John Joyce battles to debut win on big card

Former standout underage amateur John Joyce registered a debut victory in Yorkshire last night.

The Moate southpaw got off the mark with a points win on the BT Sport-broadcast Josh Warrington versus Kid Galahad undercard at the First Direct Arena in Leeds.

Having relocated to Scotland to train with Billy Nelson, Joyce was confirmed for the Queensberry stable earlier this month and made his bow on the outfit’s biggest card of the year thus far.

The talented five-time European medallist skipped the four-round stage of his pro apprenticeship, going straight into six rounders and got a good work-out in versus Victor Edagha.

The ultra-durable Italian gave Joyce a test but the Irish prospect emerged a 59-56 winner – winning four, losing one, and drawing one round.

The result sees Joyce’s brand new professional read 1(0)-0.

Having ended his career in the vest at middleweight, 21-year-old Joyce now looks likely to transition into the light middleweight division.