BIG-HITTING Lewis Crocker has been forced to postpone his pro debut after undergoing surgery on a nose problem last week.
The former Holy Trinity banger, now being coached by John Breen, had been due to make his professional bow on the Boxnation show at Belfast’s Titanic Exhibition Centre on Saturday.
However, the troublesome nose has put paid to those plans after he had surgery last Thursday and Friday.
In a statement released on social media, Crocker said: “Absolutely devastated to be withdrawn from my fight next week.
“Anyone who knows me knows the training and dedication I’ve put in for this fight and to be told I can’t fight doesn’t seem real.
“Been having problems with it the last lot of weeks and just thought maybe it was a blocked nose because of the cold or something but it was obviously much more serious and I’m lucky I got it checked when I did or I could’ve had problems with it permanently.”
Crocker revealed he had still hoped to be fit to fight after getting out of hospital, but soon realised the seriousness of the situation and he is not allowed to exercise in any form for the next fortnight.
He added: “It’s definitely better to be smart rather than brave. “I’m 19, I have all the time in the world, I could beat myself up about it or just take it as it is and come back stronger and that’s what I’ll do.”
CELTIC welterweight champion Paddy Gallagher is to face the undefeated Tamuka Mucha in an eliminator for the British welterweight title on Friday, November 18.
Gallagher will take on Mucha on the undercard of George Groves’s fight with Eduard Gutknecht at London’s SSE Arena, with the Belfast brawler bidding to keep up his winning ways by making it six in-a-row.
He looked very impressive last time out with a devastating first round stoppage of Wales’s previously undefeated Tony Dixon on the undercard of Lee Haskins’s IBF bantamweight title defence against Ivan Morales back in May.
“Tamuka Mucha is a good fighter but he’s not on my level,” said the 27-year-old, who won a Commonwealth Games gold medal in Delhi six years ago.
“They call him ‘The Beast’ but as Mike Tyson once said, ‘everybody wants to be a beast until it’s time to do what beasts do’. We’re going to find out if Tamuka Mucha really is a beast.”
Mucha was ringside in Cardiff to see Gallagher stop gym-mate Dixon, but insists there will be no repeat this time around.
He said: “This is the big opportunity I’ve been waiting for. Paddy’s a good fighter.
“My preparation is going well, I’ve had quality sparring with Josh Taylor and Ahmet Patterson and I can’t wait to steal the show.”
