Chris Evangelou

Last updated

Christopher Evangelou
Born (1986-01-12) 12 January 1986 (age 38)
Wood Green, London, England
NationalityBritish
Other namesThe Flash
Statistics
Weight(s)
Stance Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights16
Wins13
Wins by KO2
Losses3

Christopher Evangelou (12 January 1986) is a British actor and former professional boxer who competed from 2009 to 2016. [1]

Contents

Early life

Christopher Evangelou was born in Wood Green, London in the United Kingdom on 12 January 1986. [2] He is of Greek Cypriot origin. [3]

Growing up, Evangelou and his family would wake up at 3 AM to watch Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, and Naseem Hamed fight. [4]

Evangelou's brother, Preston, took up boxing and exposed Chris to boxing in person at an early age. [5]

When Evangelou was 17 he was involved in a verbal altercation in the street. While the incident did not get physical, he said that he felt "an inch tall after that" [6] and he "could've done better," so he decided to start boxing.

Amateur career

Evangelou started boxing at the Haringey Boxing Gym in Tottenham when he was 17 under coach Chris Hall and had his first amateur fight after 6 months of training. [7] He decided to pursue boxing as a career at age 18. [8] As an amateur, he won 5 international gold medals [9] and a 2006 national champion in the under-20 category. He was recruited to box for Cyprus at the 2008 Olympic games in Beijing but he lost his last qualifying match to the number one boxer on the German team. [10] Evangelou turned professional at the age of 23 after an amateur career of 40 fights with 35 wins. [11]

Professional career

As a professional, Evangelou was offered contracts at several boxing gyms. He went to the Wildcard Boxing Gym in Los Angeles, California to meet acclaimed boxing trainers Freddie Roach and Jesse Reid. After a sparring session, the coaches at the Wildcard Boxing Gym offered Evangelou a contract but he refused because he wanted to stay in the UK, where his family and fans were. He also spent time training with boxing legend Ricky Hatton. Evangelou was considering signing with Hatton's camp and also the camp of Calzaghe Promotions, a boxing organization run by former World Boxing Organization super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe. Evangelou finally decided to sign for Matchroom Promotions which is part of the Barry Hearn sporting group.

Evangelou suffered his first defeat on 8 September 2012 to Danny Connor 98–94 in a ten-round competition at London's Alexandra Palace. The decision was questioned by many boxing pundits and professionals who had thought it a clear win for Evangelou. In July 2011, he set a goal to be fighting for an English title by the end of the year. [12] In an interview in March 2012 with World Boxing News, he said that he would like to compete against Darren Hamilton for the Southern Area Belt to earn a spot in the rankings as one of Britain's top 10 fighters. [13]

A rematch with Danny Connor ended with a 97–93 victory to Connor who knocked Evangelou down twice in the 7th round. Evangelou suffered a further loss on 30 November 2013 on points 56–59 to Ashley Mayall making a 3rd defeat in a row. [14]

In 2014 Evangelou won both bouts he contested, a points win 40–37 over journeyman Dan Carr and a first-round KO of Mick Mills.

Evangelou was scheduled to face Zoran Cvek on 27 September 2014 for the International Masters Welterweight Title.

Evangelou is managed by his father Costakis Evangelou, who handles publicity and sponsorship for his son. [15]

Evangelou's older brother Andreas "The Ace" Evangelou is also a boxer and is undefeated in the light heavyweight division. [16]

Professional boxing record

16 fights13 wins3 losses
By knockout20
By decision113
No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
16Win13–3 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg James GormanPTS412 Mar 2016 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg York Hall, London, England
15Win12–3 Flag of Croatia.svg Zoran CvekPTS1027 Sep 2014 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg York Hall, London, EnglandWon vacant International Masters welterweight title
14Win11–3 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Mick MillsKO1 (6), 3:0912 Jul 2014 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg York Hall, London, England
13Win10–3 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Dan CarrPTS422 Feb 2014 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg York Hall, London, England
12Loss9–3 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Ashley MayallPTS630 Nov 2013 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Copper Box Arena, London, England
11Loss9–2 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Cassius ConnorPTS109 Mar 2013 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Wembley Arena, London, EnglandFor Southern Area super-lightweight title
10Loss9–1 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Cassius ConnorPTS108 Sep 2012 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Alexandra Palace, London, EnglandFor vacant Southern Area super-lightweight title
9Win9–0 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Joel RyanPTS49 Nov 2011 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg York Hall, London, England
8Win8–0 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Jon BaguleyPTS4 23 Jul 2011 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Wembley Arena, London, England
7Win7–0 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Ibrar RiyazPTS430 Apr 2011 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Olympia, London, England
Win6–0 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Jason NesbittPTS419 Feb 2011 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Wembley Arena, London, England
5Win5–0 Flag of Poland.svg Arek MalekPTS627 Nov 2010 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow, Scotland
4Win4–0 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Aaron FoxPTS49 Jul 2010 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg York Hall, London, England
3Win3–0 Flag of Lithuania.svg Marius JasutisKO1 (4), 0:499 Apr 2010 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Alexandra Palace, London, England
2Win2–0 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Johnny GreavesPTS412 Feb 2010 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg York Hall, London, England
1Win1–0 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Kristian LaightPTS418 Dec 2009 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg York Hall, London, England

Acting career

Evangelou retired from boxing to pursue acting. [17] He appeared in the Guy Ritchie film, The Gentlemen, as a boxer/hitman named "Primetime." [18] Later in 2020, Evangelou released a short film called Shadow Boxer that tackled the topic of mental health in the boxing community. [19] The short was sent to the film festival circuit. [20]

In 2023, Evangelou started portraying Troy in EastEnders .

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References

  1. ↑ Boxrec | Chris Evangelou professional record. Retrieved 8 April 2012
  2. ↑ .Boxrec.com
  3. ↑ Rickson, Tim (23 March 2020). "Retired boxer Chris Evangelou finds salvation in acting". British Boxing News. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
  4. ↑ Blaine Henry (10 April 2020). "Chris Evangelou: Boxer Turned Actor". Fight-Library.com.
  5. ↑ Blaine Henry (10 April 2020). "Chris Evangelou: Boxer Turned Actor". Fight-Library.com.
  6. ↑ Foley Paul, "The Flash-Boxing's newest superhero" The Morning Star, 8 July 2010
  7. ↑ Simpson, David (11 December 2009). Boxrec | Interview with Chris 'The Flash' Evangelou ahead of his debut Archived 23 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 8 April 2012
  8. ↑ Boxingprospects.tv | Chris Evangelou Interview
  9. ↑ Foley Paul, "The Flash-Boxing's newest superhero" The Morning Star, 8 July 2010
  10. ↑ Boxingprospects.tv | Chris Evangelou interview
  11. ↑ Jay, Phil (8 March 2012). Wbn-World Boxing News: 12 rounds with Chris "The Flash" Evangelou Archived 23 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 8 April 2012
  12. ↑ Stafford, Dominique (21 July 2011).NORTHLONDON TODAY | SPORTS | Evangelou sets his sights on fighting for the English title. Retrieved 9 April 2012
  13. ↑ Jay, Phil (8 March 2012). Wbn-World Boxing News: 12 rounds with Chris "The Flash" Evangelou Archived 23 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved 8 April 2012
  14. ↑ "World Boxing News - Chris Evangelou loses Frank Warren debut, drops third fight in a row". Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  15. ↑ Boxingprospects.tv | Costakis Evangelou Interview
  16. ↑ Boxrec | Andreas Evangelou professional record
  17. ↑ Blaine Henry (10 April 2020). "Chris Evangelou: Boxer Turned Actor". Fight-Library.com.
  18. ↑ Blaine Henry (10 April 2020). "Chris Evangelou: Boxer Turned Actor". Fight-Library.com.
  19. ↑ Blaine Henry (10 April 2020). "Chris Evangelou: Boxer Turned Actor". Fight-Library.com.
  20. ↑ Blaine Henry (10 April 2020). "Chris Evangelou: Boxer Turned Actor". Fight-Library.com.
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