ALEX Arthur has warned his supporters not to blink in case they miss his demolition of challenger Nicky Cook when he makes the first defence of his WBO super-featherweight belt in Manchester on Saturday.
The Leith fighter claims that the prospect of bringing world title fights back to Glasgow is the big motivation for him – and he doesn't intend to hang about.
"This is the third time I've boxed at the MEN Arena – and I won the previous two fights
by first-round knockouts," said Arthur, 30.
"I'm looking to make this third time lucky. When I started my career I used to talk myself up all the time but now I just do the work and let God decide.
"However, you have to ask: does Cook have the tools to beat a tip-top Alex Arthur? I doubt it. Can he be bigger than me? Can he be faster than me? Can he be stronger than me? The answer to all of those is no.
"The American, Steve Luevano, had him down five times before their fight was stopped and that makes me think he won't be able to take my power.
"My trainer, Wayne McCullough, has sparred with Luevano and claims that he's the ideal partner because he's quick and a good boxer but his punches couldn't break an egg.
"He would box with his hands down and let Luevano hit him first, knowing that he wasn't going to do any damage so if Cook can't take shots from him then how is he going to be able to take them from me.
Arthur has won 19 of his 26 contests by stoppage and says he must forget that Cook is an Englishman if he is to make it 20 out of 27. "It can be awkward when you're fighting someone from down south for a world title," he explained. "It's harder to motivate yourself when you're not taking on a foreigner.
"That happened to me in my last bout against Stephen Foster. I looked and felt like s**t that night as a result so I won't be thinking about where Cook comes from – he'll just be a silhouette to me.
"Another problem I had against him was that I'd done too much weight training in the build-up. I got to like the way I looked in the mirror and became over-muscled, which is just ridiculous.
"Beating Cook is also important because I want another defence of my title before Christmas and I want it to be in Glasgow. I love fighting in the city because they know their boxing and they get behind me.
"I've never put on a bad performance there and I want to give the fans the chance to see big-time boxing again."
Arthur also revealed that he intends to make just two more defences of his belt before moving up a division. "I'll step up to lightweight. That's where all the big names are going – Manny Pacquiao, Juan Manuel Marquez, Joan Guzman and Manuel Valero are all boxing there now and I'll be more comfortable making 135lb."
The full article contains 527 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
