Ryan Rhodes Motivated To Win Back The European Title

By Terence Dooley

Ryan Rhodes is at his most dangerous when he feels he has something to prove, the evergreen 33-year-old was stripped of his 154lb EBU title after pulling out of a defence against Lukas Konecny, who beat Matthew Hall to win the vacant belt, and the 'Spice Boy' has revealed that the decision, which he considered unjust, is a setback. 

However, Ryan has bounced back before, most notably when stopping Jamie Moore to win the title last October; the Sheffield-based fighter hopes to contest his former strap as soon as his back injury clears up. 

“I was gutted when they vacated the title, as far as I know it's the first time it's been done in that way.  I was peeved about how you can work your heart out to win a European title and it can be taken off you in the click of a finger,” revealed Rhodes when speaking to The South Yorkshire Star.

He added: “Ideally, I will get a warm-up fight before Christmas, an eight to 10-rounder.  But it will be around March time before I get the chance to fight Konecny.  That's a pain, as I haven't boxed since May.  But that's the way it is, so I have to get on with training and preparation as normal.”

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