Boxing: Latin fire threatens Ricky Burns

Andreas Volden Evensen of Norway is an interesting chap. Born in Bogota, Colombia, and adopted by a Norwegian couple at the age of four months, the 24-year-old makes his living in the boxing ring, fighting out of a country where the professional form of the sport is prohibited.

Evensen is the top-ranked pro featherweight in Norway. Then again, he is the only pro featherweight in Norway.

A man who took up boxing "so I could beat up my big brother Bjorn," as he joked, Evensen has never fought professionally in either his native land or adoptive country, yet this has not stopped him putting together an impressive record of 13 wins, five by stoppage, and one narrow loss on points to Canada's Benoit Gaudet, who later became the North American super-featherweight champion.

Next Saturday at the Braehead Arena in Glasgow, Evensen will face Ricky Burns to try to relieve the Scot of the world super-featherweight championship that he won in such marvellously dramatic fashion in September, when he climbed off the canvas to beat Roman Martinez on points in what will surely be voted Britain's fight of the year in next month's poll.

Now the WBO Inter-continental featherweight champion, Evensen has earned the right to take on Burns by winning seven straight contests, and he showed British audiences what he is capable of with a fifth round stoppage of Gianpiero Contestabile of Italy in Manchester in September last year.

His five-year pro career came after an excellent amateur appenticesehip - the unpaid version of the sport is not banned in Norway - in which he had 42 wins in 52 contests and ended with a spell in Cuba, the mecca of amateur boxing.

The man himself is charming, speaks impeccable English and there is still a huge following for him in Norway, despite the ban on pro boxing. So much so that around 30-40 Norwegian media people are expected ringside at Braehead.

The biggest problem for Evensen is that he is stepping up from featherweight to super-featherweight to take on Burns.

The Scot is noticeably taller and has a longer reach than Evensen, who, by the way, very much considers himself Norwegian rather than Colombian, even though he has his place and date of birth tattooed on his chest.

"I was raised in a small village near Trondheim," said Evensen. "I feel 99 per cent Norwegian because I have grown up in the Norwegian culture. The other one per cent is the Latino temperament, and maybe in my fighting style you'll see some Latino, too."

For a man displaced from his native country in infancy, Evensen has a well-grounded attitude.That is due to his adoptive family which includes a sister born blind, and he dedicates a part of each summer to spending time with her.

Sandra, 29, loves football, and when they attend Rosenborg BK matches, Evensen provides a running commentary for her.

"My hero as a little kid was Harald Brattbakk, who later played for Celtic," said Evensen. "I tried football and lots of other sports but it was boxing that suited me most."

At times, Evensen almost has the studious air of the bespectacled Brattbakk, yet all the calm rationality in the world will not be enough to keep Burns out of his face.

"I have been sparring with welterweights and people who box like Ricky Burns," said Evensen. "I am preparing to meet a taller and stronger guy and I'm used to fighting people who are taller than me.

"I am preparing for the worst and hoping for the best. I don't think Ricky is as strong as the welterweights and junior middleweights that I have been sparring with. I feel very prepared for the fight and I'm looking forward to getting to Glasgow on Tuesday."

To have a real hope of winning, Evensen must connect with the Burns chin but the Scot has never been stopped in his 31 professional contests, his two losses to former world champion Alex Arthur and former British champion Carl Johanneson both coming on points.

Evensen knows the Coatbridge man will be tough: "Ricky is very strong and has a longer reach than me.

"I am preparing to meet a guy with four arms and four legs" - he meant the pun on forearms - "and I will have to be extraordinary on the night. I have to be more than my best, I have to be extraordinary."

The exchanges between Evensen and Burns have been conducted in a pleasant and respectful manner, such a contrast to the trash talk that hyped up the David Haye-Audley Harrison heavyweight world title contest in Manchester that ended so disappointingly.

"Ricky is a nice guy and I'll have a lot of respect for him before and after the fight but during the fight I am going to take that title."

For his part, the equally polite and charming Burns said: "I treat every fighter with respect but once I step inside the ring I have a job to do and one way or another I will be taking Andreas out."

The introductory pleasantries will be over at about 10pm next Saturday night, when their own little war will commence.

More then 4,000 tickets have already been sold and the remaining few hundred are expected to go quickly. The cold spell may well last through next weekend but, on Saturday night, Braehead will be the hottest place in town.