Dennis Hobson is the boxing promoter who is bringing a world title eliminator to the Hotel de France on Valentine’s Day
When and where did you pass your test and how many times did you take it?
I turned 17 in the July and passed my test first time nine weeks later. I had a bit of driving experience. My family had a farm from which we ran a haulage business and I drove an old Morris Minor van around it when I was 15 or 16. That bit of experience helped when I was finally old enough to get out on the road.
First car?
I bought a Hillman Hunter for £80 or £90 a couple of weeks after passing my test. I had a few readies saved up, but it was a big, cheap car and I quickly realised it was doing nothing for my street cred. I traded it in for an Austin 1300 which was sporty compared to the Hunter, although it was hand-painted. It lasted a year or two then I moved on to something else.
Favourite car?
Up to now it would have to be a car I bought in Jersey and I still have – a BMW 535. I also own a Mercedes ML420. I got the BMW from Jacksons and took it to England when I signed Ricky Hatton. I did a lot of running around between London, Sheffield and Manchester with my business partner and the car has never let me down. That’s my favourite.
Worst car?
When I was 18 I was doing a bit of labouring and racing greyhounds. I bought a hand-painted black Ford Escort for £30. It had a great engine but the rest was falling apart. I remember driving up the motorway and the gearstick would come away in my hand. I would have to hold it back in to change gear. I have some very fond memories from around that time, but that was probably my worst car.
Current car?
I still have the 535 and a Mercedes ML430 that I am not so fond of. It’s a nice car but I have more fun in the BMW. I also had a lucky escape in it last year. I and Richard Poxon, who trains some of my fighters and helps puts the shows together, had taken some kids up for a fight in Middlesbrough. I drove up in the 535 but at the event I had a whisky or two and Richie was driving me back. Now I am not a great believer in fate or anything like that, but for some reason, rather than putting my seat back and getting my head down for a couple of hours as I sometimes do, I was sitting up. Richie was doing 70 mph in the middle lane of the A1 around 10.30 pm and there was hardly any traffic. Looking through the windscreen I could just make out a darker shadow against the black background. Richie didn’t see it and I just shouted ‘Left lane!’. He did it straight away and we passed a car that had seconds earlier hit the bank, rolled over and ended up in the middle lane. Richie’s reaction was amazing, but the car was fantastic, handling so well in a violent manoeuvre. We went back, stopped the traffic and cut the chap free from his car before he was taken to hospital. It was a miraculous escape.
Dream car?
There are so many great cars around these days, even Lada have stepped up to the plate. I have always liked Bentleys and Rolls-Royces. I am not too bothered about out and out sports cars like Ferraris or Porsches, but if money was no object it would be something sporty yet practical, like the 535. I suppose the dream car would be a sporty Bentley. I love the interior as well, especially the smell of the leather.
Favourite drive?
I enjoy driving around Jersey but a couple of summers ago I drove down to La Baule and Deauville. The pace of life doesn’t seem so hectic and the roads are all decent and there is plenty of lovely countryside to enjoy.
Motor sport interests and hero?
To be honest I like the British to win at anything, so a favourite memory is Lewis Hamilton in that final Grand Prix in Brazil when it looked like he had blown it because of the tyre choice and the weather changing. There were so many different elements for him to overcome and it looked like he had made the wrong decision and then the other fellow came unstuck on the final lap and Lewis was able to pass him. Massa thought he had won when he took the flag only for the reality to hit him a few seconds later. I have never experienced such drama. I have been to the Monte Carlo Grand Prix before, which I enjoyed, and I have put on a few boxing shows down there, but it didn’t compare to Lewis’s fantastic victory. He really has the world at his feet, and at such a young age.
Driving ambitions?
I would like to drive across America and would love to go to Australia. I have driven in the US a few times but always with somewhere to go and within a certain timeframe. I have my finger in so many pies I am always tied to a schedule. It would be great to have a nice car and cruise for a while. I love Vegas, but I’m usually on a mission when I go there. To travel to New Orleans at a leisurely pace, not mattering what day I arrived, would be a dream, but it is unlikely to happen for a few years yet.
Do you think you are a good driver?
I think so – I suppose we all do. The only thing is I am always in a rush to get to some meeting or another when I am in the UK. When I drive in Jersey the attitude is a lot more laid-back, which calms me down when I drive. When I take a break in Tenerife and it is a bit more mañana and someone pulls out in front of you after two or three days I think, ‘So what?’, but in the UK when everyone is in a hurry to get somewhere and they want to get in front it is a bit more aggressive and I fall into that. I am always in a hurry.
What do you always carry with you on long journeys?
Juice, sparking water, mobile (my right arm) and a few readies in my pocket in case I see anything I want to buy.
Who would be your preferred passenger on a long journey?
Jack Nicholson, as the character he played in Anger Management. If I got a bit angry he could calm me down and he’d be the best company. And he can still pull ’em at 71. You could learn a thing or two from him still!
What makes you angry when you are driving?
Just incompetence, really. There are a lot of bad drivers on the road who don’t know what they are doing. And bad manners – if you let someone out and they don’t acknowledge you afterwards. If I pulled out a bit late I would apologise.
Have you ever been involved in a crash?
Minor scrapes, and one skid when there was ice on the road and I hit the back of a bus at a roundabout a few years back.
What do you listen to when you are driving?
All kinds of music. I like a bit of swing or some modern stuff. My daughter puts compilations together for me and my mum keeps trying to get me to listen to a bit of classical – it can be soothing but I’m not quite there yet. I do listen to the radio and if they play something that would be good for getting the crowd whipped up before a fight I will make a note of it. You can lose yourself and resolve issues and problems by just driving with a bit of music on. As long as you are not stuck in a jam and you are on a decent stretch of road, you can put the world to rights.
How could Jersey’s roads be improved?
It is difficult, being a small Island. Some roads could be a little wider and I would have loved see the railway that ran from St Helier to Corbière. A tram or something linking town with the west, and another to Gorey, would be great, but that’s too expensive these days. Jersey’s quaint little lanes are what makes it. People are generally courteous, which is what helps us get through. There is more traffic on the roads than ever, but we are stuck with it.
Do you clean your car, and if so, how often?
I have been known to, but don’t have the time. I usually put it through the car wash every couple of weeks.
• Picture: Dennis Hobson with his dream car – a sporty Bentley. Picture by Rob Currie (00614278)
