Vanzie took on the very best of a thriving domestic scene and beat them. He fell out of love with the sport because Frank Warren left him on the shelf. It's very easy to just look at boxrec and say "oh I ain't heard of 'im, he suuucks", which is unfair. It's a different circuit, so of course you're not going to hear of alot of them. Steve Murray was one of Warrens unbeaten hopes, strong guy, unbeaten, big puncher, big fan base. Vanzie was put in there, in Murrays hometown, to get beat. Vanzie got off the deck twice to win a fight of the year and Murray was never the same again. Of course if you just look at boxrec you'll see Murrays name and it'll mean nothing to you, doesn't tell the whole story. He was also the first guy to beat Stephen Smith who's only other loss was to Ricky Hatton, I believe, might be wrong. Vanzie also schooled Graham Earl twice and lost two of the worst decisions I've ever seen in a boxing ring, I guess Earl was more marketable. Earl went on to knock down Michael Katsidis in a fight which won fight of the year on these shores. He had more success against Katsidis than he did against Vanzie, of course BoxRec won't tell you that. I'm of the opinion Vanzie would have won a world title if Warren had taken a chance with him and not left him out to dry. This is because I actually saw him fight and could see the talent he had, not because I simply glanced over his record. He wasn't getting the money his performances deserved, or the fights, and couldn't sustain a living without taking other jobs on the side. A fully dedicated Bobby Vanzie was one hell of a fighter.
Vanzie was as good as guys like Robbie Peden if not better. I didn't think he would beat Murray but he did.