60-SECOND INTERVIEW
Paul Wheeler talks to a second generation pro
‘I REMEMBER THE WHOLE ARENA FALLING SILENT WHEN GROVES PUT FROCH DOWN IN THE FIRST ROUND’ James Beech Jnr
When and why you started boxing:
I started boxing when I was about five or six. I used to go to a session for under-10s opposite Wednesbury Boxing Club while my dad [ Jimmy Beech] was training for his pro fights. It was one way of getting rid of me and allowing him to train properly!
Favourite all-time fighter:
Ricky Hatton was so exciting. He was a proper council estate lad like most of us boxers, but he managed to make it to the top.
Best fight you’ve seen:
Carl Froch vs George Groves I in Manchester. I remember the whole arena just falling silent when Groves put Froch down in the first round.
Personal career highlight:
Making my pro debut was something I’d dreamed of for a long time.
Toughest opponent:
Elvis Guillen [w pts 6 – November 2017] was as hard as nails when I fought him. I got cut in the third round, and at times I felt like I was hurting my hands more than I was hurting him!
Best and worst attributes as a boxer:
My strengths are that I’m always in the gym, I can box as well as mix it up, and I’d literally fight anybody and take it to them. My weakness is that I sometimes get carried away with wanting to rush and push on to bigger things, when I need to realise it’ll all come in its own time.
Training tip:
Live the life, stay dedicated and leave everything in the gym. Also, never get in the ring if you’re not 100 per cent.
‘ALLOW YOURSELF TO HAVE A LITTLE BLOWOUT EVERY NOW AND THEN’
Favourite meal/restaurant:
Definitely butterfly chicken from Nando’s.
Best friends in boxing:
My trainer, Peter Hickenbottom. I’m also good friends with a lot of the local lads, including [pros] Dan Breeze, Shaun Cooper, Luke Paddock, [amateurs] Oli Cassidy and Liam Etheridge.
Other sportsman you would like to be:
Steven Gerrard.
Last film/tv show you saw:
Ocean’s Thirteen.
Who would play you in a film of your life:
Adam Sandler.
Have you ever been starstruck:
Every time I see Ricky Hatton, even though I’ve seen him loads of times!
Best advice received:
Stay dedicated to the sport but allow yourself to have a little blowout every now and then. You only get one career, so make it count. Also, listen to what every coach says to you and use their tips to create a style that suits you best.