Calum French has made the weight and put in the work …now it is time to enjoy himself
A very successful amateur, boasting medals for both club and country, the Gateshead star is ready to make his professional debut in Liverpool on Saturday.
And what a stage to perform on as he fights Rustem Fatkhullin on the same Matchroom show as Katie Taylor’s world title defence against Firuza Sharipova and Conor Benn’s clash with Chris Algieri at the M&S Bank Arena.
For Frenchy, it’s a dream come true having fought primarily overseas during his GB Boxing career.
“I’ve been boxing in these sports halls, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, all over the world over the past five years,” said the 26-year-old.
“It’s going to be nice to come out and box in front of all my friends and family in a big stadium like the M&S Bank Arena.”
French’s last appearance in a GB vest was a golden moment, striking gold at the Algirdas Socikas Tournament in Lithuania in May.
A European Championship bronze medalist in Kharkiv in 2017 and a Commonwealth Games quarter-finalist in 2018, the former Birtley ABC has boxed across Europe and the globe, including the World Boxing Series.
He believes his expertise across all formats will help him in his pro career.
“Hopefully I can take that amateur experience into the pro game,” he said. “I had a few WSB fights for the five rounds distance so I can hopefully take that experience into the professional ranks and be Matchroom’s next star.”
French will have his old Birtley ABC coach Graeme Rutherford in his corner at the Echo Arena.
The southpaw has been matched with Fatkhullin over six rounds with the Russian bringing an 8-16 record including three wins inside the distance.
It will be the second bout on the card which gets under way at 4pm and will be shown on DAZN’s Before the Bell show. DAZN’s Fightnight show begins at 6pm.
Calum is the following in the ring steps of a number of Birtley ABC stars who have turned professional in 2021.
Georgia O’Connor and Mark Dickinson made winning debuts on the BOXXER show in Newcastle in October, while Cyrus Pattinson followed his summer victory on Sky at the Eagles Arena in the summer by triumphing in Barcelona in September when he outpointed Dumitru Vicol.
Thomas Hodgson has also opened up in style with the North Shields fighter taking victory in both pro bouts against Naeem Ali in Sheffield and Matar Sampou in Rotherham.
Words: Roy Kelly Picture: Mark Robinson/ Matchroom
