Miles Gordon Darby keen to make his name in cruiserweight division after switching from MMA
Tuesday 14 March 2017 12:34, UK
Miles Gordon Darby hopes to make an explosive impact in the cruiserweight division after switching from MMA to boxing.
The 22-year-old turned his attention to a ring career, despite being unbeaten in mixed martial arts, and will have his second professional fight on this Friday's NXTGEN show, live on Sky Sports.
Gordon Darby has been sharpening his skills with trainer Peter Sims and gym mate Craig 'Spider' Richards also features on an exciting bill at York Hall in Bethnal Green.
Live Nxtgen Boxing
"I had an amateur and semi-professional background in MMA, which I had done for about seven years," said the Kingston man. "I had seven fights and remained undefeated.
"I had a knee injury and following up from that, I wanted to make sure I was still ticking over and keeping fit, so I joined the local boxing club.
"A fight came up, so I thought I would take it, and just stuck with it from there really. I found it really exciting, a new challenge, and just stuck with it."
Gordon Darby was given a tough introduction to the pro ranks as he attempted to impress Sims during a sparring session with former Commonwealth cruiserweight champion Tony Conquest.
"Peter gave me the chance to go down there and test my skills," he said. "I went down and had a little spar with Tony Conquest, then Peter took me on board and is helping me improve.
"With Peter, it's tough love, everything he is saying for a reason. He threw me straight in the deep end. Tony, even in retirement, is still hard as nails, he's still got all the talent.
"It was an amazing experience and gave me a reality check of where I wanted to be."
After a points win on his debut, Gordon Darby will next face Jake Bonallie, who pulled off a shock decision win over Craig Glover on the undercard of last Saturday's David Haye-Tony Bellew bill at The O2.
"From what I've seen, he's obviously got experience and you can never underestimate someone," said Gordon Darby.
"You have always got to be prepared for them. I'm looking to bring my best, he's looking to bring his, so I have got be prepared to go to war if need be.
"You can expect fireworks, lots of action, and to not be disappointed."
You can watch a live stream of this Friday's NXTGEN show from 7pm on Skysports.com and live coverage starts at 10pm on Sky Sports 1.
