Jermaine Osbourne-Edwards is gearing up for the championship distance as he looks to build upon added time in the ring.
His development continues when BCB Promotions return to the Hangar Events Venue, in Wolverhampton, on the Sunday afternoon of October 30.
The six-round completion of his last paid outing was all new to a man with limited amateur experience, spent with Merridale Boxing Club.
A winning amateur record of nine victories from 10 bouts has been supplemented by an unbeaten record, which currently stands at 5-0.
The 33-year-old welterweight has marched into battle for all five pro contests at the Hangar on home turf, having grown up on the Dovecotes estate and now living in Pendeford,
Some 12 months on from his debut, Osbourne-Edwards has built upon an initial four-round points whitewash, a 40-36 scoreline recorded over MJ Hall.
An explosive first-round stoppage followed and saw Bulgarian visitor Krasikir Vasilev visit the canvas five times in just 152 seconds, adding a TKO to his ledger.
Osbourne-Edwards then rolled over Fonz Alexander by another 40-36 verdict, before climbing off the floor himself to outpoint Petar Aleksandrov, through a 39-37 result.
Six-round time was allotted to his last outing against Paul Scaife, which he encountered with little resistance to pick up another points landslide, posting 60-54 for the first time.
Osbourne-Edwards feels as if he belongs over a longer haul now, having prepared in the gym for the title tests that might well be in his future.
He said: “I class myself as a six-round fighter now, so there are no more sparring just four and six-rounders for me. I need to be stepping up.
“I’d never done 10 rounds before, even in sparring, until this training camp and I’ve proved that I’m capable of going through the gears. It’s made me a lot sharper.
“I’m doing 10 rounds, straight through, against the amateurs in the gym, with a fresh lad getting chucked in against me, after every couple of rounds.
“That means that I have to adapt to different paces and styles, against lads who are around my weight or, sometimes, a bit heavier. They just jump in and start buzzing around me!
“My last pro fight felt like my debut, in that I hadn’t done the rounds before and wasn’t sure of what to expect. In the end, six rounds didn’t really feel like anything.
“The opponent was alright, but he didn’t really throw all that much, so I couldn’t really counter and let my shots go. It was good for my boxing IQ, though.
“I still don’t feel like that I’ve shown how hard I can punch. My stoppage came after the other lad felt the power and didn’t want to know. He kept going down until the referee stepped in.
“I just want to crack on until I get to show the real me. I definitely feel like I’m going to become a champion next year. I know what I need to do to get there.”
Tickets for the Hangar bill are available, priced at £40 standard or £75 VIP ringside with buffet, from the BCB Box Office by calling 07493 582 261 or visiting myfighttickets.com.
