Exclusive: Matchroom prospect Jimmy Sains opens up on pro boxing transition ahead of latest bout

The 22-year-old was recently signed by Eddie Hearn’s promotional giant Matchroom and made his pro debut last September.

The Brit picked up a third round TKO victory over Poland’s Bartlomiej Stryczek at London’s Wembley Arena.

“My first opponent, he came to fight for the first minute and a half and then went into a defensive shell,” Sains told Planet Sport.

“It made it a bit harder for me to find openings. I think I was a bit one paced, looking for the stoppage a little bit, forcing it. This time, I really want to get into my boxing.”

This weekend, Sains will exchange leather with Jesus Lobeto at Newcastle Arena in just his second pro outing.

The middleweight said: “I’m looking forward to it. The first one [pro fight] I was trying to take everything in, the whole build-up of the fight, the weigh-in, the press conference. But now I just want to focus on my performance. I’m really excited to get back in there.”

Sains admitted he found the transition from amateur to professional boxing rather seamless due to his long standing working relationship with trainer Tony Sims.

When asked about the transition, Sains added: “It’s no different from the amateurs. Obviously, you get paid which is a lot better.

“In amateurs I was training just as hard. I’ve been in the gym training with Tony for the last three years, I feel like by the end of amateurs, I was already doing this sort of stuff so it was quite a smooth transition into the pros.”

Sains will be boxing on the undercard of Shabaz Masoud’s super-bantamweight clash with Jose Sanmartin.

When asked what fans can expect from him, the Brit said: “I’d like to say that I’m a good boxer, like to get behind the jab. But I’ve also got a bit of power in my shots. I’d like to say I’m an explosive boxer.”

Fans can watch Sains in action against Lobeto on DAZN this Saturday evening.