Trawden fighter Shayne Singleton targets title shot

The 22-year-old is awaiting a decision from trainer Karl Ince following discussions with promoter Steve Wood as to whether he will be granted a lucrative shot at a British Masters title.

Whether that will be at lightweight or light-welterweight remains unknown but a projected date of Friday, December 16th at Colne Muni has been pencilled in.

Bristol’s 33-year-old Darren Hamilton currently holds the light-welterweight title after defeating Dave Ryan at York Hall, Bethnall Green, London, at the beginning of October.

But the lightweight title remains open for two challengers to contest after Derry Matthews vacated his crown to face Gavin Rees in a EBU (European) lightweight title.

A clash of heads in the fourth round left Matthews with a broken nose and so a Technical Draw was the outcome, meaning Rees retained the title.

Matthews is now gunning for Alisher Rahimov in a clash for the vacant International Boxing Organisation lightweight title.

“It’s a massive thing for me,” said Shayne.

“To compete in a title and to win a title is a huge deal for any boxer.

“I’ve been boxing for 13 years and this is what I’ve been working towards. I hope it comes off.”

He added: “I feel I’m capable of winning a title at this level.

“I feel like I’m at the right level to fight for this title and win it.”

Meanwhile, The Pain moved his victory column in to double figures after a knockout performance against Sean Gorman at the Bowlers Exhibition Centre in Manchester.

Singleton unleashed a pin-point combination with frightening velocity in the final round to send his Welsh opponent crashing to the canvas.

“It was simple but effective and a method concocted by Ince in the aftermath of a third round which saw Singleton cruise.

“I got back in to the corner after the third round and Karl talked me through it,” said Singleton.

“He told me to throw my jab, step back and then follow up with an uppercut.

“He didn’t want me to get involved so I popped my jab, he launched at me, and the rest happened almost automatically.

“He went down like a sack of spuds. I caught him right on the jaw and there was no way that he was getting up from that.”

The popular fighter has yet to lose a round, winning all 46 from his 10 contests.

It’s a remarkable record and one that arguably makes him the most successful boxer to hail from the region in decades.

He’s a technician, a fighter with burgeoning ability, a willingness to learn, the focus to drive forward and the mentality to succeed - yet incredibly he’s nowhere near the finished article.

And those are the reasons why so many have jumped on his bandwagon: “The support was outrageous,” he said. “For almost five hours all you could hear was my fans.

“There were air horns going off and they were singing and chanting all the way through.

“There was 150 of them and it was amazing for an away show.

“It was so good even other fighters were commenting on it in the dressing room.”

Shayne would also like to thank Margaret Duckworth for treating his injuries and Intershape Gym in Colne for their sponsorship.