Bassong Lands North London Bragging Rights in Charity Ring War
When footballers swap the touchline for the boxing ring, you know you’re in for a bit of theatre — and that’s exactly what the Grosvenor House served up on Thursday night. Twelve former pros climbed through the ropes for A Night to Remember III, a charity event staged by Pro Project Promotions, with a fair few old Premier League names dusting off the competitive edge.
The night had everything you’d expect from these crossover evenings: pride, pressure, and the odd reminder that ex-footballers can still carry a punch when there’s a good cause at stake. Pro Project Promotions, set up by former goalkeeper Graham Stack, continues to do more than just stage a spectacle; it gives retired athletes structure, purpose and, importantly, a platform to raise serious money for charity.
North London bragging rights go to Bassong
The headline fight saw former Tottenham defender Sebastien Bassong take on ex-Arsenal full-back Armand Traore, and it was Bassong who came out on top with a third-round stoppage. You can dress it up however you like, but in north London terms that’s a clean win for Spurs over Arsenal — even if it came with gloves on rather than studs.
Bassong, who made 71 appearances for Tottenham between 2009 and 2012, showed the sort of calm authority you’d associate with a defender who once did the rounds in the Premier League with Newcastle, Wolves and Norwich too. Traore, meanwhile, had his own pedigree, coming through Arsenal’s system as a teenager and going on to make 32 senior appearances before turning out for clubs including Juventus, QPR, Cardiff and Nottingham Forest.
The supporting card was no dead rubber either. Lee Cook beat Martin Woods on points, Anthony Gardner edged Matthew Briggs on the judges’ cards, Gary Madine got the nod over Jamie Sendles-White in a split decision, and David Norris forced Simon Cox out in round three. Harlee Dean also impressed by stopping Leroy Lita after piling on the pressure in a bout that never really let the former striker settle.
Safety first after late withdrawal
Not everything went to plan, though. The originally scheduled main event between former Newcastle striker Nile Ranger and ex-Arsenal man Jay Emmanuel-Thomas was called off on the night after Ranger was pulled out on medical grounds.
Stack was absolutely right to stand firm on that one. In these events, you can have all the bravado in the world, but fighter safety must come before any bit of entertainment. Stack explained that Ranger’s blood pressure was still too high after a recheck, and the bout simply couldn’t go ahead. Sensible decision, no matter how disappointing it was for the crowd.
And to be fair, Stack still had every reason to be pleased with the evening. He said the fighters had trained hard for months and delivered for a packed house, while also helping the organisation move closer to its £500,000 fundraising target. Pro Project Promotions has already raised more than £201,500 across its first two events, and this latest night should push that total even further once the final figures are confirmed.
If nothing else, it showed these former professionals still have that edge — that stubborn, competitive streak that never quite leaves them. Different pitch, different combat zone, same old desire to win. And when it’s all for charity, nobody’s complaining.
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