Declan Cairns secures sixth straight win
25-year-old Declan Cairns (6-0, 1KO) defeated Mexican opponent Fernando Valencia (9-37, 5KO) 40-36 on points at the North Notts Arena in his home town of Worksop on July 9.
The undefeated southpaw topped the five-fight Boxing Connected card last weekend.
He said of the tough test immediately after victory, "First off, respect to my opponent, a tough man, fair play to him.
"Managed to dig deep and get the win tonight, was a tough night's work considering the past week being badly with talks of pulling out of the fight.
"The fight went well, I took charge and stayed sharp, making sure I was in and out watching for anything coming back and making him miss. I kept him at bay with my jab, controlling the distance between us.
"Caught him with some heavy shots through the fight but he wasn't budging anywhere, a tough and durable man, but I'm happy to get the win and another four rounds under my belt.
"Thank you to all my supporters there tonight, you all got me through giving me that extra bit in the tank when needed. Yet again another good turnout and plenty of noise!
"Last of all, thank you to all of my sponsors for supporting me throughout my career, making it possible for me to do what I do."
Trained by Michael White and Gil White at the Fighting Fit gym, this was Cairns' fourth fight within 10 months, keen to be as active as possible after his first two fights in 2019 saw his combat career placed on hold due to COVID-19.
The bricklayer began boxing aged 10 at Manton ABC in his local Worksop area and experienced seven amateur bouts before turning pro three years ago.
Cairns has moved up a level in his last two fights, firstly against WBA Fedebol super-featherweight champion Berman Sanchez, who has shared the ring with Miguel Berchelt and Jorge Linares in back to back fights in 2012 and 2013. With 22 KOs from 30 victories, the lesser experienced Cairns was able to comfortably win all four rounds against the dangerous puncher in their fight last March.
And now he has just beaten a tough opponent who had the same number of knockouts as Declan had fights.
He plans to continue his progression by stepping up to six-rounds in his next fight, "I'm looking at getting out again in September in a six-rounder," he added. "Then I'll be looking at titles at super-welterweight."
