#54: ‘Unlicensed’ by Jon Hotten

‘Unlicensed – Random Notes from Boxing’s Underbelly’ by Jon Hotten.

It’s funny how your brain does or, in fact, doesn’t work, but I have next to no recollection of reading this book! Though, please don’t take that as a judgement of its quality; I often binge when I’m interested in a subject, so it’s very likely that I raced through the book when I should really have taken some more time over it.

According to the back cover, ‘Unlicensed’ is a journey through the underbelly of boxing, following men who make money from fighting in unlicensed bouts. As I’m typing this I’m having hazy recollections of big angry men meeting for a scrap in warehouses as groups of even more angry men look on, though this could just be the influence of bad British films I’ve caught glimpses of.

Ironically, the back cover states, ‘Unlicensed’ is an unforgettable journey through the underside of the fight game.

I was in two minds as to whether to post about this book as I didn’t want to seem dismissive of it, but I thought some people might want to read about this specific side of the boxing world.