MY toughest fight was probably against Charles Adamu [pictured above] in 2004 because that was my first 12-round fight against quite an established pro for the Commonwealth title.
I had never done 12 rounds before so I found myself holding back, it was tough physically and mentally and it was one of my biggest milestones as a pro. George Groves boxed Adamu six years later, and beat him, but Adamu was a shadow of his former self by that point.
But I can’t then say Jermain Taylor wasn’t really tough after getting knocked down in round three. The first fight against Groves was tough for a few rounds but it was getting easier and easier, and I knew I would get him out of there, although the referee may have jumped in a couple of seconds early and saved Groves from a bad knockout, which he received at Wembley anyway.
I’ve been involved in a few toughies; the fights with Mikkel Kessler were tough. The first fight with him has got to be up as one of my toughest. That’s the thing, I’ve had such a great career and such a mixed bag of opponents there are some that are equally as tough. If you asked someone who had had a limited career, had been safely matched and retired undefeated they would probably only have two names for you but there are quite a few names that have given me a tough fight.
