On the 25th of June FCC 29 will go underway, hosted at the Bolton Arena.
The promotion has put together a card with some of the finest amateur prospects taking part. Evidence of that is the matchmaking that put together Tom Wright and Connor Walsh.
The former is coming off a title opportunity that saw Wright win on one of the judge’s cards, losing a split decision. Tom Wright goes into this fight, having fought top opponents in Marlon Jones and Macca White, beating Jake Grundy in his most notable career win. He is confident that he will be going into the fight with a size advantage and cementing his position as bantamweight champion before the night is through.
We had the pleasure of speaking to Tom Wright ahead of FCC 29. Read the full interview below.
Tom Wright in the Lead up to the Fight
In March, you came very close to becoming the bantamweight champion at UKFC, losing a razor-thin split decision against Jack Axworthy. How do you feel going into this bantamweight title bout?
“Yeah, I feel good mate. Just like the last fight, I have a really talented young prospect in front of me. But I believe I’ve made the adjustments in my training, to be able to go out there and push the pace for five rounds and leave with my hand raised.”
You are going into this fight with a second chance at winning an amateur championship against a tough opponent. What can fans expect to see from you on June 25th at FCC 29?
“They can expect to see me coming forward with controlled forward pressure and some heavy hips. I always come to fight, and this time will be no different, except that I’ll be coming home with the belt.”
When this fight was offered to you, what was your initial reaction? And was this a fighter on your radar before being offered the bout?
“Yeah, obviously I was a little surprised being offered a title shot off the back of a loss, but it was a razor close fight and a good one at that. But yeah, I was obviously happy about it. To be fair not really, he’s originally a flyweight so I didn’t think we’d cross paths. I’ve seen a few of his fights though and he mixes things up really well and he will be a solid test, despite me having the size advantage.”
In the lead-up to this event, preparing for your opponent, have you identified any strengths or weaknesses in their game? If so, are you training towards suppressing their game plan or bolstering your own skill set?
“I think his strength is how well he mixes his takedowns and how he takes the back. As far as weaknesses he seems well rounded but I’m excited to go out there and find some.”
Tom Wright: Future Aspirations and Fight Prediction
We are at the midway point of the year. Where would you like to be by the end of the year if you can walk away from FCC 29 with a win? And what is your goal over the next five years?
“To be honest, I’m not a big fan of looking past fights to see what’s next. I’ve done this in the past and it hasn’t always gone how I wanted. So as far as what I’d want for the rest of the year, I’m not too sure. Although in the next five years I’d hope to be well into my pro career, working my way towards one of the big promotions (UFC, Bellator, ONE etc). “
Lastly, how do you predict this fight will go?
“I predict it’ll be a back-and-forth war with me starting to take over towards the end & ending with a TKO finish. All respect to Connor though he seems like a nice kid and a good fighter, I’m excited to get in there and put on a show.”
We appreciate Tom Wright giving us his time and answering our questions ahead of the fight. We wish him the best of luck!
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Featured image credits to Tom Wright
