Rising prospect Jack Wyn Roberts (1-0) is eager to capitalise on his successful professional debut when he steps back into the ring at the Hangar Venue this Friday night, May 23.
Roberts is a light-heavyweight from Rocester, Staffordshire, by way of Abergele, Wales, and will face veteran Harry Matthews (17-95-7, 2 KOs) on the BCB Promotions' "The Launch" card.
At 37 with over 580 rounds as experience, Matthews will be a very capable opponent for Roberts in just his second pro contest. "The Pocklington Rocket" from York has clocked up 119 fights in his 17-years as a pro and has fought for English and Central Area titles.
"I just can’t wait to build on the first fight," enthused Roberts. "I know what to expect now, having gone through my debut, and it’s at the same place, so it will all feel a lot more familiar this time. I hope that I will be able to let my hands go a bit more, and I know my opponent this time is more likely to stand and trade a bit."
The 28-year-old impressed in his first professional outing in March, securing a clean sweep of the rounds against the experienced Edgars Sneidze. Under the guidance of former Midlands Area champion Andy Keates, Roberts is focused on absorbing as much knowledge as possible and has benefited from valuable sparring opportunities.
"After the fight I thought I had boxed well; you could see times when I had that nervous energy, jumping in when throwing combinations, and it’s something me and Andy spoke about. His knowledge that I have been able to take in the last two years has been so valuable," Roberts explained. "We have gotten in some really good sparring with Kyle Davies in Stoke, working on learning the pro-style and sitting down on my shots. I was fortunate enough to go up to Peter Fury’s gym and get work with James Dean Fury. Like his relatives, he has that bamboozling Fury style, and I really enjoyed those spars and being around Peter."
Roberts highlighted the shift in routine as a significant adjustment from his amateur days. "The biggest change from the amateurs is getting into a new routine. When I was an amateur, you could be boxing every other week on short notice, and now you have these longer gaps, so you have to get the strength and conditioning right and build in rest days. For someone like me, I need that routine. I work full time and train around that, and my weight is good; it's just about maintaining it now through fight week."
The Wolverhampton event boasts a stacked lineup, including the professional debuts of Callum Seedhouse and Jimmy Harty, as well as appearances from unbeaten female fighters Omarah Taylor and Paige Goodyear, and the experienced Connor Parker completes the card.
Limited tickets for "The Launch" are still available, priced at £45 for general admission and £80 for VIP, and can be purchased by emailing [email protected].