Jack is the lad
JACK Dugdale says he’s ready to shock more boxing heroes who think bareknuckle fighters are a soft touch.
The 32 year old from Burnley became one of the most talked-about fighter in the country after racing to a stunning knockout win.
Frankie Gavin was 2007 World Amateur Boxing Champion and as a pro he won British and Commonwealth titles and fought for world titles.
He made his bareknuckle debut in front of his Birmingham crowd – and Dugdale silenced them with a 52-second win.
That has secured him a four-fight deal with promoters BKB.
“I was supposed to roll over and lose to Frankie in his home town,” said Dugdale.
“I think that’s what the promoters wanted – and expected.
“People looked at his boxing pedigree, but it’s a different sport.
“I had won three of four going into that fight and the one I lost I was winning until I got clipped.
“I don’t think some people give bareknuckle boxers enough respect.
“I was chatting to Frankie afterwards and he admitted he had been naeve.
“He thought it was just a boxing match without gloves and he would just outbox me. He didn’t have a clue when I grabbed him.”
Dugdale admitted: “It’s been a bit of a whirlwind, it’s blown up” since his win and now he has another legend of gloved boxing in his sights.
Paulie Malignaggi won world titles at two weights and says he wants another in bareknuckle boxing after signing with BKB.
He meets Tyler Goodjohn in Bristol on September and Dugdale says the fight won’t end well for the colourful ‘Magic Man’ from New York.
Goodjohn also boxed with gloves, but for the last seven years he’s been fighting bareknuckle.
Dugdale said: “Paulie had that one bareknuckle fight with Artem Lobov (a points loss in June, 2019) and it didn’t look like it suited him.
“He’s older now as well.
“I think Tyler will beat him. He understands the game better. Tyler would be a much harder fight for me than Paulie, but ‘The Magic Man’ is a bigger name and that’s the fight I want.”
Dugdale, who co owns the Basement Bareknuckle and Fitness Gym in Burnley with Seamus Devlin, said: “The next few years I will put the right things into my body, do the right things and go as far as I can.
“I don’t want to look back and say: ‘I didn’t go as far as I can because of my lifestyle.’ I want to give it 100 per cent.”
Dugdale admits he’s had his battles away from sport.
He said: “I started Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and MMA when I was 14. I trained on and off for a few years until I was 20.
“I spent my twenties drinking. I would party all weekend and then carrying on drinking cans all week.
“I got to 30 and thought: ‘Something has to change.’ I always had ambitions to do bareknuckle. I watched it on television and thought: ‘I can hang with these guys.’
“I won a couple of belts and then got the call to fight Frankie.”