David Starie

David Starie, known as “Jedi”, is an English former professional boxer who campaigned at super middleweight and later at light heavyweight. Born on 11 June 1974 in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, and fighting out of Pakenham, he boxed from an orthodox stance, standing 6ft with a 76-inch reach, a tall frame for the weight that helped him work behind a long jab and keep opponents at the end of his shots. Starie retired in 2003 with a record of 35 fights, 31 wins, 4 losses and no draws, with 24 wins by knockout.

Starie turned professional on 24 September 1994 and completed his apprenticeship the old way, moving through four, six, and eight rounds as he learned to control pace and distance. The early run was heavy on stoppages, and it suited him. He was physically strong, direct with his right hand, and he could close the show when a man’s legs softened. By the time the titles appeared, he looked like a fighter who understood his own dimensions, keep it long when you can, step in hard when you must.

His first peak came in 1997 when he stopped Sam Storey in the seventh round at York Hall to win the British super middleweight title. It was a proper, gruelling statement, made more significant by the fact that Storey was a recognised former world title challenger, tough and seasoned. The reign did not last long. Starie was stopped in six rounds by Dean Francis at Wembley Arena three months later, but the setback did not send him backwards for long. In March 1998, he outpointed future IBF world light-heavyweight champion Clinton Woods to win the Commonwealth super middleweight title, and later that year, he regained the British belt by knocking out Ali Forbes in the eleventh round, a late finish that spoke to fitness and stubbornness as much as power.

Those domestic and Commonwealth achievements carried him to world level. In January 2000, he challenged Joe Calzaghe for the WBO super middleweight title at the MEN Arena in Manchester and lost a twelve-round unanimous decision, beaten by a faster, busier champion who did not let Starie set his feet often enough. Starie stayed in the title mix afterwards, defending British honours, travelling when the money and the chance made sense, and continuing to do what he always did, keep the fight honest and keep working.

The end came in 2003, first with a points defeat to Andre Thysse in South Africa that cost him the Commonwealth title, then with a final world title attempt on 14 June 2003 in Magdeburg against Sven Ottke for the WBA and IBF super middleweight championships. Starie lost a unanimous decision on scores of 116 to 113, 116 to 112 and 115 to 113, and that proved to be his last bout. He announced his retirement later that summer, leaving behind the record of a two-time British champion, a Commonwealth champion, and a challenger at the highest level who was good enough to get himself into the ring with world champions and sturdy enough to go the full distance with them. Away from boxing, he has also been noted as working as a firefighter, a straight continuation of the same practical discipline that carried him through long nights in the ring.