Andrew Robinson will be looking to the sky and not the corner on fight night – with the contest dedicated to his late father’s memory.
Emotions will charge him when he’s a part of BCB Promotions’ next offering at the H Suite in Edgbaston, Birmingham, on the Sunday afternoon of July 10.
Robinson is back in action for the first time since April, when he was outpointed by Damian Jonak, in Poland, in the latest and, most probably, last instalment of their long-running feud.
But the disappointment of that setback paled in comparison to the events of June 23 when his dad, Owen Robinson, passed away.
He’s gamely battled on through his training camp and the 37-year-old veteran is in reflective mood, after passing the milestone of 10 years as a pro, just a day before the sad news.
It’s 20 years since he first took up the sport, going on to forge an amateur career with Lions Boxing Club in Dudley, amassing 30 bouts with 25 wins to show for it.
Robinson, who lives in Redditch but was born in Hay Mills, Birmingham, has gone further in the pro ranks, with the clash against Jonak representing his 34th paid bout.
He’s been a Midlands champion, amateur and pro, along with holding IBO Continental honours, while racking up a pro record that contains 26 victories, six defeats and two draws.
He’s challenged for English, British, WBO European and WBC International titles when on the losing end, against a host of formidable opponents.
His saga with Jonak has seen three encounters, with Robinson’s points success followed by a draw and then a loss, all of them over-the-distance.
‘D’Animal’ hotly disputes the scorecards of their last meeting, which were 78-73 twice and 78-74 in favour of Jonak, who was 41-1 when he first came across him.
After engaging in a keep-busy affair, Robinson will step up his pursuit of Denzel Bentley, with the two originally set to meet last September, before Bentley claimed the British crown.
Robinson said: “To lose my dad has been harder than any fight in my life, but I never thought of pulling out. That’s not what he would have wanted. I’m going to win for him.
“My dad has made me into the man I am today, someone who works hard and is dedicated to doing what he loves, along with looking after my wife and (three) kids.
“To get to my 35th pro fight is a bit of a milestone and who would have thought I’d have ever made it this far? I wouldn’t have believed it myself.
“I’ve come a long way from being a 17-year-old kid walking into Lions, my cousin (Wayne McKenzie) first took me there and I had that natural ability.
“To be still boxing 20 years later, hitting the targets on my runs and beating people up in sparring, has surpassed what I could have thought of and I’m enjoying it while I can.
“I had a couple of weeks off, after the last one against Jonak, and I’ve been in the gym ever since. I won’t be seeing him again, there’s no point.
“First I was robbed with a draw and then, somehow, they had me losing when he didn’t do anything to win. To be honest, that’s exactly how I expected it to turn out.
“It was a different Jonak, he was on the back-foot and that made it easy for me to be the aggressor. He just wanted to stay out of harm’s way and it was so one-sided.
“I’m not in it for the money, so I’m turning my back on him and going after what I really want, which is Denzel Bentley and another shot at the British title.
“I took the fight against him before and I’m more than willing to again. He’s the target. It’s undecided who is the better man between us. We can settle that in the ring.”
Tickets for the H Suite bill are available, priced at £40 standard or £75 VIP ringside with buffet, directly from the boxers or by visiting myfighttickets.com.
