Baggie chases big time

PAGES OF FANTASTIC WEST BROM FAN TOMMY HAS STARS IN HIS EYES

TOMMY LANGFORD looks to graduate to worldclass level in boxing tonight – but it was university that helped him get an education in the sport.

The unbeaten Midlands-based middleweight takes on Georgian puncher Avtandil Khurtsidze for the interim WBO middleweight title in Leicester tonight

Langford, 27, began boxing as a kid in Bideford, Devon, before his parents told him to go to university.

Footwork

And he moved to Birmingham after a sparring session with former world amateur champion Frankie Gavin made him believe the Midlands was the place to be.

“I was winning titles and then I got called up the England team as a teenager,” said Langford.

“When I was training with them, the likes of James DeGale, Jamie Cox and Frankie Gavin were around.

“I got to do some rounds with Frankie, it was a couple of years before his worlds win, but his footwork was unbelievable and I couldn’t get near him. I thought I had to move away if I was going to push on with my boxing career.

“I got the contact details off Frankie for Tom Chaney at Hall Green Boxing Club in Birmingham, where he was, and I stayed in touch.

“My parents wanted me to pursue my education. They said the best thing was to get into university because I wouldn’t have to worry about a job.

“I got into the University of Birmingham and got my degree in Sports Science. But the biggest lesson was in the boxing gym.”

Langford added amateur titles and England appearances, shunning the student lifestyle for hard graft.

Then in 2012, when he felt his ‘face didn’t fit’ after GB Boxing killed off his Olympic dream, he turned professional.

The West Brom fan has risen steadily since and is now on the cusp of the world scene. Baggies midfielder James McClean trained with Langford this week.

Victory tonight could set up a summer showdown with WBO champion Billy Joe Saunders, if the Brit fails to land a unification clash with IBF, WBA and WBC champion Gennady Golovkin.

“He has to face me if he doesn’t get the Golovkin fight,” Langford said. “That is what I want.

“It will be a big one... a big summer showdown. This fight gives me the right to start talking about the likes of Saunders and Golovkin.

“It’s a game-changer. It moves me from the domestic patch to the world stage.”