Angus McLaren, 22, who works at Pure Body Health in Dunmow High Street, won the Essex Boxing Association Southern Regional Championships at a packed Brentwood Centre on March 17, defeating the reigning champion in front of more than 2,000 spectators.
Angus ran the London Marathon, took part in the Inter-County Races and taught boxercise classes when he was 18 and still a student, before taking up competitive combat sports a year and a half ago. His win at the Brentwood Centre was just his sixth competitive bout.
He said: “I love boxing. There’s nothing I don’t like about it. I also like the nerves before a fight. It gives me energy.”
He added: “I was looking for something that I could put all my energy into. It’s very easy to train, but at the end of the day it’s just training, so I wanted to test my strength.”
Angus began a 10-week training programme ahead of the fight, losing around one stone in weight in preparation and was coached by John Ox and Adrian Martin from Box2Burn. “Throughout the training my coaches really made me feel positive about the fight. They told me ‘you can do it, you can beat this guy’ so I felt I could do it. They showed me it wasn’t just guesswork.”
“It was my first time fighting a southpaw so it was more difficult because it’s basically like looking at a mirror image. Before the fight, I have to study how he fights, how he moves and what stance he takes.” Southpaw is a term used to refer to a left-handed boxer.
Thirty-five of Angus’ family and friends were there that night to watch him take home the heavy black and gold championship belt. After his opponent withdrew from the bout, Angus won by technical knockout. After the match, he and five friends from the boxing club who had also attended the match headed to the Victoria Arms pub for a well-deserved celebration.
