight title
14 Win 14–0 Template:Flagicon Carl Greaves TKO 6 (12) 14 Dec 2002 Template:Flagicon Telewest Arena, Newcastle, England Retained British super featherweight title
13 Win 13–0 Template:Flagicon Steven Conway KO 4 (12) 19 Oct 2002 Template:Flagicon Braehead Arena, Glasgow, Scotland Won vacant British super featherweight title
12 Win 12–0 Template:Flagicon Pavel Patipko KO 1 (6) 17 Aug 2002 Template:Flagicon Cardiff Castle, Cardiff, Wales
11 Win 11–0 Template:Flagicon Nikolay Eremeev RTD 5 (12) 8 Jun 2002 Template:Flagicon Braehead Arena, Glasgow, Scotland Won vacant WBO Inter-Continental super featherweight title
10 Win 10–0 Template:Flagicon Dariusz Snarski TKO 10 (12) 11 Mar 2002 Template:Flagicon Kelvin Hall, Glasgow, Scotland Won IBF Inter-Continental super featherweight title
9 Win 9–0 Template:Flagicon Wladimir Borov TKO 2 (8) 19 Jan 2002 Template:Flagicon York Hall, London, England
8 Win 8–0 Template:Flagicon Laszlo Bognar TKO 3 (8) 17 Nov 2001 Template:Flagicon Bellahouston Sports Centre, Glasgow, Scotland
7 Win 7–0 Template:Flagicon Alexey Slyauchin TKO 1 (6) 27 Oct 2001 Template:Flagicon M.E.N. Arena, Manchester, England
6 Win 6–0 Template:Flagicon Dmitry Gorodetsky TKO 1 (4) 15 Sept 2001 Template:Flagicon M.E.N. Arena, Manchester, England
5 Win 5–0 Template:Flagicon Rakhim Mingaleyev PTS 4 21 Jul 2001 Template:Flagicon Ponds Forge Arena, Sheffield, England
4 Win 4–0 Template:Flagicon Dafydd Carlin PTS 4 28 Apr 2001 Template:Flagicon International Arena, Cardiff, Wales
3 Win 3–0 Template:Flagicon Woody Greenway RTD 2 (4) 26 Mar 2001 Template:Flagicon Wembley Conference Centre, London, England
2 Win 2–0 Template:Flagicon Eddie Nevins TKO 1 (4) 10 Feb 2001 Template:Flagicon Kingsway Leisure Centre, Widnes, England
1 Win 1–0 Template:Flagicon Richmond Asante TKO 1 (4) 25 Nov 2000 Template:Flagicon Wythenshawe Forum, Manchester, England

Political career

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On 29 March 2021, Arthur was announced as a regional candidate for the Alba Party in the 2021 Scottish Parliament election.[27] Shortly after the announcement, controversy emerged over his previous comments on social media, where he compared Romanian beggars to "juicy overfed pigs", openly mocked an AIDS survivor, and spread misinformation on COVID-19 vaccination.[28] After issuing an apology, where he explained that his comments were a product of his working class upbringing,[29] Arthur continued to retweet anti-immigrant content and bragged that members of his family could out-fight commenters who criticised him.[30][31][32][33]

Following Alba's disappointing results, where they failed to win any constituency or regional seats, Arthur stated that he remained proud to be an Alba candidate and suggested his party had achieved more in the fight for Scottish independence than the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath.[34] In response to further criticism of his political achievements he told a member of the public "Shut up you clown you don't know me", before stating "my 'genes' are very powerful!".[34]

Since the 2021 Scottish Parliament election, Arthur has continued sharing his views online. In response to renewed calls for Scottish students to get vaccinated against Covid-19 in September 2021, Arthur publicly mocked an overweight Scottish government spokesperson, saying he should "Maybe lose some weight. Protect yourself from the bigger killers, Heart disease & obesity".[35] New measures for children with gender dysphoria prompted a backlash, with Arthur stating "Kids at that age don't know if they're going for a shite or a haircut".[36] When accused of being anti-English, Arthur stated "I'd rather suck Boris Johnson's big toe than Nicola's tits".[37] He has also suggested that Scotland's Olympic prospects would improve by copying the strategies of the Russian committee involved in the doping scandal, stating "We need a bit of Putin in Scotland!".[38]

References

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  1. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Alex Arthur from The Gazetteer for Scotland". www.scottish-places.info. Retrieved 22 March 2026.
  2. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.MacLeod, Michael (31 January 2011). "Champion boxer Alex Arthur joins fight to save Southside cinema building". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 22 March 2026.
  3. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Arthur faces intrepid fight for money". Edinburgh Evening News. 21 July 1998. p. 35. Retrieved 23 April 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  4. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Drug shame lifter in team picked to restore the nation's sporting pride Honour and discredit in squad for the Games". The Herald. 3 July 1998. Retrieved 23 April 2026.
  5. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Scotland Kuala Lumpur 1998". Commonwealth Games Federation. Retrieved 23 April 2026.
  6. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Commonwealth Games Medallists - Boxing". GBR Athletics. Retrieved 23 April 2026.
  7. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Commonwealth Games - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - September 13-20 1998". Amateur Boxing. Retrieved 23 April 2026.
  8. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Boxing results from 25 November 2000".
  9. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."AMAZING ALL-ROUND". Boxing Monthly. Archived from the original on 12 August 2007. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  10. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Arthur shrugs off trainer blow". BBC. 15 October 2003. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  11. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Star Profiles – Alex Arthur". ITV. Archived from the original on 23 August 2007. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  12. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Julian Wilson. "Boxer of the week – Michael Gomez". Britishboxing.net. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  13. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Elliot Worsell. "Britain's most exciting fighters". SecondsOut.com. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  14. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Stephen Jones. "Amazing Fighters, Amazing Fight". Braggingrightscorner.com. Archived from the original on 10 June 2007. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  15. ^ BoxingTalk
  16. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.K MacInnes. "This England". New Statesman. Retrieved 13 June 2007.
  17. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Alex Arthur Wins Battle Of The Super Featherweights In Edinburgh". scottishboxing.co.uk. Archived from the original on 8 September 2006.
  18. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Arthur crowned European champion". 23 July 2005 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
  19. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Arthur in bruising title defence". 18 February 2006 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
  20. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Ricky Burns To Defend Against Raymundo Beltran On September 7th In Glasgow, Scotland". Boxing News. 21 June 2013.
  21. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Press Association (15 May 2008). "Alex Arthur awarded WBO belt". The Times. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  22. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Rawlings, John (16 May 2008). "Arthur gets WBO belt as Guzman changes weight". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 April 2021.
  23. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Arthur fury at judges' decision". 7 September 2008 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
  24. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Impressive Cook outclasses Arthur". 6 September 2008 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
  25. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Keevins, Hugh (12 September 2008). "Alex Arthur admits defeat against Nicky Cook". Daily Record.
  26. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.[Script error: No such module "London Gazette util". "No. 60173"]. The London Gazette (Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".). 16 June 2012. p. Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".. {{cite magazine}}: Check |url= value (help); More than one of |pages= and |page= specified (help)Script error: No such module "London Gazette util".
  27. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Former boxing champion Arthur to stand as candidate for Alba Party". Rhyl Journal. 29 March 2021.
  28. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Alba Party's Alex Arthur apologises for grossly offensive tweets". The National. 30 March 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
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