Hamzah Sheeraz will on Saturday night almost free his family of the £800,000 debt they willingly risked for his boxing career.
The 25-year-old Ilford middleweight captained the Frank Warren Promotions side which defeated Eddie Hearn’s flop side 10-0 in June.
3
3
And his ruthless double-bubble stoppage of American Ammo Williams earned him an ambassadorial role with Saudi boxing supremo Turki Alalshikh, who is funding these spectacular Riyadh Season events around the world.
Casual fans would assume that a few television appearances and a debate with Justin Bieber would have already made Sheeraz a millionaire.
But, unlike the young Premier League players seen on those same TNT and Sky channels, the struggle is far more difficult and costly than for Premier League players who get the chance to live a golden life before they make the big break.
And Saturday’s clash with Midlands finest Tyler Denny at Wembley Stadium will more than make up for the enormous debt his courier father incurred in setting his son on the path to greatness.
He told SunSport: “I’ve never told anyone this figure before but – I’m 25 now and from the age of 18, when I first turned professional – we were about £800,000 in debt, in losses.
“Nobody will believe me, but we’re still paying off part of that debt.”
“Every single penny of it was invested in me and I didn’t understand it at the time, but my dad told me I had to bet on myself, he told me I had to do this.
“They put all their savings into me, and luckily we’re close to paying it back now.”
Casino Specials – Best Casino Welcome Offers
“This is what dreams are made of, showing that total commitment and sacrifice pay off.
“99 per cent of fighters that do this professionally are just trying to make a living and most of them have a second job to help them do that.
How AJ made his way to the top
Anthony Joshua made several attempts to reach the top of the world, only to be knocked down later.
“I was sitting next to Josh Padley at the launch press conference and he told me he was driving his work van full of rubbish to the bins when he got the call.
“It shows that, away from all the glitz and glamour, the funding and opportunities fighters are now receiving are changing lives.”
Shiraz is a caring and respectful family man, just like his rival who helped him by being a willing accomplice in the previous camp.
And he admits that turning friend into foe at the flick of a switch — especially when he knows how dangerous those two heavy hands are — is tough.
“It’s tough, but I have to cool down when I get in the ring,” he said without boasting.
“When I go out there my blood runs cold and I want to get them out of there.
“My mindset is that I have taken this huge burden upon myself and now nothing can come in my way.
“Outside the ring I have nothing bad to say about Tyler, this is the biggest opportunity of his life so I’m sure he worked as hard as I did.
“He has nothing to lose and that’s what makes him dangerous. But that means I have to be dangerous, too.”
After Danny, Shiraz falls for another British partner whom she likes less.
“Chris Eubank Jr is delusional,” he said.
“He was offered a lot of money to fight me, then he said I’m not that big a name.
“But now I know he’s fighting a lesser-known guy for less money.
Read more at The Scottish Sun
“Without his family name he wouldn’t have gotten to where he is. My quest is to become a world champion.
“He talks about becoming a world champion, but he has turned down so many opportunities. So I don’t understand what his mindset or plan is, but I would love to fight him one day soon.”
