60-SECOND INTERVIEW
Paul Wheeler talks to a go-karting champion
‘SUGAR RAY ROBINSON HAD SKILLS. HE WAS AN ALLROUND PERFECT BOXER’ Oli Edwards
When and why you started boxing:
I started boxing at the age of 17 because I was being bullied severely at school in Chatham.
Favourite all-time fighter:
Sugar Ray Robinson – skills! He was an all-round perfect boxer.
Best fight you’ve seen:
Nigel Benn-gerald Mcclellan [a 10th-round knockout victory for Benn in February 1995, in which Mcclellan tragically suffered brain damage]. It was a brutal fight from start to finish. Benn’s heart was massive.
Personal career highlight:
My best achievement so far is currently being undefeated as a pro at 6-0.
Toughest opponent:
Edgars Sniedze [w pts 4 – March 2016], because of his long reach and naughty uppercuts!
Best and worst attributes as a boxer:
I need to loosen up a bit, but my body-punching is coming along nicely.
Training tip:
Listen to your coaches and train
hard.
Favourite meal/restaurant:
Turtle Bay – the Caribbean restaurant in Brixton. Or Creams Cafe in Chatham, as I’ve got a massive sweet tooth!
Best friends in boxing: My coaches, Charlie Rumbol Jnr and Simon Gildea. We have unreal banter in the gym, which makes training kind of enjoyable.
Other sportsman you would like to be:
Lewis Hamilton, because I always win on the go-karts!
Last film/tv show you saw:
Armageddon. I love that film.
Who would play you in a film of your life:
I’d pick Michael Jai White to play me.
Have you ever been starstruck:
Yes, by Anthony Joshua.
Last time you cried:
When my coach Charlie hit me around the head with a pad in training!
Best advice received:
Keep your hands up (or the pad will hit you!)
Worst rumour about yourself:
That I’m scared of another boxer. It just isn’t true.
Something not many people know about you:
I’m a very good DJ. I play garage and R&B music.
‘I NEED TO LOOSEN UP A BIT, BUT MY BODY-PUNCHING IS COMING ALONG NICELY’
‘I’M A VERY GOOD DJ. I PLAY GARAGE AND R&B MUSIC’