MURRAY LOOKS TO MAKE IT THIRD TIME LUCKY
Ross Murray takes on John Chuwa for the WBC International Silver title as part of the Kynoch Boxing show at the Crowne Plaza on Friday night.
This is Murray's third title title fight having only been fighting as a pro for 3 years. Having lost out for the Commonwealth and European titles Murray is hoping it will be third time lucky.
Murray is in the position of not having much fight footage of Chuwa to help with his preparation.
"I don’t know much about him mate." Murray explained. "I know he’s 17-2 and has lost to Prince Patel but that would be up at bantamweight. There isn’t much footage of him so it’s just a case of seeing what he’s like on the night to be honest. It’s a 10 round fight so plenty of time to figure him out." Murray said that winning a form of a WBC belt would be a dream. "It would be massive. Every one that goes into boxing dreams of winning a WBC belt. The green belt is the most sought after and highly regarded belt in boxing in my opinion. Winning this will catapult me into the top 15 in the world and at my age I can’t afford to lose and try and rebuild."
Having lost in his two previous title fights, I asked if those experiences would help in his quest. "I think so, yes." Murray said, "although I have lost them, they were to two very good, undefeated opponents in Sunny Edwards and Jay Harris. The Edwards fight at super fly and the Harris fight at flyweight. This fight is at light fly which I feel is my best weight to compete at. I feel in the two defeats they were just too big for me by the time they had rehydrated. This time I hope to have that advantage." Murray is not the youngest boxer but he is making the most of a career that only started in 2016. "Boxing for me is a hobby. A hard hobby but a hobby none the less." Murray explains. "When I came into it I had no great ambitions apart from to test myself against the best and I feel like that’s what I have done. When I win this fight it puts me in a good position to kick on for potential world honours. If I get the chance for a shot at something I would grab it with both hands."
What made him turn pro an an older age? "I started late as an amateur as I had to quit football. I had three knee surgeries, with the final one they had to snap my leg and pin the bone in a different place to stop my knee dislocating so football was no longer an option. I had always boxed but just played at it so when the football stopped I took to the boxing more seriously. After competing at amateur I fought the best boys in Scotland and got to the finals of the Scottish and western district championships. I got to a stage where I got fed up with amateur boxing and Peter Harrison convinced me to go pro and not just give it up completely. It was the best decision I ever made."
Murray is a regular on Kynoch Boxing shows, and us part of the Kynoch stable of fighters. Murray enjoys being part of Kynoch Boxing. "Sam (Kynoch) is a great promoter and has worked hard to get me great opportunities. I believe these opportunities are available for all boxers but you need to be willing to take the fights and go on the road to get them. A lot of boxers don’t want to take risky fights. They want to protect their unbeaten record. Sam knows I don’t believe in that and that I have never rejected a fight he’s offered me. Without Sam I wouldn’t be getting these opportunities so I am very grateful. If anyone is turning pro I would advise them to speak to Sam. He looks after his boxers. Has plenty of shows scheduled. Has never cancelled a show and is honest and straight with you. "In terms of the stable it is great. My best friend Jordan McCorry also boxes for Sam and again takes all the fights asked of him. There is always plenty of sparring available at the gym which Sam also lets us use at no cost. It’s a great team to be a part of."
The Kynoch Boxing show takes place at the Crowne Plaza Glasgow and also features a pair of Scottish champions, Marc Kerr and Jay Carrigan-McFarlane.
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