Having not been in the ring since his six threes victory over journeyman, Kevin McCauley (now 11-57-3), Easington’s undefeated Welterweight, Paul Archer (7-0) will return on Phil Jeffries’ next show this coming October, again at Rainton Meadows.
Archer, 22, made his debut in 2010 and, after four straight victories inside his first twelve months as a professional, the career hit a bump. The bout this October, against an opponent to be confirmed, will be only his fourth in the past 24 months. It is a statistic that Archer is aware of and knows that he must know make an immediate statement if he is to progress further.
“My next outing will probably be at welterweight again,” began Archer.
“But after that we will have to see what’s what as the weight is dropping some still so maybe I will be coming out next year as a Light Welterweight. I just want to get, and keep myself busy though.
“We need to get all the experience in we can and if an opportunity comes up then we need to be ready to take it, never be more than three weeks ready for a fight, that’s what we are looking at. First and foremost though I need to shake off any ring-rust I may have and look to start making statements.”
That ‘we’ which Paul mentions, has seen him recently change trainers. Having been with the well-know, and likeable, David Binns, the mastermind behind Glenn Foot’s meteoric rise since turning professional three years ago, he has turned to his elder brother, Ian, to aid in his progression.
“I’d like to thank Dave Binns, on behalf of myself and Paul,” began Ian.
“Binns took Paul to 7-0 and I wish Dave all the best with his lads, I spoke to him (Binns) before the switchover to explain things and we had a good chat. He’s a good bloke and a great coach. Personally, I’ve been coaching boxing for years and was in
Paul’s corner throughout his Amateur career. We had some great performances together.
“I think Paul just needed a change, as people sometimes do. He (Paul) needed to freshen things up a bit though and I’d always planned on being a Pro coach but with my business I didn’t have much time.”
That time though is now, and, although they are aware of a possible Northern Area title opportunity on the horizon, Birtley’s Craig Dixon looking the most likely opponent, there is some way to go still before that happens. Any ring rust Archer may have needs blowing away and the vital tools of sparring and sharpening him up over the coming months is also required.
“I’ve spoken to Phil Jeffries and discussed our plans; Paul needs to be active to get some momentum,” continued trainer Ian.
“At the minute I don’t think Paul’s done more than six rounds and we’ve got to get that rust off but that would be a great fight (with Dixon) and I’m sure there’d be a lot of interest in it. The Area Title is one of our short term goals that were working towards.
“We’ve worked a lot on the pads which to me is a massive tool in adapting a boxers technique and I’m really happy that Paul is already doing moves in sparring that he’s never done before
“He’s only sparred twice since his last fight in February, and both of those were recent, so I’m delighted with his sharpness and fitness. Paul’s had some great sparring with top amateurs Liam Cammock and Robert Mawson.
“I was messaged by Frankie Gavin online too offering sparring, if we wanted to travel to Birmingham, which is a fantastic learning opportunity so were hoping that comes off.”
Now though the focus of both Archer’s is firmly set on October’s outing and getting Paul into a position where is no more than two weeks away from taking a fight, any fight, at home or on the road.
Archer will be appearing on the next Pro-box North-East show at the Rainton Meadows Arena on October 19th against a yet to be named opponent. The show already has some of the regions big names on it including Martin Ward, Kirk Goodings and
Anthony Nelson amongst others. You can purchase tickets by contacting Paul directly on 07896974716.
