‘I’ll gain an awful lot from being tested’ -Paul Ryan reflects on tough debut
Paul Ryan [1-0] believes he showed just glimpses of what he can do as he overcame a tough debut test on Saturday night.
The Dubliner was predicting fireworks ahead of his debut but having quickly discovered the massive differences between the amateur and pro games was happy with a light show.
The Bay City and Mulhuddart BC graduate showed a good skill set but took some silly shots from the rough and busy English fighter. Indeed, Hughes had enough success, that he came within a round of denying the debutant Dub, who took some serious flack off his corner at the end of the third, victory.
Speaking to Irish-boxing.com post fight, Ryan didn’t see any drama in the fight being close. He points out his foe has yet to transition into full journey man mode, came motivated to win and had the experience advantage.
As a result the first time was more than happy to get a result and learn as much as possible from his pro bow.
“I think I showed glimpses of what I can do,” he said.
“It was a big occasion for me after a lot of waiting and a tough opponent who came to win but overall I’m happy with the experience and knowledge gained that I can bring with me going forward.”
Hughes certainly doesn’t represent the kind of survival specailist know your role opponent opponent the likes of which most debut against.
The Englishman was fighting to keep his record positive and asked questions of Ryan, something the 21-year-old seemed content with after.
“It was a hard fight. He came to win no doubt about it. This fight was the difference between a winning and a losing record for him, so he really came and put in a hard shift.
“I think it was a good hard test for a debut and I am happy with that. I think the guys at MTK were happy too. They knew it was going to be tough for me they wanted to give me a test straight off the mark. Overall I think it was good for me and I’ll gain an awful lot from being tested.”
Ryan didn’t just have to deal with a test, he also had to overcome the elements of transition. The new to the game prospect, who hadn’t enterted a competitive ring in two years, was somewhat suprised by just how different pro and amateur boxing really are – and ajusting to the differences may have played a part in his performance.
“There are a lot of differences between the two,” he adds.
“It’s a completely different sport, the whole build-up is a lot different. I’m used to weighing in and fighting a few hours later with this there’s a big weigh in then your waiting around for over 24 hours so it’s playing in your mind a lot,” he adds before revealing he hopes to be out soon and regular.
“I’d love to be as active as possible if I could go every eight weeks it would be ideal I’d love to get five in this year.”
The start of a long great journey to the top! Want to say a huge thank you to the team @steviecollins90 @fitzanto and everyone at @mtkglobal for taking great care and looking after me so much. I can’t wait to get back in and improve each time #Boxing #ProBoxing #HardWork pic.twitter.com/W8a4swwfQ2
— Paul Ryan (@paulryanboxing) April 18, 2021
