DEBUT DELIGHT

Darren beats his nerves and ring rust to record a great victory

Super middleweight boxer Darren Tarr held his nerve to seal a momentous win on his professional debut.

The 27-year-old from Houston stepped into the ring on Thursday night as part of promoter St Andrew’s Sporting Club’s event at the Radisson Blue Hotel in Glasgow.

And while he admits he took more punches than he would have liked, he was delighted to get his first win under his belt.

“Even though sparring had gone brilliantly my last fight was in March so there was definitely some ring rust in there,” he said.

“I was very nervous because it was all so new and that translated into the fight.

“I was up against a guy from London called Gianni Antoh, who’s had about ten professional fights already so was more experienced than me.

“He normally boxes a weight above me as well so was about ten pounds heavier.

“I was giving away a lot of weight so it was a hard win but a good one to get under my belt.”

After three fairly even rounds, Tarr was caught in the fourth and had to steady himself to continue, but he kept his composure to win on points.

Now he is already looking towards his next fight as he hopes to build some momentum in his fledgling pro career.

He said: “The first three rounds I kept him at distance.

“I was definitely tidier and was picking off some nice punches coming around the side.

“He caught me once in the fourth. Nothing major but it knocked me off my stride and I had to compose myself.

“It’s a good start but that’s all it is. I’m looking back at the negatives to work on already.

“I’ll hopefully get another fight in by the end of the year. I want to stay busy and build on this now I’m up and running.”

Darren was able to turn to his brother Nathan for support, as he doubles up as his coach who was also making his debut at professional level.

Nathan said: “It was a great night and I’m so pleased for him to get his first win.

“It was both of our first pro fights as I’d never coached a professional before, which makes it even sweeter.

“He was very composed and stuck to the game plan. He chased the fight a wee bit towards the end but that was just nerves.

“Everything was new for him and me and he dealt with it all brilliantly.”

 Darren is currently looking for local sponsors to help him meet the costs of becoming a professional athlete.

If you can help, email him on dtarr92@gmail. com