'Booth is my hardest fight, without a doubt' - Scott Quigg

The time has come for Scott Quigg to be let off the leash and face by far the biggest test of his career.

Quigg steps up on Saturday night in front of the Sky TV cameras against a quality operator in the way of current British super-bantamweight champ and former world title challenger Jason Booth.

23 year-old Quigg, from Bury, has been ticking over during the past 12 months, winning all seven of his contests against a good variety of international opponents. It’s clear to see that Booth has the advantage in the experience stakes but Quigg feels the bouts he has taken part in the last year have improved him sufficiently to be ready for the challenge ahead.

“After each fight I feel I have gradually improved and the level of opposition I have been fighting has got better in the last year. Each boxer I have faced in the last year has been bought in to test me and I have been winning comfortably. Now I think we're ready for the next step up and that’s why I’m fighting Jason Booth on Saturday. I have been building up slowly and now i'm ready to be let off the leash to show everyone what I can do."

Jason Booth has been fighting professionally since 1996 and has been involved in some memorable fights culminating in his well deserved, albeit unsuccessful world title shot versus Canadian Steve Molitor last year.

Jason has a boxing CV to be proud of and Scott is well aware this is by far his toughest test to date.

“Oh yes, this is my hardest fight without a doubt. Jason has fought at world level and has been around along time. The experience he has gained and the boxing knowledge he has got from being around the sport for so long is great. He is an overall good quality fighter. I’m sure he is going to show me things that I have not seen before but I have prepared very well to make sure I don’t fall into any of his traps. I’m under no illusions this is going to be a very hard fight but one that I am very confident of winning at the same time.” 　

Scott has been chomping at the bit to get this British title opportunity. There have been a lot of cases lately when boxers have been fighting for the Lonsdale belt after ten or so fights. Saturday nights bout will be Scott’s 23rd outing but he feels things have panned out perfectly for him.

“I think it's come at the right time, there was talk that I would get a shot earlier but i’m glad that it didn’t work out to be honest, this fight has come at exactly the right time for me to take my career to the next level. Everyone wants to win the British title and I’m very confident that on Saturday I will come away the winner.

“This is why I came into boxing to be involved in fights like this. People say good things about me and they believe I can go onto big things and this is when I find out if I can.”

Last time out Booth challenged Kiko Martinez for the European title and got stopped in the 10th round. Booth had never been stopped before in his career so is there any chance he could be on the decline? Scott has still prepared himself for the very best Jason Booth.

“He boxed Kiko last time out and he didn’t perform as bad as people are saying. I think he got messed about going to Spain. We all know he is getting on a bit and he may have seen better days when he was younger, that’s just natural but I have prepared for the best Jason Booth ever. He is the one with the experience and I am the one with the youth and freshness but that can all be neglected if I don’t use it in the right way. I’ve got to be smart with the pressure I put on him."

The success stories coming out of Joe Gallagher’s gym over the past couple of years cannot go unnoticed. Scott has recently switched to Joe and feels after this move his boxing is revitalised and he is buzzing about the sport again after going through a stage in his career where things weren’t going quite as he would have liked.

“I have changed camps a bit lately, I used to train with Brian Hughes and then he retired, then I trained with Pat Barrett for my last fight. The training and the skill work I was doing with Pat was good but it got to the stage where I was the only pro in the gym and I felt I just wanted to better myself. I was training on my own a lot so I spoke to Pat and I left him on good terms and decided I would move to Joe Gallagher’s gym.

“It’s been the best move I could have made now I share the gym with Anthony Crolla, Paul Smith, Stephen Smith and Joe Murray, there is so much competitiveness in the gym you cant help but thrive off it. Previously I have been the main fighter in the gym and everyone looked up to me but I wanted to take a step back and go somewhere that I had to prove myself again. The banter in the gym is great; I’m actually training with a smile on my face again.” 　

Scott has a very bright future so a win on Saturday night will no doubt open many doors for the young super-bantamweight. He fights in an extremely competitive division stacked with world class fighters but is no real hurry for an opportunity to conquer the world.

“I’m ranked number three by the WBA and I think number four with the IBF. It’s all about getting the fights at the right time and being ready to make that move up to world class. Don’t get me wrong I’m not looking past Booth but there are a couple of good fights at domestic level like Rendall Monroe, Carl Frampton and Kiko Martinez on the European stage that I would be interested in.

"I would like to defend the British title a couple of times and then maybe fight for the European title while gaining experience and getting ready for the move to the next level because the jump between European and world class is huge.” 　

Scott is right when he says the gulf between European level and world level is huge, but he does feel he has the tools to make it to the top of his game. His philosophy about getting to the top is spot on.

"I believe I can get to the top but it’s about getting there at the right time so when you do get there, you’re good enough to stay there. As quick as you can get to world level it can all come crashing down a lot quicker!"

Image courtesy Mark Robinson/Hatton Promotions