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Indian Olympic bronze medal winnning boxer Vijender Singh’s first professional bout on the 10th of October will be against 26-year-old British fighter Sonny Whiting, Times Of India reports. The Kentish fighter has a professional record of 2-1, with one victory coming via knockout.
Vijender does not expect his much-awaited professional boxing debut to be a cakewalk. He had the following to say about the fight, “I know that my opponent Sonny Whiting will not be an easy first fight. He has already had three fights so he'll be prepared and I hear that he wants to defeat me in my first pro fight. He won't beat me, I'm so focused and determined on what I have to do.”
Whiting who is equally hard-nosed and has his own ideas of how the fight will play out, stated, “I don't care who is in front of me on the night, they're going to get beat, plain and simple. I hear that Singh is a massive superstar in India, well I'll be looking to send a brutal message back to his home when I beat him. He's entering the world of the professionals now and it's going to be hard for him, he might of done plenty in the amateurs but that will count for nothing now. I'll make sure I give him a good welcome.”
Vijender, who is arguably India’s most successful amateur boxer, has relocated to Manchester to train under famed boxing trainer Lee Beard, and is in the company of fellow fighters Jack Catterall, Adrian Gonzalez and Jimmy Kelly.
The level of amateur success he has tasted has not left him complacent of the level of preparation a professional career will take, as he stated, “ It is like I'm starting my boxing career all over again. Even though I accomplished so much as an amateur boxer, to begin my professional career I've had to start all over again with my training to prepare for my pro debut and it has been a very exciting time.”
The 2014 Commonwealth Games silver medallist speaking about his preparation, added, “There has been a lot of changes and a lot of things we have been working on like the technical aspect of boxing, changing my diet and training schedule, the physical and mental preparation, it has all been important and I believe that I'm ready to fight.”
Vijender Singh’s fight will feature on a star-studded card that has two title clashes – Terry Flanagan (C) vs Diego Magdaleno for the WBO Lightweight title and Liam Smith vs John Thompson for the WBO Super-Welterweight Championship.
