After arriving in the states from Germany this week, promoter Gary Shaw reflects on the incredible week he had with Daniel “Real Deal” Geale and his team as the days led up to their big win against Felix Sturm. Already the IBF Champion, Geale added Sturm’s WBA title, becoming the first Australian born fighter to become a unified world champion.
“Sturm literally thought Daniel’s name was “Meal Deal” and found out the hard way that he’s the “Real Deal,” Shaw said. “Sturm, who acted as his own promoter for this event, must have been occupied with the stresses of being a promoter to think Daniels name was ‘Meal Deal.’ On the other hand, Team Geale was very relaxed going into this fight. Just hours before the fight, we were all hanging out in the dressing room joking around, and laughing to the point we had tears in our eyes. I’ve never been in a fight where the atmosphere was so calm. There was no yelling, just very relaxed.”
“Geale ended sparring 10 days before the fight and was on weight the entire time. There was no struggle to make weight and the game plan Graham Shaw put in place was incredible. Graham is a very underrated trainer. I nominate him for “Trainer of the Year” and he needs to be recognized as one of the best trainers in boxing.
“I realized that Daniel didn’t have people around him that were dead weight. His brother Joe was a pleasure to be around and he provided an uplifting spirit. When you have people that really love you, around you for the biggest fight of your life, then good things are going to happen.
“Being around Team Geale leading up to this fight was one of the best experiences I’ve had as a promoter. Together we are willing and ready to take on the toughest challenges out there. I plan to have Daniel sitting ringside for the Martinez vs. Chavez Jr. fight in Las Vegas and then sit down with HBO to discuss all the options in the newly electrically charged middleweight division, where Geale is the only fighter holding multiple belts. There are many great fights that can be made and we’ll make the announcement on who’ll we’ll fight next in the near future.”
