Frazer Clarke could be one or two good performances away from challenging for a world title.
That might appear to be an outlandish claim when Clarke is one bout removed from a devastating knockout loss to Fabio Wardley – but he is a high-profile Olympic bronze medallist.
If he can pick up the British title in his next contest that could be a springboard to world level competition.
That has often been the case with the British heavyweight championship.
Anthony Joshua, for instance, fought for his first world championship in his next contest after winning the British title.
Wardley is a relevant example. He retained and defended that belt against Clarke and now, after beating Justis Huni, is boxing Joseph Parker to become the mandatory challenger for Oleksandr Usyk’s WBO heavyweight crown.
In the modern heavyweight division a big performance can quickly change a fighter’s fortunes.
“There’s a lot worse fighters than me being talked about for a world title [shot] than me, let me tell you that, so why not?” Clarke said.
“My desire to be in good fights and win will never change. I love competing, I love the sport of boxing and the British title is something that means something to me. It should mean something to every fighter that’s coming from the UK. The British title’s a big deal,” he told Sky Sports.
“It opens the doors definitely. There was ludicrous talk, if Dave Allen won [against Arslanbek Makhmudov] he’d go on to fight Anthony Joshua. Well, I punched a hole in Dave Allen a lot easier than Makhmudov did.
“When I win this next fight, where does that put me? Can I go on and fight Anthony Joshua?
“Everyone seems to want fight Anthony Joshua,” he added. “You need to be careful what you wish for.”
New angle of Ebenezer Tetteh being held back and the referee being forced to leave the ring after losing to Frazer Clarke in April
Makhmudov is an appealing opponent for Clarke in the near-term, as is popular heavyweight scrapper Johnny Fisher.
“Makhmudov will be a good fight, he’s now in a good position,” Clarke said. “A fight with Johnny Fisher is always going to be a big fight because he brings so much to the table in terms of his popularity, the crowd he brings, the interest he generates.
“There’s loads of good fights out there for me, provided I win this British title.”
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