Light-heavyweight prospect ‘Dazzling’ Darrel Church (4-1-1) recorded his fourth win from six professional bouts with a points victory over larger opponent Josef Obeslo (6-33-3) at the Skylark Hotel in Southend on April 1st.
The 27-year-old from Witham improved his record and further increased his ranking in the competitive 175-pound division on the Warrior Boxing Promotions event.
Obeslo, 28-years-old from Hradec Kralove, weighed in over six-pounds above the agreed limit, giving the European a big advantage on the night.
Church was disappointed at the weight difference but had no intention of withdrawing from the fight despite his heftier opponent recording four first-round knockouts during his six-year-long career and his last win taking just 35 seconds to deliver.
He said, “He weighed in over six pounds heavier than me, which is almost half a stone, and I was angry about it at first, but I’d fight anyone so I accepted it like a professional and moved on.
“Full credit to my opponent as he was right up for it and desperately wanted to win.”
Church out-jabbed his opponent and couldn’t fail to land his counter left hook all night, although Obeslo made it a hard fight by constantly pressing forward and throwing punches.
The victor commented on his performance, “I’ve had nothing but good feedback from every person I’ve spoken to. Most said that it was the best they’ve seen me fight.
“It was a very small ring, not the size that I am used to but everything went right for me in there on the night. I had to do a bit of everything – I boxed, went toe to toe when I had to and stuck it on him a bit.
“I got the job done, my record has improved and my ranking has increased higher, so it’s onwards and upwards.”
Church now looks ahead to June 10th for his next fight on the undercard of the eagerly-awaited Southern Area title clash between promising lightweights Jamie Arlain and Adam Dingsdale at the famed York Hall.
“My next fight is June 10th back at York Hall again,” Church confirmed. “It’ll be my last four rounder before I move up to bigger fights.
“I’ve had this week off from training but I’m back in the gym next week which gives me a nine-week training camp.”
A father of one and a business owner, Church previously struggled to balance training with work and slipped to a loss against Angelo Crowe (2-6) in 2015 after initially kicking off his pro career with two straight wins when previously signed to Carl Greaves Promotions.
Inactive spells spanning over 10 months were to blame for the defeat and subsequent draw on his peppered record but has recently reeled off two wins in under four months since being signed to Goodwin Promotions.
“I’ve got a meeting with my manager Steve Goodwin coming up and we’ll be looking at a few options that are available to me at the moment, so it’s an exciting time.
“The British Challenge belt fight could be on the cards soon; I set myself the goal of fighting for that belt at the start of the year and I’ve already received an offer, so I’m exceeding expectations already.”
For tickets to the show contact Team Church on 07938 878 962
Follow Darrel Church on Twitter @Darrel_Church89
Team Church would like to thank sponsors MB Surfacing and RB Fencing and Agent Tim Rickson