TARTAN SPECIAL
Homegrown stars McGregor and Farooq put reputations on the line in Scottish superfight
IT’S the biggest unification fight between two Scots in over a decade, with Lee McGregor and Kash Farooq putting their unbeaten records on the line tomorrow night at the Emirates Arena.
The Scottish bantamweight duo will also slug it out for their respective Commonwealth and British titles in a homegrown affair surrounded by hype not seen on these shores since Alex Arthur took on Ricky Burns back in 2006.
And McGregor, for one, is hoping to take inspiration from his close friend and former stablemate Josh Taylor’s historic victory over Regis Prograis last month.
Taylor now holds the WBC, WBA and IBF titles, the Ring Magazine belt and World Boxing Super Series Ali Trophy after his majority decision win at the O2 Arena in London.
The two Scots remain close, despite McGregor no longer being part of the Barry McGuigan-run stable where Taylor still resides.
‘I have been in touch with Josh every day since his fight,’ said the 22-year-old. ‘He’s gutted he can’t come on Saturday as he’s away on holiday, but we’ll get a wellearned catch-up after Saturday. I’ll be making sure we celebrate two victories.’
Tips on fighting on the big stage which Taylor knows all too well, however, have not been exchanged.
McGregor added: ‘I know how to deal with them (big fights) as I’ve been involved in some big nights already.
‘Obviously, this is a bit bigger but I’m calm, relaxed and in a really good place just now, so roll on Saturday.’
For McGregor, the importance of winning the fight stretches further than boxing accolades. Indeed, he is determined to provide a better life for his daughter Maddison-Blue, who turns one this week.
‘It’s her first birthday (this week). Everything I do now is for my little girl. It’s to make sure she has a good life and she’s a happy girl,’ he said.
‘Saturday is no different. It’s for her and my family. I have a family to provide for now and that’s my motivation.
‘It’s changed my outlook. I was a young boy two years ago making my pro debut and looking good.
‘Everyone was talking about me. I was loving it and I was soaking up the attention and enjoying it.
‘Now I’ve got a daughter, I’ve got a responsibility lying on my shoulders.
‘In a way, it’s an extra pressure, you could say that. But I take each fight as it comes and I just put it all into my training. I firmly believe I’ll win this fight and move on to bigger and better things and life seems to be getting better and better.
‘It’s my seventh fight and my fourth title fight. This is what I want. The amount of attention it’s creating is so encouraging. I’m privileged to be a part of it.
‘It doesn’t stop here. I must make sure I win the fight on Saturday and my life changes after that.’
The allure of adding a British title strap to his current Commonwealth belt further excites the Edinburghborn fighter.
It’s something McGregor dreamt of as a child, along with his father. ‘It’s something I always wanted to win (the British title) as a young kid, as was the Commonwealth,’ he continued.
‘It wasn’t really the Commonwealth title I used to watch back then. The British title was so prestigious.
‘Me and my dad would sit in the house when I was younger and my dad would say: “I’d love you to win that belt, son”.
‘I’m two days away from doing it, so it would mean everything.’
The man standing in his way on Saturday night, Farooq, has more experience with 13 fights under his belt.
Despite the gap in professional experience, McGregor believes he has previously fought opponents of a higher calibre than Farooq.
He said: ‘I would say so (fought opponents of a higher calibre). I think my amateur background evens it up too because Kash never went away to world or European championships and beat these guys. ‘I think that’s why so many people are intrigued for this fight and the first bell to go because they genuinely don’t know what’s going to happen and that’s why the public are split 50-50 on this fight. ‘These are the kind of fights you want to be involved in as a fighter and I don’t understand fighters that don’t want to be involved in these kind of nights and, believe me, there are boxers out there who would rather not do it.’ Why he’s taking his fourth title fight in just his first seven professional bouts is obvious — he’s desperate to get to the top fast. Very fast.
‘I have proved I am willing to fight anybody and I mean that. Fighters say that and they don’t back it up,’ he said.
‘I fought for the Commonwealth title in my fifth fight, so there’s not many who do that.
‘I am now fighting for the British and Commonwealth titles in Scotland’s biggest fight in more than a decade in my eighth fight.
‘I’m winning, progressing and have a good team around me. I’m 22, so there’s plenty of time but I want to get to the top of this game as quickly as I can and I am on the right track.’
Aside from wanting to maintain his unbeaten record, McGregor is hoping to carry on the dominance of Scottish fighters hailing from the east being victorious over their counterparts in the west.
He added: ‘The east are winning all these battles. Josh is doing his own thing but going back to Ken Buchanan and Jim Watt, Ken Buchanan was victorious.
‘Alex Arthur v Ricky Burns, Alex Arthur won, so I’m going to keep that run of Edinburgh wins going.’