Waseem set to face Jakrawut in WBA title defence

“I am trying my best and doing everything for the big fight night on November 29,” exclaimed Pakistan’s lone World Boxing Association Gold World Bantamweight champion Muhammad Waseem as he prepares to defend his title against Thailand’s Jakrawut Majungoen in boxing’s biggest event.

Waseem has been training in Liverpool with his coach, Danny Vaughan, and will fulfill his dream of defending the title on the pitch.

The 38-year-old also organized the fight in Quetta in May, with the help of Pakistan’s army and the Balochistan government, where international boxers and officials came to the country to watch the first professional fight backed by one of the world’s four recognized boxing bodies.

On Saturday, November 29, the main card features more than seven bouts and the event features at least 38 foreign boxers and six Pakistani boxers at the Garrison Club in Lahore.

Waseem, also known as Falcon, has also partnered with the WBA to promote boxing in Pakistan.

With this fight, it will bring boxers from UK, USA, Mexico, Germany and France, according to details shared by Punjab Sports Minister Faisal Ayub Khokhar, who also toured the Garrison Club for the ‘Fight for Glory’ event.

The provincial minister is also ensuring excellent security arrangements as this will be the first time that the country is hosting 38 foreign boxers simultaneously.

However, for all the hype, Waseem, with his orthodox stance, will face the Jakrawut southpaw, which he has worked hard for.

“I’ve been training really hard because there’s a lot on the line for me,” Waseem told this correspondent from Liverpool, where he trained and put in at least five hours every day.

“The fight plan will be different against Jakrawut than my previous opponent, of course, and mainly focuses on combinations; he’s also a southpaw, so I train accordingly.

Later, he faced Sunny Edwards for the International Boxing Federation world flyweight title in 2021, which he lost, but eventually won another big fight with the WBA Gold World title in May this year.

Waseem has won honors for Pakistan in amateur boxing as well, but his professional record is also impressive, with 14 wins in 16 bouts and 10 knockouts in them.

“Most of the effort goes into strength training, weights and technique, but it also gets very hectic at times because I have to travel at least two hours to Manchester, where I have to spar,” he added.

He added that his partners in the UK have all been helpful in preparing for the fight, as he also receives support from the UK boxing community.

“I had amazing sparring partners, and some of them were also professional boxers, one of them was also Indian, but the rest were English.

“Normally it’s not easy to find sparring partners in the UK, but they help me for nothing, just out of goodwill.

“It’s encouraging, and that’s why I have to travel 40 miles from Liverpool. A lot of my time is spent traveling after training for the match and sometimes it gets difficult being out here, away from my two kids and my family, but I think this event can be a great trend for Pakistan,” said Waseem, who has won the Council 1 title, the Worldwesil and the past. he also defended it in the same year.

He also gets American rapper Mr Cappone-E to open for him, while the focus of it all is to give Pakistani sports fans a taste of professional boxing and more importantly, an opportunity for Pakistani boxers to compete in international competition.

With this event, the goal is to make boxing an accessible sport for fans and boxers alike.

“I come from Quetta and am always connected to the boxing community and it breaks my heart that they are often overlooked and denied life-changing opportunities.

“So my goal is to give them exposure, help professional boxing take root in Pakistan as well. “We also make sure that we help female boxers have their place in our event because at the end of the day, all of this will build our boxing community.

“I am also thankful to the Punjab government and the Army for helping me in this, because holding an event of this magnitude would not have been possible without their support,” he concluded.