Ohara Davies could retire from the sport after his scheduled fight against Adam Azim this Saturday at the Copper Box Arena in London, England.
Davies, now 32, has been around the professional game for more than 10 years and has faced some of the best 140-pound fighters in the world – Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall, and he suffered defeat to both.
Davies has picked up some big wins against the likes of Tyrone McKenna and Lewis Ritson, and was on course to fight for a world title but endured a devastating first round knockout loss to Ismael Barroso earlier this year. Davies is not taking too much from that performance, however, and is looking forward to fighting again on Saturday.
“Everyone knows I just threw the wrong shot,” Davies told BoxingScene of what went wrong in January. “I was so tired, I didn’t sleep and just got hit with a good shot. It’s not like I got out-skilled and then I got stopped. It’s just one of those things that can happen. It’s very unfortunate, but it is what it is and I get my second chance this weekend.”
Davies will now face the 22-year-old Azim, one of the most promising young junior welterweights in the sport. Davies may be 10 years Azim’s senior, but is very familiar with his foe after the two shared a gym with each other in the amateurs. Davies has been impressed with Azim’s development, watching him progress from a nine-year-old amateur to one of the best prospects in British boxing.
“He’s good, he’s sharp, he’s fast, he’s young, and he’s got youth on his side,” Davies said. “I’m very impressed with him. [I’m most impressed with his] speed. Damn, I don’t know if you can out-speed him. The faster he gets I’m like, ‘Damn, I’m actually in a very hard fight.’
“He’s got long arms, maybe he’s got everything. The only thing I’ve got that he hasn’t got is the experience and that’s what I’m going to have to use to my advantage.”
The pair have been on good terms since the fight was announced, refusing to get involved with any of the usual fight week antics. Davies believes that this won’t change on fight night.
“It won’t become real; it’s like sparring,” he said. “I spar my friends all the time; I hit them, I jab them, I hook them. There is no animosity on my part.”
The knockout defeat to Barroso and the aftermath has left Davies with a bad taste in his mouth. He is now questioning whether he will continue boxing after his fight with Azim.
“I don’t know if I’ll box again after this fight,” Davies said. “I have fallen out of love with the sport of boxing and this might be my last fight.”
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