Abass Baraou breaks down Sam Eggington fight ahead of showdown
Super welterweight contender Abass Baraou (14-1, 9 KOs) offers a confident view ahead of his European title fight against battle-hardened Sam Eggington (34-8, 20 KOs) on March 1, this Friday.
The crossroads matchup takes place at the Telford International Centre, live on channel 5, with Midlands slugger Eggington taking home advantage.
But the thought of fighting on foreign soil, in front of a potentially volatile crowd, does not faze his German opponent, whose credentials at international amateur tournaments show that he is no stranger to the away corner.
In an interview with The Ring, Baraou said: “Sam Eggington is one of the big fights I need to be in. I feel it is the perfect time now to get into this fight and hopefully being more active than in the past years.
“[Eggington] comes all night, he doesn’t back off, he doesn’t duck and fight, he keeps coming and is a tough man but I think I will expose him on fight night.
“His skill and the gaps he leaves open, I will be able to show how skilful and technical I am.
“I think it’s a great fight, fighting a warrior like Sam Eggington, also for the European title.”
While Baraou enjoyed a decorated amateur career, which saw him beat Pat McCormack to win gold at the 2017 European Championships, his stint in the professional ranks has been relatively stop-start.
A recent period of inactivity has not helped the 29-year-old, and his humbling split-decision defeat to former world title challenger Jack Culcay back in 2020 only pumped the breaks on his development.
Now, he takes on ‘The Savage’ who, while starting his career as a journeyman, has previously held the European, British and Commonwealth titles at welterweight.
The 30-year-old comes off a fifth-round stoppage win over big puncher Joe Pigford, with a dominant performance at the Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth in May last year, reigniting his career once more.
‘Magic’ Matty Haris takes on Belgium’s Amine Boucetta on the undercard in his bid to rebuild after his upset loss to Kostiantyn Dovbyshchenko in Edinburgh in July 2023, which will see new trainer Peter Fury in his corner.