Clint seeks early night
Geelong champ hopes to set up hometown title bout
GEELONG boxing champion Clint Alderton has declared he will hunt a rapid knockout blow when he meets Queenslander Alex Brunetta for the WBF Asia Pacific light heavyweight title.
Alderton said he was eager to impose his will on Brunetta in the early rounds of the Quest for Glory main event at South Barwon Civic Centre, believing he could score a KO.
“I’m confident I can do it,” he said before last night’s weigh-in.
“The fitness is there if it goes 10 rounds and I’m happy to take the fight wherever it needs to go. But I’m fairly confident I can get in there and push him around a little bit.
“I’m a lot stronger, so I hope to get the job done nice and early.”
Brunetta has a 2-3 professional record, while Alderton boasts a 7-2-1 record and is coming off a controversial draw to Jonathan Binet at Melbourne Pavilion in April.
Alderton’s team, led by head trainer Tony Salta, has done homework on Brunetta, who won his last fight against Dylan Murphy in March.
“Tony knows pretty much everything there is to know about him,” Alderton said.
“He’s a southpaw, and sometimes that can be a factor, but I’ve had heaps of rounds with big Kyle Webb and he’s a southpaw.
“I’m sure if I can handle Kyle Webb for eight or 10 rounds, I can definitely handle this fella.
“I’m not predicting anything, but I’ll be hunting hard. If the opportunity presents, it won’t be a pretty night for him.”
In the twilight of his career, Alderton predicts he will fight just “a few” more times before hanging up the gloves.
But the 34-year-old is determined to claim some silverware in the meantime.
“At the end of the year, we’re looking at bringing the Australia title to Geelong or maybe the WBF world title to finish off,” he said.
“At the moment the Aussie title is vacant and I’m not sure who holds the WBF world title, but we’ll get through Saturday night and then we’ll go into discussions on what’s next.”
Alderton is one of eight Geelong fighters on the eightbout Old Skool Promotions’ card, with Webb, Cain Brun- ton, Che St John, Michael Sacco, Jack Light, Greg Bell and Brandon Lee Rocco also competing.
“This is something I’ve fought about for a long time,” he said. “I’ve always wanted to fight with a majority of people from my gym, and even the people who aren’t from my gym are good friends, so it’s really a dream come true.
“It’s my first time fighting pro in my home town.
“I’m getting to the end of my career, so to have one or two fights in Geelong would be awesome.”