SUNDAY NEWS 8 JULY 2012

NEWS

Cameron, Ryder futures look hot after knockout successes NEWS

FAST

Big stage beckons

BY LIAM NAPIER AND AARON LAWTON KNOCKOUT wins to Shane Cameron and Jesse Ryder at Thursdays televised fight night have confirmed both sportsmens cult hero status and blasted them firmly back to the big stage. Cameron, who KOd Monte Barrett in the fourth round of his bout at Aucklands SkyCity, is expected to be propelled into the worlds top 10 heavyweight contenders and could be in line for a title shot. And Black Caps master blaster Ryder, who TKOd radio host Mark Watson in the first round, is set for a return to cricket this summer after confirming yesterday he will make himself available for Wellington. He said his boxing training had given him a new-found focus. David Higgins, of Duco Events, which promoted Thursdays KFC Godfather of all Fight Nights, says Camerons next fight against an overseas boxer will be watched around the planet. If Shane has an eliminator and performs like he did against Barrett, hes got a title shot. It is conceivable Cameron could fight for the heavyweight title within a year from now, Higgins told Sunday News. Cameron has never been hotter than he is now. He is the sort of bloke who will back it up pretty quick, he said. That next fight against an overseas opponent will go global. It would be a home-grown event watched by a few hundred million people around the world. Camerons manager, Kenny Reinsfield, said Barrett was ranked 12th by the WBO before Thursday. He [Cameron] was ranked sixth when he fought [David] Tua. Id like to see him jump up and around that position. He deserves it, Reinsfield said.

DIVERS SEARCH FOR MAN

A police dive squad yesterday searched the Waikato River for missing Hamilton hunter Kevin Hayward, 41, from Ohaupo. He went into bush near Mangakino on Monday. His shotgun, clothing and hunting gear were found on the Waikato River bank near Mangakino on Friday.

PASSENGER FLUNG FROM CAR

A passenger was flung from a car which crashed into a parked truck in Waitara early yesterday morning but escaped injury. The crash left the driver with critical injuries and a second passenger with moderate to serious injuries.

GAME PICKS SOBER DRIVER

Auckland Transport has developed a game for social networking site Facebook in a bid to reduce drink-driving. Sober Driver Sorter provides Facebook friends with a fun way to select a sober driver for their outing. The game can be played on smartphones as well as computers.
A victorious Shane Cameron celebrates KO-ing Monte Barrett, below, in the fourth round. Boxing has reinvigorated Jesse Ryder, above. Photos: Photosport/Peter Meecham/Fairfax NZ to come out of retirement this year after indicating to training guru Lee Parore he will make a comeback. David wants to get back into it and Im more than happy to help him train, Parore said. Ryder, meanwhile, credited his boxing training for getting him fighting fit. Im stoked with the progress Ive made in the last month or so. The boxing has been awesome and has really kick-started me achieving what I wanted to do when taking this break, Ryder said. Ive lost 6kg in four weeks and I want to keep that going and keep training hard. That was what taking this break was all about for me. Im just focusing on one job at a time. I dont have any expectations of being selected for the Black Caps this summer. Its all about Wellington for me at the moment whatever happens in the future will happen. I want to play for New Zealand again, but Im taking one step at a time.

NO SURGERY, BY GUM
Gum chewing by patients has forced the cancellation of surgery at Nelson Hospital and Blenheims Wairau Hospital. Nelson Hospital productive theatre operating programme facilitator Martin Anderson said in the past three months, 38 surgeries were cancelled because patients with nil by mouth orders were found chewing gum or taking something else which breached the hospitals no-eating rules.

STABBING INQUIRY
Hamilton police are investigating after a man suffered moderate stab wounds to his leg after an incident at an address in Fairview Downs at 1.15am yesterday.

EARTHQUAKE FELT
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake centred 10km south of Turangi was felt widely over the North Island at 12.50pm yesterday.

Russians Denis Boytsov and Alexander Povetkin, or Americans Seth Mitchell and Chris Arreola, are being considered by Reinsfield as possible stepping stones to a world title fight against Wladimir Klitschko. It depends on availability but if Shane puts away another known

fighter he will definitely be looked at as a world title contender. We will now look to bring down a wellranked heavyweight. Shane needs to be fighting ranked guys now. But Camerons camp ruled out an immediate rematch with Tua, who knocked out Cameron in 2009. Tua is understood to be preparing

LEG INJURIES AFTER JUMP

A 20-year-old Auckland motorcyclist training on Taupos Digger McEwen motocross track was flown to Waikato Hospital with serious leg injuries after coming off his motorbike on a jump.