Sunday Mirror

CUNNING REVENGE FUELS ME

- BY TOM HOPKINSON

But the middleweig­ht admits there will be a tinge of jealousy, because he would also desperatel­y love to be taking part in world- title fights at the national stadium.

Like heavyweigh­t Joshua, Ogogo was an Olympic medallist at London 2012, where he won middleweig­ht bronze, and, again like Joshua, he turned profession­al in the months that followed.

Unlike Joshua, however, Ogogo’s career has been plagued by injury: first, an Achilles problem which required surgery, then a shoulder and then, more troublingl­y, a fractured eye socket, which meant he could be registered blind.

Incredibly, Ogogo was a point up against Craig Cunningham last October in the 12th fight of his career when his team pulled him out in round eight.

But he had been struggling with double vision throughout the contest and it transpired he had suffered multiple fractures before he even climbed into the ring that night.

Specialist­s told the former Strictly Come Dancing star he would never fight again.

But his desire to win a world title meant he refused to give up and he hopes to be back out by autumn at the latest, with a third and final operation – “a tweak” – expected sometime next month. ANTHONY OGOGO wants to avenge his defeat by Craig Cunningham when he returns to the ring later this year. The 28-year-old — pulled out of their clash with double vision caused by an eye-socket fracture — was told by doctors not to fight again, but as he continues his Ogogo, 28, (right) said: “The last six months have been the worst of my life, I’ve been in a really, really dark place.

“All I’ve wanted is to become a world champion, to fulfil my potential and live my dream.

“And, for some reason, I have never had the chance to do that, never had a fair crack of the whip.

“At the Olympics, the biggest platform I thought I ever wanted, it was ruined for me because my mum was ill and the highlight of my pro career is my debut, which is quite sad. “My dream is a big fight at Wembley and seeing Anthony announce that fight and watching the build-up, that’s exactly what has kept me going over the past few months. When Anthony joined the GB squad, I sort of took rehabilita­tion he is intent on revenge against Cunningham.

Ogogo said: “If I’m fit I will knock him out in three rounds.

“I was walking out of the ring and I knew something severe was going on. His fans were shouting, swearing at me, saying I was done.

“That was hard, because I went into the fight as an Olympic medallist and, with everything I him under my wing, I was the establishe­d fighter in the squad and he was the new kid.

“We were in France and I remember walking to the shops with him, talking to him. For someone who was below me, if you like, to do what he has done, I’m really, really proud of him.

“But that’s what is pushing me to come back.

“I had world-renowned experts telling me it was time to call it a day, telling me it was untreatabl­e, but I refused to admit that.

“The things I have been through out of the boxing ring shows my toughness and now I want people to see how tough I can be in the ring.

“I could lead a comfortabl­e, nice lifestyle, but I don’t want that.

“I want to lead a hard, tough, brutal lifestyle – because I want to become world champion.” have put myself through to represent my country, to then get fellow countrymen slagging me off, I thought, ‘I’ll remember that and if I ever fight him again – it will fuel me’. And it did hurt.

“But Lennox Lewis, one of my favourite fighters, lost two fights in his career and he set them both straight, knocked them both out.

“That’s what I want to do.”

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 ??  ?? HURTFUL MOMENT: Ogogo loss to Cunningham
HURTFUL MOMENT: Ogogo loss to Cunningham

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