Jaipur: Indian boxing’s poster boy Vijender Singh has his eyes trained on the Commonwealth and World Championship title after his 10th straight win on the professional circuit. The 32-year-old floored West African Boxing Union Middleweight champion Ernest Amuzu with a unanimous verdict here on Saturday to retain his WBO Oriental and Asia Pacific Super middleweight titles.
The Commonwealth Super Middleweight title is currently held by Great Britain’s Luke Blackledge, a talented 27-year-old with 23 wins, including eight knockouts, from 30 fights. Vijender was delighted to sign off the year on a high. “Happy to end this year on a winning note. Now I will look forward to play at least two titles next year — Commonwealth and Worlds title. I would like to thank the people of Jaipur for making this show a big success and thanks to all my fans across India for their support,” Vijender said after his bout at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.
He added, “I am really happy on winning this fight. I know he was a tough fighter and that is why the fight continued till 10 rounds, but yes, I was sticking to the strategy planned by my coaches, and that helped me in winning this fight.” The Olympics and world championship bronze medallist said there were a few anxious moments during the 10-round bout, praising his Ghanian opponent. “He is a tough guy, I kept looking for an opportunity to knock him down but somehow he survived. I have to admit that he is a durable boxer who can prolong a fight. After the initial rounds I realised this was going to be long battle.”
He refuted opinions that the African was not a worthy opponent considering his low ranking. “I know he is quite low in ranking as compared to me. But one blow can decide the fight. He posed a challenge in the first two rounds and when I started dominating all of a sudden I sustained a deep cut on my forehead and for a moment it appeared that all was finished. “I was shaken but fortunately there came a break, giving me the time to recoup again.”
