By Dean Parr
Exciting Romford-based cruiserweight Tony Conquest, 3-0 (1 early), is due to have his next outing on the April 24th Goodwin Promotions bill at the famous York Hall in Bethnal Green. Ahead of this bout, the Jason Rowland-trained fighter is confident, and looking to put on a show.
“I can't wait,” said Conquest of the next battle in his career. “I'm new to the pro ranks and still finding my feet. Every fight is a chance to develop and progress in my career. Also, this will be my first fight for Steve Goodwin after three with Miranda Carter, so I'm quite excited about that too.”
“I found out today that I'm going to be boxing a guy called Dermus Keklik who is making his pro debut,” he continued. “I know he's been around a bit as an amateur, boxing abroad and so on, but other than that, not a lot. He's going to want to make an impression and I have to make sure he doesn't. I'll approach this job just like the others, I work very hard in the gym with Jason [Rowland] and so I'm quietly confident of doing a good job on the night.”
Last time out, Tony defeated John Anthony on points, with the fight being scored 59-55 in his favour. Romford's 'Conqueror' was generally happy with his showing, although one mistake tarnished happenings somewhat.
“I was annoyed that having put John on the floor inside a minute, I got a bit carried away and ended up on my backside a few seconds later. I was chuffed that I managed to get up, get control of the fight and box quite well for the rest of the fight. John was a lot bigger than me and taught me some valuable lessons, it was a terrific learning fight for me,” admitted Conquest.
Even with the learning aspect of that bout, though, Conquest considers another fight to be his most memorable to date. “I suppose from a fans' point of view it would have to be my retirement win over Nick Okoth,” he told.
“He's a tough nut, Nick, and not many do to him what I managed to, so hopefully, that one will have got the boxing public looking out for me. From a personal viewpoint though, although as I said I got punished for a silly mistake but I feel I performed well [in the Anthony fight] to turn it round.”
Another thing that comes across with Tony is that he is evidently an ambitious fighter, albeit grounded and determined to prove himself. “I'd be disappointed not to make a Lonsdale belt my own,” he admitted.
“Ideally I'd like to be mortgage free and set for life when I pack up; anything more than that would be a massive bonus. I work hard in the gym and in Jason Rowland I think I'm lucky to have a trainer that knows exactly what is required to be a champion.”
Conquest carried on to outline why he began partaking in boxing in the first place. He said, “I was extremely obese as a youngster, at my heaviest I was over twenty stone. I was never very happy at school and I was a bit of a sod to be honest. One day, I looked in the mirror and thought, ‘No more’. I went to Dagenham amateur boxing club and to be honest, boxing turned my life round. Money is a big factor, but I want to be a champion and spoken about as a good fighter long after I've packed up.”
To conclude, Conquest had a message to put out there for his loyal supporters. “I'm loving every minute of my career at the moment,” beamed Tony. “I never realised that juggling a full time job, with pro-boxing and as a ticket salesman, would be so demanding. Hopefully as I start to make a few quid, I can give up work and dedicate myself to the sport full time. I'd just like to say a big thank you for taking the time to talk to me and to all the people who spend their hard earned money to come and see me.”
