Farooq out to make a name for himself in London title bid
KASH FAROOQ doesn’t subscribe to Bobby Williamson’s old maxim that “if you want entertainment go to the cinema”.
The Glasgow boxer steps back into the ring this weekend for his second appearance since signing a promotional deal with
Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom organisation.
Defeating Alexander Espinoza at the Copperbox Arena in London will earn the 25-year-old the
WBC International Silver bantamweight title and continue his momentum after the bump on the road that was his contentious 2019 defeat to Lee McGregor.
Farooq, though, wants to win in style. His all-action performance in his previous bout against Angel Aviles drew purrs of admiration from many boxing fans discovering him for the first time.
And with this bout also set to be broadcast live on Sky Sports, the former British and Commonwealth champion knows that putting on a show is almost as important than getting the win.
Espinoza’s 20-2-2 record looks decent enough but he has fought only once outside his native Nicaragua and that in Russia.
Farooq ought to deal with that threat comfortably and hopefully bolster his burgeoning reputation in the meantime.
“I’ve had a great camp with a lot of good sparring and I put a lot of hard work in over the winter,” says the St Andrew’s Sporting Club fighter.
“I’m excited for the chance to fight for this title but it’s about winning and moving forward.
“The win is the first thing but I want to steal the show. I want to get people talking about Kash Farooq on the night and mentioning me for future fights.
“There was a bit of a buzz
after my last one on Sky. I got some really nice comments after beating Angel Aviles and I want to put in another performance like that and get people talking.
“You have to win but you want to look good doing it. I’ve had a haircut and a shave so I look about 10 years younger – I’ll be getting ID’d next!”
Farooq knows he is one of the few fortunate Scottish boxers to have been able to keep fighting behind closed doors in lockdown.
He hopes to compete at least twice more before the end of the year and hopes his third fight of 2021 could well be in front of fans at Glasgow’s Hydro – with a rematch with the new European champion McGregor a topic that never goes away.
“I don’t want to say last year was a complete waste of a year because of the pandemic as I was still lucky to get one fight in towards the end,” he adds.
“I was fortunate just to get that. But I really want to be busy this year with three or four fights.
“I want to make up for the time I missed out on last year. If I can win this one then I want to stay ready and busy to go out again whenever I can.
“What happens next will depend on what happens with the virus. But the plan has always been to fight again in Glasgow on a big card.
“We want to have big nights at the Hydro or at a stadium somewhere but only when fans are allowed back in.
“McGregor got his European title so if there was a chance of us fighting again in front of fans then I’m sure that’s something Eddie and my manager Iain Wilson would look at.”
Farooq has never shied away from the fact that his primary motivation is to earn enough to provide a comfortable living for him and his family.
But he knows that to achieve that goal he probably needs to eventually make it to world title contention.
“I’ve dedicated myself to boxing over the last eight to 10 years to get to where I am just now,” he adds.
“It’s a short career. You never know when the lights are going to switch off for me and boxing. I’m 25 now and turned professional at the age of 19.
“The last six years have flown by and you don’t know what will happen next. My body might slow down and I can’t keep up the training and all the things I do to get fit and stay in shape.
“This isn’t a ticket to retirement at 65. You don’t even see many boxers in their mid-30s or 40. So I just want to dedicate myself for as long as I can.
“I want to achieve what I can in the next five to 10 years and then get out. I want to become financially secure from boxing and that’s my main focus.
“To make the money, you need to be successful and that means fighting at world level. At lower levels it’s hard work to earn. So it’s about working my way up to see how far I can go.”
I want to get people talking about Kash Farooq and mentioning me for future fights