Vijender Singh announced his arrival on the pro circuit with a technical knockout win over Sonny Whiting. Follow highlights here (All Times in IST).
An amateur till last year, Vijender's foray into the professional world is typical of a robust Haryana lad who loves to throw challenges to the world. Be it boxing or drugs controversies or Bollywood films, Vijender has always been in the news. A winning start in Manchester will make him a hero.
But professional boxing is gruesome. There is no headgear, sees relentless bloody battles and there are no standing counts like amateur boxing. Vijender has worked hard for over a month under coach Lee Beard and is a confident man. So is Whiting.
In the run-up to Saturday night's bout, the boxers traded verbal punches, Muhammad Ali style.
"I have heard lots of comments about my opponent Sonny Whiting but will definitely give him reply through my punches. It's time to implement new techniques and hard work I have done in the past one month here in Manchester," said Vijender.
Whiting shot back saying: "I eagerly waiting to take on Vijender. I don't care if Vijender is a superstar or a regular boxer, the result will be the same, I am going to smash him up."
Vijender is not the first Indian boxer to fight a professional bout. The likes of Gurcharan Singh and Pradeep Sihag having been a regular in the circuit earlier but never generated the hype like Vijender has.
Whiting defeated Aaron Robinson on points in his last professional fight in Kent in March this year. In 2014, he made a good start, scoring a Technical Knockout (TKO) against James Child in Essex. Whiting, however, lost to Dee Mitchell on points in his second fight.