Alex Arthur believes his obsession with training will see him through his WBO defence against Stephen Foster.
Champion in perfect condition for title defence
Alex Arthur believes his love of training will see him in perfect condition for the defence of his WBO interim super-featherweight.
The Edinburgh boxer faces Englishman Stephen Foster at Meadowbank Stadium on December 15, and the 29-year-old has already begun preparing for the bout, despite being nine weeks away from stepping into the ring.
The Scot, who defeated Koba Gogoladze back in July, believes his obsession with training will ensure he is at the peak of his powers.
He said: "Like some people have a problem with cigarettes and coffee, I have a problem with training. If I don't go and train, I don't feel right and I don't want to speak to anyone.
"Last time I fought on the Saturday and I was back in the gym on the Tuesday, with the stitches in. I hate being out the gym.
No problem
"I've done fitness tests with my strength and conditioning coaches and they said I'm about four weeks from where I was for the title fight and there's still nine weeks to go, so there's no problem there."
Foster has good support around him, with his father Stephen 'The Viking' Foster as manager and former light-heavyweight champion Maurice Core training him.
Although Arthur isn't sure what kind of fight to expect, he holds his Salford-based opponent in high regard and knows he'll be pushed hard in defence of his title.
Arthur said: "Boxing is the oddest game in the world. In my last fight I fought a stylist and I expected him to run rings round me, throw fast combinations and have a lot of skill.
"Instead he stuck the head in me, kicked and elbowed me, so you never know what is going to happen.
"But the most important thing is that you prepare for a very hard 12-round fight and you can't go wrong."
