Ricky Summers reckons he will be one step ahead of Joel McIntyre when the two clash for the English light heavyweight title.
The two go toe-to-toe when BCB Promotions return to the Hangar Events Venue, in Wolverhampton, for fight night on Friday March 10.
Summers is the challenger for a second title, having previously been outpointed by Dan Azeez on a wafer-thin split decision, against the then-defending champion.
McIntyre now puts his standing on the line, in his second spell as boss, having built up a 20-5 (five wins by TKO) pro record, undertaking his 13th year as a pro, at the age of 34.
Summers, 35, turned over in 2012 and has racked up 18 wins (six TKOs), three losses and a draw (with Lawrence Osueke), with all defeats coming against top-level opposition.
The stalemate, a British title eliminator against Osueke, ended all square when a split decision draw was recorded, a 95-95 verdict ensuring a tie.
Summers was left aggrieved by the decision, with one judge scoring it 96-95 to him. The other inexplicably had it 100-92 to Osueke.
‘Digger,’ who is from Tipton but now lives in Wombourne, Wolverhampton, has competed for the English and British titles (outpointed by Frank Buglioni) over those losses.
He’s kept going, even after various lay-offs, and now targets national supremacy again, with a boisterous Black Country crowd there to cheer him on.
Summers said: “My training camp started just after Christmas, we got the purse bids over the line and then we knew that the fight was going to happen.
“I have to thank my backers, BCB Promotions and my wife Jodie, who did the hard work with actually getting the purse bid in, so we could stage it.
“In all of my big fights, I’ve been the away fighter, so it’s nice to have this at home. He will bring a coach load of fans and I know that my lot will make it a great atmosphere.
“This is the second time I’ve boxed for the English title, I thought that I’d won it (in April 2021, against Dan Azeez), but now I get the chance to go for it again.
“When I boxed Dan, it was behind-closed-doors, which was hard because Jodie wasn’t allowed to be there (because of the pandemic regulations) and she’d been to all of my fights.
“I’ve become good friends with Dan and he’s going for the European title now. I’m the only one to push him to the wire, so it shows what level that I’m at.
“I’m not going to dwell on that, all that I’m focussed on is getting the job done and becoming the champion of England. He’s held the title twice, so I know what he’s capable of.
“I’m expecting the best Joel McIntyre on the night. I watched him against Lyndon Arthur (in December, second round) and he got stopped, but he took that on two weeks notice.
“I’d be a fool to look at that and expect him to be the same against me. When I turn up, I’m one of the best light heavyweights in Britain, so I need to concentrate on what I’m doing.
“I also saw him knock Chad Sugden out (English title fight, last July, round eight) and not many people do that to Chad, It was nip and tuck, up to that point.
“I’m not planning to stay around boxing forever, so every fight can be make or break. With a win here, I could be going for the British (title) again.
“I’m confident in my ability and I’ll prepared for a hard 10 rounds. I just need to get the victory, by whatever means necessary.
“I think that I’m a better all-round boxer and everything that he does, I can probably do it a bit better. This is great for Midlands boxing and I want to make it count.”
Tickets for the Hangar bill are available, priced at £40 standard or £75 VIP ringside, directly from the boxers or by visiting myfighttickets.com.
