En Voyage_Issue#11_Flickbook
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Sport<br />
From the outset, it was Nassa<br />
who set the pace. Watson enjoyed<br />
some rare success in the third, but<br />
rounds four and five saw Nassa<br />
reassert his dominance. He looked<br />
in control. But then came round<br />
six; a flash right hook counter<br />
put Nassa down, and put Watson<br />
on track for one of the biggest<br />
upsets in British boxing this year.<br />
‘People say “Train hard, fight<br />
easy,” but that’s not true. I<br />
trained hard and that fight was<br />
really, really hard,’ said 27-yearold<br />
Watson, whose stunning<br />
display of resilience and stamina<br />
that night earned him the<br />
<strong>En</strong>glish super-flyweight title.<br />
‘Nassa had been in the ring, he<br />
was undefeated and I’d come off<br />
two losses. Everyone thought it<br />
would be an easy fight. I’ve always<br />
been a confident person but I’ll<br />
admit there were doubts. I’d been<br />
sparring with some really heavy<br />
lads, middle-weights, and I’d<br />
say, “Surely, boys, if I hit him on<br />
the chin, he’s going to go down,<br />
right?” I was doubting myself,’ said<br />
Watson, who is the first Guernsey<br />
man ever to claim an <strong>En</strong>glish title.<br />
‘I knew I was the better boxer<br />
but he was so sharp in those first<br />
three or four rounds. In sparring,<br />
it was taking me five rounds to get<br />
into it, so I was hoping it would<br />
level itself out. Obviously, I found<br />
an opening and I went for it.’<br />
By the time the ninth came<br />
around, for the first time in<br />
either fighters’ careers, it was<br />
a battle of the wills, and in<br />
‘NASSA HAD BEEN IN<br />
THE RING, HE WAS<br />
UNDEFEATED AND I’D<br />
COME OFF TWO LOSSES.<br />
EVERYONE THOUGHT IT<br />
WOULD BE AN EASY FIGHT’<br />
the tenth and final round, the<br />
referee waved off the contest.<br />
Watson was the champion,<br />
cementing his reputation in<br />
British boxing and ending years<br />
of professional disappointment.<br />
‘It definitely makes me feel<br />
like all the hard work was worth<br />
it. I thought about having to<br />
jump on the plane home if I’d<br />
lost and how that would feel<br />
after everything I’d worked for.<br />
118 <strong>En</strong> <strong>Voyage</strong> | Aurigny’s Magazine