Hayemaker Boxing: George “The Saint” Groves Returns To Action

Hot Hammersmith super middleweight George Groves makes a return to competitive action on Sunday, October 4, as he headlines Hayemaker 10 from Bethnal Green’s historic York Hall.

Out of the ring since April, Londoner Groves will face an opponent soon to be announced at one of his favourite British boxing venues.

Fighting for the second time as a pro in his home city, Groves is eager to put on a career-best performance.

“I was gutted about not boxing on the cancelled July 4th show in Liverpool and it feels like it’s been ages since I’ve been in the ring,” admits Groves, 4-0 (3) as a hard-hitting super middleweight prospect.

“It’s now the new season and I can’t wait to get back and fight in London again. I’m chuffed to be boxing at the York Hall and am eager to kick off the new season with a bang.”

Nicknamed ‘The Saint’, Groves’ last two pro outings have exhibited the devilish intent the former two-time ABA champion possesses. He blitzed Welsh veteran Paul Samuels inside a round in March and then followed up with a similarly explosive dismantling of unbeaten Sandor Polgar in April.

Still only 21 years of age, Groves now craves even bigger tests.

“After this fight in October, I’ll be looking to fight someone with a big name – someone that will allow me to make a statement,” he says.

“My best opponent so far is Samuels and I want an even bigger step up than him before the end of the year. I was a two-bout novice going in against a former title challenger in Samuels, but now I’m looking for the next step. We’ve had all summer to look at possible opponents and I’m ready for whoever it is we decide on.”

While Groves has had to patiently wait for pro bout number five, the ambitious puncher has done plenty of priceless learning in various gyms around Europe.

“I’ve been treating my sparring sessions as if they’re real fights and that has meant that all the sparring I’ve been doing has been super-competitive,” explains Groves, who will soon venture to Italy to spar Silvio Branco ahead of his WBC light heavyweight title shot.

“I’ve been sparring all around Europe and in most cases have been sparring as soon as I jump off the plane. I’ve not been 100% like I would be for a fight and that makes the sparring, in a way, harder than most of the fights I will have for the first couple of years as a pro.

“I’m also sparring world champions, European champions and number one contenders, so these guys are at the top of the sport. Sparring fighters like that can only bring you on leaps and bounds.

“I’ll now be going into future fights knowing that I’ve shared sparring sessions with better fighters than my opponent. My next opponent is not going to be any better than someone like Carl Froch, Giacobbe Fragomeni, Domenico Spada or Silvio Branco - I’m pretty sure of that. If he is - bring it on.”