02 February 2024 , 10:27
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No British fighter has claimed a European title quicker or at a younger age.
Adam Azim won the European super lightweight title in November aged 21 and in his 10 fight, pipping the likes of Naseem Hamed and Lennox Lewis, who took 12 bouts to claim glory. Azim is a precocious talent, already talking about winning his first world title later this year. It would be so easy to move him along aggressively - but that can lead to mistakes.
He is up against another unbeaten fighter at Wembley on Saturday in Enock Poulsen. The Dane is not in his class, but at some point Azim will find himself in a match that really tests him.
Paddy Donovan, the highly-rated Irish welterweight who Azim has sparred with over many rounds, fought last week expecting to put his opponent away. I could see the shock on Donovan’s face when his punches bounced off Williams Herrera, a tough Argentine.
It was Donovan’s 14th fight and he was faced with a challenge he had never before met. He had to adapt. He is clever and eventually worked it out, catching Herrera with a body shot that he was not expecting.
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All fighters progress at different rates. Shane McGuigan has trained nine world champions. Everyone different. There are a million variables in this game, and it takes time to figure it out.
People think boxing is about brutality. It is not. It’s a game of physical and intellectual chess. It tests you in so many ways. I don’t believe Poulsen will present Azim with anything like as stiff a challenge as Herrera did Donovan, but that moment will come soon enough. And we want him to be ready.
Azim throws punches from all angles and is very quick (Getty Images)He’s a had a long camp for this fight, sparring since the beginning of December. Poulsen is tall and has range. We think he will back off so Azim will have to hunt him down. But after 170 rounds in sparring, including a 12-rounder last week, he is well prepared. Sky have identified Azim as the next British superstar and want to see him win spectacularly. As do we.
He’s a natural fighter. He throws punches from all angles and is very quick. The combination of speed and power is what marks him out as special.
The demand in every fight now is to show that. He has to close Poulsen down and take him out. Simple as that. The world is watching and people want fireworks.
Follow Barry on Twitter at @ClonesCyclone @McGuigans_Gym