Words of support for Crolla

THE boxing world has rallied round stricken Chadderton ace Anthony Crolla, whose injuries following an altercation with burglars near his home have denied him his January chance to fight for a dream world title.

Fellow champion fighters and respected trainers have offered sympathy and support for Crolla (28), whose crack at Richar Abril’s WBA lightweight title at the Manchester Arena on January 23 has now been postponed.

As Crolla continued his recovery from concussion and a broken ankle this morning, messages flooded in via Twitter.

Amir Khan, whose gym Crolla trains at under the tutelage of Joe Gallagher, said: “Really sorry to hear the news about @ant_crolla hope you get well soon mate.”

Fellow champion Tony Bellew said: “My heart goes out to him. The nicest kid in boxing full stop.”

Manchester legend Bob Shannon, once a trainer of Ricky Hatton, added: “Terrible news about @ant_crolla being injured by stopping burglars at his home! Hope the injuries are not too bad and get well soon son.”

Current world super-bantamweight champion and stable-mate Scott Quigg said: “Absolutely gutted for my gym mate @ant_crolla with his dream within touching distance.”

Of course, this ugly incident will have been a devastating blow for Crolla himself.

Only last week he spoke exclusively to the Chronicle about finally getting his shot at the ultimate prize in his sport following a 35-fight career which has had its ups and downs.

Crolla  said then: “It’s been a long old road, but that’s why getting this shot is so special.

“The lows in boxing really can be right down there, but I’ve always chased the highs.

“This is without doubt the biggest high, though. It makes all those disappointments worthwhile in a way.

“There have been times when I’ve thought about things when people wrote me off, but I’ve never stopped believing in myself.

“A lot of other people stopped believing, but hand on heart I always knew I’d get to world title level in the end.”