Boxing returns to the U.K. on Friday. And Brad Foster is thrilled to be at the center of it.
The junior featherweight prospect is scheduled to defend his British and Commonwealth titles against James Beech Jr. in the main event of a five-bout card at the BT Studios in London, the first show in Britain since the coronavirus took hold.
No spectators will be allowed at ringside but plenty are expected to tune in on television.
“You saw the craziness and interest when football came back last month and it’s the same with boxing, lots of boxing fans want their live boxing back and my fight is the first main event after lockdown,” Foster told ESPN.
“A lot of eyes will be on me and that’s why I’m going in there to shine, to impress. People haven’t watched boxing for ages so they will be tuning in on Friday night. A lot of people are staying in at the moment and there’s not much else to watch on Friday.
“People will want to watch it, so it might well be my largest audience.”
Foster (12-0-2, 5 KOs) understands that things will be different fighting amid a pandemic.
No crowd. Tightly controlled environment. Coronavirus testing. All of it. The former kickboxer will have to adjust but pointed out that everything will be familiar once he steps through the ropes.
“I’m going down there for business, not a holiday,” he said. “I’ve got to go down and stay in a hotel all week [beginning Tuesday] so we self isolate, and that’s going to be weird.
“It will be different but the job is still the same and the aim is still the same, to come back home with the belts.”
Foster, a 23-year-old from Lichfield, England, last fought on Feb. 22, when he stopped Lucien Reid in six rounds. Among his sparring partners for that fight: Beech (12-0, 2 KOs).
The coronavirus pandemic took hold the following month, making training for all boxers an unusual challenge. Foster told ESPN that he has had sufficient sparring in preparation for Beech but training in general has been unusual, to say the least.
“You haven’t got the facilities you normally have, and had to train on your own for a while,” he said. “I like to go to David Lloyd (a gym and fitness club) for the steam rooms and saunas. It’s good for the muscles and recovery, but I’ve not been able to do that because they’ve all been closed.
“But I’ve had some good sparring, that’s not been a problem. Even if I didn’t get the sparring in, I’ve fought before without sparring like when I first won the British title.
“I’ve worked hard and all my focus has been on this next fight.”
