LEAMINGTON Spa boxer Lewis Williams says he is feeling no pressure as he fights for Commonwealth Games glory writes William Rogers
Williams, making his Commonwealth Games debut for Team England, is one of the favourites for heavyweight gold in Birmingham, having taken a bronze medal in the 2022 EUBC European Championships in Armenia.
The 6ft 7ins fighter, who is ranked No 1 at the Games, will face Arthur Lavalou of Papua New Guinea in the quarter-finals at the NEC at 3pm on Thursday, August 4, having beaten Nazeer Khan of Pakistan convincingly in the preliminary round.
A unanimous decision on the judges’ scorecards gave him an average of a 30-26 points win after the three rounds.
Should Williams continue his fine form all the way to the final, the gold medal bout will take place at 4.45pm on Sunday, August 7.
After his first fight, Williams praised the home crowd, which he said was bigger than he expected, for their support.
He said, rather than adding extra pressure, it was a massive bonus to have them there. He added that he enjoyed having his family and friends there, adding everybody was watching and supporting and his phone was being bombarded with messages.
“I don’t feel any extra pressure being favourite, I’ve trained hard for it,” he said.
