Tevita Pangai Junior will step into the boxing ring to make his professional debut this weekend, and nobody will be more nervous than the Bulldogs’ top brass.
The new Canterbury forward will fight in a heavyweight bout against Gerico Cecil, himself a former Queensland Cup player.
Oddly enough, Bulldogs general manager of football Phil Gould was more worried about the club’s reputation than his prized recruit’s health.
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“He just said, ‘Make sure you don’t make the club look bad’,” Pangai Jr told The Daily Telegraph.
Pangai will fight on Saturday night and then leave for Sydney the following day to get ready for his first pre-season training session on Monday.
The fight will go for four rounds, and Pangai is actually giving up a slight weight disadvantage to Cecil, who weighs in at 120kg to the former Bronco’s 114kg.
They will both fight for the first time, and it will be on the undercard of Issac Hardman v Adam Stowe.
Hardman is one of the fastest-rising stars in Australian boxing, a former MMA fighter who has racked up a perfect record since switching gloves, recording 11 wins, nine of them knockouts.
He is rumoured to fight Michael Zerafa in early 2022 and, although he’s a very short-priced favourite this weekend, he’s not getting ahead of himself.
“I do have an opponent in front of me on December 4 and I’m not overlooking him,” he told Fight News Australia.
“I have people in my DMs all the time saying that I’m going to smash him, this and that, and asking me about Zerafa already. I’m not even thinking about Zerafa yet; I’ve gotta get through Adam, you know.”
The 25-year-old isn’t gaining a lot but is risking everything. He’s acknowledged that a big pay day against Zerafa could be off the table if he suffers a huge upset in the meantime.
“He’s a hard-nosed, gritty fighter and will keep coming at you but, as my finance says, I have to treat every fight as if it’s for a world title,” he told the Moreton Daily.
When is Hardman vs Stowe?
The card, live from Fortitude Valley in Queensland, will take place on Saturday, December 4.
What time will Hardman v Stowe start?
The fight card will kick off at 6:30pm (AEDT).
How to watch Hardman v Stowe?
The card will be broadcast live on Kayo and Fox Sports.
Tale of the Tape
Issac Hardman
Nationality: Australia
Date of Debut: July 14, 2017
Total Fights: 11
Record: 11-0 (9 KOs)
Adam Stowe
Nationality: Australian
Date of Debut: December 9, 2017
Total Fights: 10
Record: 6-2-2 (4 KOs)
Odds
(At time of writing)
Issac Hardman to win $1.02
Adam Stowe to win $11
(Odds from Bet365)
What is the full fight card?
Subject to change
Isaac Hardman v Adam Stowe – middleweight
Andrew Hunt v Ben Kite – welterweight
Jai Opetaia v Daniel Russell – cruiserweight
Faiga Opelu v Lucas Browne – heavyweight
Dana Coolwell v Miles Zalewski – super featherweight
Ankush Hooda v John Ake – middleweight
Tevita Pangai Jnr. v Gerico Cecil – heavyweight
Taylah Robertson v Kylie Fulmer – banthamweight
Termoana Jnr v Hunter Sam – heavyweight
Adam Copland v James Honey – super middleweight
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