Jordan Reynolds wants to be British champion in 18 months as he prepares to fight in front of 500 Lutonian boxing fans on his Wembley Arena debut, after an injury-hit year in which he questioned whether he’d ever fight again.
When The Wanderer (3-0-0) steps into the ring tomorrow night to face Jose Manuel Lopez Clavero in a six-round super middleweight fight it will be a year to the day of his third and last professional bout when he knocked out Rodolfo Paterno.
Since then, however, the former TeamGB amateur from Farley Hill suffered a serious injury to his bicep that required surgery.
“I feel like I’ve started my career again. This is like my audition. If I perform here, the sky’s my limit,” undefeated Reynolds told IFL TV, as he prepares for his first fight on an Eddie Hearn Matchroom Boxing card headlined by legendary Irish undisputed lightweight world champion Katie Taylor.
“In the next 18 months, I want a British title. Get these domestic titles, whether that’s southern area or English by the end of next year, but I want to be chipping away now, moving forward.
“This career is never promised. There’s a lot of things around the corner that can happen. I had a mad injury at the start of the year and I questioned, do I want to box again? A lot of people wrote me off.
“I’ve be a pro for two years and I haven’t earned a penny out of it. From surgery bills of 15 grand, to medicals, a few grand here and there, it’s been loss after loss.
“I’ve got resilience. It shows I can bounce back forward and I’m here to stay. I want to see how far I can go and bring everyone with me.”
Saturday’s fight will also be the 27-year-old’s Wembley debut and his first under the management of former world champions Joe Calzaghe and Darren Barker and he’s planning to be back in the ring before the year is out.
Barker, the former holder of the IBF Middleweight World crown, said: “When I look at Jordan, he’s got everything needed. He’s the total package.
“He’s got all the support in the world, he’s talented and he’s got a good amateur pedigree, it’s just about him being active and busy.
