Martin Harkin- "I need to stop him to win"

Earlier this week I had the privilege of speaking to unbeaten Scot, Martin Harkin ahead of his first fight outside of Scotland against a fellow unbeaten fighter, Michael McKinson (18-0-0 2KO’s).

This is a real step up for Martin and he is under no illusions that as an away fighter on an MTK card, it will be tough to get a decision on the judges’ scorecard. Martin has a record of 13-0-0 with five of the victories coming by way of knockout and is confident of being victorious Sunday evening with a stoppage victory.

“I will start fast and get rid of any ring rust that may be lingering and I know what I have to do, I need to stop him and I am fully confident that I will do just that. This fight is my big chance, it will certainly change my life and I plan on taking it with both hands. I do feel Michael is overlooking me and I just hope he comes to fight. Having watched his fights, he is a very negative fighter and that is no disrespect towards him, but we have different styles. I will come to hurt him and implement my own game plan and I intend to do that by fighting at a higher pace than he is used too and get in his face His style is made for me so all I have to do now is go out there and prove to everyone that I will win this fight.”

Lockdown has had an impact on everyone, negatively and in a positive way too. Martin managed to stay fit and work on improving his fitness by training in his brother in laws gym.

“Lockdown for me was good because it did not really affect me as my brother in law has his own gym, so I was rather fortunate. managed to work out in there, I managed to lift weights, do the runs, and just keep fit. It felt slightly different because my coach was not there telling me to do this or do that but at least I had the chance to keep myself working and improving. The only negative impact it had was that I had a title eliminator planned for the end of April which had to be cancelled. I have always been an active fighter that just loves to fight but it halted my momentum for a short while.”

For some fighters that have not experienced fight nights post lockdown, it will be a different atmosphere than they are used to and it will have an impact on fighters when the first bell goes.

“I am just looking forward to getting into the ring after being away for so long. After stopping James Moorcroft in my last fight, I am just excited to put the gloves on again. I had a lot of amateur fights with little to no crowd, so I am used to it and it will be a bit like a sparring session but with more intensity. Once the first bell goes, it is just me and my opponent in the ring anyway, so it doesn’t make too much difference. Even when there were crowds, I only hear my coach telling me to do this or that. The only negative aspect is that I won’t have the support from my family or friends there on the night, but I am there to do a job.”

If successful on Sunday night, Martin plans on going again as soon as possible.

“Once I beat Michael in convincing fashion, I want to get out again as quickly as possible. As fighters, we only have a short career so why hang around. As I said earlier, fighting against an MTK fighter, I need to stop him so hopefully, I come out of the fight with no injuries and I can look to fighting again before the turn of the year.”