BIRMINGHAM, England – Cameron Vuong believes that, unlike in their first contest, the time is now perfect to take on Gavin Gwynne.
The young Vuong was given the tough assignment by his team of taking on the former British and European champion Gwynne in just his seventh professional outing in November 2024. Many were shocked to see Vuong, who is managed by Sam Jones, slung in with a veteran of the game so early, and it showed in the ring. Vuong was given a tough night’s work by Gwynne, who, as always, set a high-pace and pressed the action from the off. After 10 hard rounds it seemed obvious to all those who watched the contest that Gwynne had certainly done enough, but surprisingly Vuong was awarded the decision unanimously.
Talk of a rematch started immediately, but Vuong first set his sights on a new opponent, Jordan Flynn, dealing with him spitefully and impressively inside seven rounds in March. Then came a surprising decision to many onlookers: Vuong parted ways with trainer Jamie Moore after a career best performance and headed down to Essex to join Ben Davison’s growing stable of fighters. Vuong was given an eight-round run out against Reuquen Cona Facundo Arce with his new setup in September, winning unanimously. Now it seems his team believes he is ready for Gwynne once more — and Vuong believes so too.
“To be honest, perfect timing for me; maybe not for Gav [Gwynne], but definitely for me,” Vuong told BoxingScene. “Timing is everything, and if I'm being completely honest, the first fight maybe was a little bit too early. But I've got a lot of respect for Gav and what he's done in the sport. There's mutual respect there this time, because at the end of the day we had a 10-round war the first time. But what I've learnt in a year, the amount I've learnt, I can't put into words. It's been unbelievable.
“Gwynne is going to come and have a go. He's going to bring it. That's what he does, that's all he can do. It's no secret what he's going to try and do. He's going to try and replicate what he did the first time, but I'm ready for that this time round. People forget it was my seventh pro fight. To be honest, I underestimated him. I thought I was going to get in there and play with him, which was immature of me, to be honest. But this time I know exactly what I'm up against, and I'm ready. I've been well prepared, I've had a great camp, and I'm confident. All I can say is I'm ready.”
It will be nearly a year to the day since their first encounter when Vuong steps in the ring at Birmingham’s BP pulse LIVE with Gwynne on Saturday. The majority of that year has been spent with Davison and Lee Wylie down in Essex where Vuong insists he has come on leaps and bounds.
“I was with Jamie [Moore] for the first chapter of my career, but once I moved to Ben it was a real eye-opener,” said Vuong. “It's another level, to be honest. The attention to detail, and not just that, but the time, effort, dedication that Lee and Ben put in. They're more dedicated, arguably, than us. I would say they are more dedicated than us; the time, effort and stuff that they put in. I'm grateful to have such a great team around us, and to be part of such a great stable. All the lads in the gym buzz off each other. Everyone in the gym's in big fights now, so it's great to be around.”
Vuong is not the only one of Moore’s fighters to make the decision to switch things up coming off a win. Jack Catterall, perhaps a man who Moore has received the most praise for his work with, decided to leave his long-term coach and take his talents Stateside to Derek ‘Bozy’ Ennis. Catterall impressed in his first bout under his new trainer with an uncharacteristic brutal finish of Ekow Essuman earlier this month.
“I just wanted a change. Maybe stylistically it wasn't the best match-up for me, but I didn't want to wait until something went wrong and then jump ship,” Vuong said. “I wanted to make that decision, make the improvements, coming off a win, which is what I did. Like I said, it was nothing personal. I've said it before, it was just a business decision. I get along with everyone there, and Jack [Catterall] is my best friend outside of boxing, so I still speak to him every day. Nothing's changed for me.”
