Two of London’s YouTube heavyweights could be going head-to-head in the boxing ring at The O2 next month – almost a year after an election night fight challenge at City Hall as they were battling to become London mayor.
Independent candidate Brian Rose, founder and host of media platform London Real, came a credible seventh in the field of 20 last May, with his eye-catching Brian For
Mayor campaign generating more national news headlines than the Lib Dem and Green candidates combined.
The US-born ex-Wall Street banker, who has lived in London for 20 years, is now planning his professional boxing debut aged 50 – and revealed on his social media channels to his five million subscribers that body builder and Hollywood actor Martyn Ford, dubbed the ‘World’s Scariest Man’, asked him to take part in the celebrity boxing event at The O2 on Saturday April 30.
Ford, whose movie CV includes Kingsman:The Golden Circle, Fast & Furious and Redcon-1, is headlining the card at the hugely anticipated promotion with his showdown against ‘Iranian Hulk’ Sajad Gharibi, before anexpected crowd of 20,000 fight fans.
Rose explained: ‘Martyn was a guest on my show three years ago, and approached me in January about his big fight at The O2, saying I should
also take part. I told him I was 50-years-old and it was a ridiculous idea – but then I thought about how I’ve trained in martial arts for many years, and I always say you should embrace your fears. That’s where the fun is.’
And now he’s challenging fellow YouTuber and London mayoral candidate Niko Omilana – a regular on the YouTube UK boxing scene – to join him in the ring at The O2 after the pair traded fight challenges on election night last May.
Political journalists at the count tweeted how the rivals squared up to each other at City Hall – following taunts on the night by Omilano after old YouTube videos of Rose resurfaced during the campaign, including one of his high energy martial arts routine. Rose challenged Omilano to a fight, and 10 months later has taken to social media to remind him of their unfinished business.
Omilano – who has 4.2m YouTube subscribers – was involved earlier this month (5 March) in the UK’s biggest social media influencer boxing event this year so far, as part of the Beta Squad in a UK versus US battle for cross-Atlantic bragging rights, at the SSE Arena, Wembley.
Rose received plaudits last year for his first ever political campaign, thanks in part to a series of imaginative policies – including wireless charging for public transport, raising £100m from business to fund after-school programmes for teens and delivering 50,000 new homes by Christmas.
The event on April 30 features a host of celebrities, presenters and influencers taking to the boxing ring for the first time ever, including Love Island’s Jack Fincham, First Dates’ Austin Ventour, DJ Jess Bays, Manchester United great Patrice Evra and ex-Spurs star turned TV football pundit Jamie O’Hara – who told the Sunday Mirror that victory in his boxing debut would rank alongside reaching the FA Cup Final.
Rose added: ‘The O2 event is going to be incredible – particularly as Niko and I have unfinished business. He called me out on Election Night last year and now it’s time to
settle things in the Fight for London.
‘I’m almost twice as old as Niko and can’t imagine he’d give up this opportunity after everything he said about me last year. Personally I can’t wait to see him in the ring on April 2.’
