Spaniard Del Rio confirmed by WBC as Singleton’s foe!

The World Boxing Council has confirmed that Spaniard Jose Del Rio will be Shayne Singleton’s opponent for the International Silver welterweight contest on April 11th.
By The Newsroom
Published 21st Feb 2014, 13:00 BST
Unbeaten boxer Shayne Singleton has shot at WBC International Silver beltUnbeaten boxer Shayne Singleton has shot at WBC International Silver belt
Unbeaten boxer Shayne Singleton has shot at WBC International Silver belt

The 28-year-old, who hails from Palma de Mallorca, has won 16 of his 21 bouts, including five by way of knockout, and overcame fellow countryman Fran Gonzalez via unanimous decision in his latest outing at the weekend.

The contest at Colne Muni will pit the former English light-welterweight champion against the one-time Spanish welterweight supremo, with Del Rio also challenging Sebastien Madani for the vacant WBF light middleweight title in June 2012 where he lost out on points over 12 rounds.

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Singleton, who had been initially lined up to face Eloy Iglesias before the WBC rejected his application, said: “Jose Del Rio is a much better standard of fighter. He’s a southpaw who is a similar height to me, but he’s fought a few times at light middleweight so he’s got a slightly bigger build than me.

“I’ve seen a few clips of him. I watched his fight against Jussi Koivula and he did alright. He took Madani the distance as well, working well on the counter. He likes to move about on the back foot and stick his jab out. It could potentially be a clash of styles. I’ll need to work with Karl (Ince) to put a gameplan together.”

Though their styles may be similar, Singleton feels he’ll go in to the fight with a huge psychological advantage having never tasted defeat in his professional career. In contrast, Del Rio has lost five of his last 12 and will have Singleton’s cacophonous ‘Barmy Army’ to contend with as well.

“The difference between us is that I don’t know how to lose,” he said. “He’s tasted defeat a few times in his career. I think that’ll give me a psychological advantage going in to the fight, especially when I’m fighting in front of a home crowd.

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“I prepare myself mentally before every fight, reminding myself that I’ve got an unbeaten record to keep in tact, and it seems to be working. I think if you’re in the right frame of mind then half the battle has been won.

“I don’t know how it feels to be on the wrong side of a decision and I’ve got 10 rounds to find a way to beat him and make sure it stays that way. I’ve done it in the past and I’ll do it again.”

Anybody wanting tickets for the show can contact Shayne on 07857 476485.