Morden boxer Craig Whyatt is finally getting back in the ring after 16 months out of action.
The 26-year-old (7-3-0) broke his hand in his last bout in 2014 and after some soul-searching, he returns on Saturday in a welterweight bout at York Hall.
His opponent has not been announced, but Whyatt sees this bout as a simple exercise to get rid of his ring rustiness ahead of bigger prizes.
The electrician by trade also needs to lose some weight, but he is adamant he will drop to his normal lightweight division in the aftermath of Saturday’s comeback.
He said: “My hand took longer to heal and I probably took advantage and ate and drank the things I had been missing out on.
“It was a frustrating time, and I put on some weight because I just was not as active as normal.
“I threw myself into my work and there was a point when I wondered if I would come back to boxing, whether I still had the passion.
“But I am here, so clearly I do have the passion.”
He added: “I just want to get this fight done and out the way so I can start to look forward to bigger things.
“This is all about getting rid of the ring rustiness, and then I will lose the weight.”
Prior to his injury, Whyatt had been given a shot at the Southern Area featherweight title and fought in the Prizefighter lightweight quarter-final – however, both ended in defeat meaning he has not had a win in the ring since November 2011.
He said: “I was getting some good fights and getting my name known, so the injury came at a bad time.
“That is why I want to get back out there and get back in those big fights.”
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