Five days ago, cruiserweight Pat Brown won the fifth fight of his professional career, stopping Felix Valera inside just two rounds. Perhaps the only thing more impressive than the performance itself was the fact that for Brown this fight with Valera, a former WBA “interim” champion at light-heavyweight, was his fifth in just seven months. That, at a time when many prospects act like champions and take extended breaks, is not only unusual in 2025 but a testament to the Mancunian’s drive and ambition.
Indeed, if you were not sold on the 25-year-old’s ambition beforehand, the sight of him travelling to Orlando, Florida to finish the year should have been a sign that this is no ordinary prospect. Instead, Brown is being moved at a breakneck pace by both his coach, Jamie Moore, and his promoter, Eddie Hearn, and is already being showcased in America with the view to one day fighting there in more meaningful fights.
He has that kind of potential, you see. Last week’s trip to Orlando was just the start. It was, for those who know what they are looking at, no more than a taster – a sign of things to come.
“It was unbelievable, to be honest,” said Moore, reflecting on their time in Orlando. “It’s a really nice resort and the fight week itself was nothing like the fight weeks we’ve [Moore and his other fighters] had in the past – in Vegas, or in New York. Last week we found that the resort was a real holiday-type resort. There were a lot of kids there going to Disney World and stuff like that.
“But in many ways I think that helped Pat. He had a lot of pressure on his shoulders for someone who is still early into his professional career. Suddenly there is a lot of expectation on him to perform and that, combined with the expectation he puts on himself, is a lot for someone his age. I think in a way it helped that the setting wasn’t predominantly ‘boxing’. There were other things going on, which made for a nice distraction for him when boxing for the first time in America. It was a bit more laidback in Orlando – it wasn’t as intense as it has been in Vegas or New York, for instance.
“But you’ve still got the same experience in terms of the commissions and the fight itself, so it’s good to now have that box ticked before he’s asked to go over there in a bigger fight. He’s already walked that path. But the rest of the stuff – the pressure, the expectation – he didn’t have to deal with. It was the best of both worlds, really.”
Certainly, if one was to judge Brown’s mood by his performance, words like composed, relaxed and focused would immediately spring to mind. There was no tension, either in his body or during his attempt to finish Varela, and everything, as often it does whenever Brown smells blood, seemed to flow naturally, seamlessly. He didn’t have to force anything, nor did he have to go looking for a wounded animal. He just did what he has been programmed to do – and quickly.
“The first shot he hit him [Varela] with didn’t really catch him clean, it landed high behind his ear, but I saw how he reacted to it and I thought, God, this is going to go quick,” said Moore. “Never in a million years, though, did I think it would go that quick.”
Afterwards Brown used his post-fight interview to pay tribute to his father, Mike, whose dedication to his son’s passion growing up is currently paying dividends with his boy now a man. Last week, for example, was the first time Brown’s father had ever flown business class and that, Brown said, was the least he deserved for all the years his father spent ferrying him back and forth to the boxing gym and various fight venues.
“I’ve known his dad for a long time, but it was great to be out there with him and get to know him on a deeper level,” said Moore. “I had some really long conversations with him. We would meet up every morning and have a coffee before everybody else got out of bed. We would sit there in the hotel lobby and put the world to rights for a couple of hours.
“He was telling me that he had only ever been on holiday to Spain before, so he was over the moon that Pat is now in a position to take him over there and show him another part of the world. He just loved being able to share the experience with him. He was absolutely in his element out there. It was great to see.”
As for what comes next for Brown, the message is clear: a rest, then titles. But still, there is no rush. Given his frantic and thrilling start to life as a pro, perhaps the best thing now is to take the foot off the pedal ever so slightly and allow everybody, including Brown himself, to calm down a bit. After all, it doesn’t take long to burn out in this sport, nor, in the case of Pat Brown, will it take long for people to get carried away or ahead of themselves. Already, in fact, some are labelling Brown, 5-0 (5 KOs), the most exciting prospect to emerge in the UK this year and one can sense the urgency to now put him in tougher tests, with titles on the line.
“When he turned over,” said Moore, “he had a good chat with Eddie [Hearn] and he said, ‘I don’t want to be one of these guys who is fighting every four months. I want to be really active right up until I start fighting for titles.’ He understands the importance of having a break in between [title fights] and getting the right amount of rest, because the camps are so long. But he wants to be active and that won’t change. For the first year or so he was adamant that he was going to be active and, fair play to Eddie, he has stuck to his word and kept him really busy.”
Moore, a former British, Commonwealth and European champion in his own right, then revealed: “Moving forward, I think we’re going to be moving towards title fights. We’re probably looking at the winner of [John] Hedges and [Ellis] Zorro for the English title. [Hedges and Zorro fight in London on December 17.] So the activity will probably drop a little bit next year, but he’ll certainly be out again four or five times in 2026.
“We’re going to sit back now and just wait for the outcome of Hedges and Zorro and I think the break will be good for him. It will be good for him mentally as much as physically. I think he needs a break. It’s been a hectic schedule up to now and he has received a lot of attention. That brings massive lifestyle changes, in terms of going from being unknown to having everyone patting you on the back and congratulating you. It’s a lot. It’s a lot for anyone to take on and it’s a lot for a fighter to take on in their first year as a pro. So, yeah, he’ll have a little bit of a break now – have a holiday, enjoy Christmas – and we’ll then look to get him out again in the middle or end of March.”
Such is the impression Pat Brown has managed to make in 2025, he need not fear being forgotten. If he wants to take some time off to reflect and recharge, let him. We will all be waiting for his return in the new year.
