Boxing: Lochend boxer Aston Brown in better shape for second World Series bout

LOCHEND’S middleweight boxer Aston Brown will make his second appearance tonight for the British Lionhearts when he is pitched against opponent Olexandr Strets’kyy of Ukraine Otamans in the World Series of Boxing (WSB) event in Kiev.

The 21-year-old suffered defeat in his debut bout in Kazakhstan last month but admits he expects a much improved performance after being thrown in at the deep end in his previous outing.

Brown said: “Kazakhstan was a bit of a rush and I only had two days’ notice. My last fight was pretty close and a lot of people thought I’d won it but it was a great experience. However, this time I have had a lot more time to prepare.

“It is very difficult to win away from home in the WSB. The home nations have got that extra support and I suppose it’s like a football match so you’re up against it. It’s nothing to do with the judges, it’s more to do with the travelling and adjusting to the time zone but I think we have a good chance of winning tonight.”

Brown, a team-mate of Josh Taylor at both club and international level, believes victory in the Ukrainian Capital will leave the squad in a position to challenge for top-spot in Group B.

He added: “We’ve bounced back from Kazakhstan and beat Germany at home but we know we’re not going to win every match we go into. In saying that we think we have a good chance of getting out of the group.

“I’ve been working on a lot of different things since I came back from Kazakhstan and I’m really enjoying being involved in the WSB and would like to do a few seasons.”