WHEN Troy Lewis, brimming with confidence, steps into the ring to face Iwan Azore in the fourth round of the Guyana Boxing Board of Control (GBBC)/Guyana Amateur Boxing Association (GABA) ProAm Friday Night Fights (FNF), he will be looking to make his record 3-0.
In an invited comment with Chronicle Sport via the telephone yesterday, the 36-year-old Lewis said he is taking this fight very seriously compared to other fights prior to the emergence of the FNF.
“Previously I used to fight just for the money, not the love of the sport, hence my record is showing what it is today, but with the commencement of these fights, I have taken a serious stand with regard to my record and fights also.
“It’s not like that anymore, especially after nine successive losses against fighters, some of whom I could have beaten. I decided to take matters seriously, make a turnaround not for the worse but for the better, hence my present record in the FNF,” said Lewis.
Lewis, who fought against boxers, the calibre of Denny ‘Deadly’ Dalton, Lennox Allen, James Walcott, Winston Pompey and Barbados’ Shaka Blair, even fighting the latter for the World Boxing Council (WBC)/CABOFE welterweight title, said he is feeling great at the moment and can hardly wait to display such even though he has to lose eight pounds.
“Some may say that losing eight pounds would leave me at a disadvantage, but how I am feeling at the moment, my confidence level is higher than it should be and I must say that I will be looking for a knockout against him.
“If a knockout is not possible, then I will take the points decision, but certainly I am not coming away on the losing end. I had two previous fights in this promotion, wherein I was victorious on both occasions, so why spoil it now against an opponent whom I know I can get past even in my sleep,” said Lewis.
He continued, “After this, I hope I can get another shot at the national junior middleweight champion despite my age, for as we all know, age is just a number and while some may say that I am over  the hill, I intend to change their mind, their way of thinking Friday night.
In my first fight in this promotion, I got a first round knockout over Rudy Fraser, followed by a unanimous decision over the much taller Eversley Browne – here I had to brawl instead of box. Azore is the perfect height for me so boxing fans can expect a classical display from me as I box my way not only to another victory, but into their hearts.”
Like Theophilus ‘Blue’ King, Lewis believes that this promotion, which is being organised jointly by the two governing bodies for boxing in Guyana along with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport, is a positive move towards the revival of the fistic sport in the Land of Many Waters.
“Certainly for me, the FNF has been a tremendous boost to my self-confidence, as I now have something to look forward to with regard to boxing. But that can only continue if I maintain my winning ways and that’s something I am looking to do.
“I don’t care who it is they put in front of me. The way I am feeling, I am ready to take on any and everybody at the moment and while my next opponent is left to the GBBC’s matchmakers to decide, I will be giving them food for thought in this bout again.”
With such confidence, boxing fans who throng the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall this Friday night, can certainly expect a fistic fury in the main bout between Lewis and Azore, and certainly, I would not wish to be one of the judges to call this one.