NEXT Saturday (December 16) will see the vacant Scottish featherweight title contested as exciting 8-0 prospect, Stephen Tiffney takes on fellow undefeated Scot Lewis Paulin.
Last time out Tiffney defeated Troy James (20-4-1) in a memorable encounter that he learned much from. Of James’s three pre-Tiffney losses, two came to world level fighters, Terry Flanagan and Liam Walsh and as a result he was an important scalp for “Tiff”.
Despite having two more wins under his belt Lewis Paulin (10-0) has not made a comparable step up in terms of quality of opposition. Tiffney will go out as the favourite and the belt looks likely to be an important step in a journey to bigger things.
Tiffney also has height and reach on Paulin and has stopped one more opponent, despite competing in fewer bouts. Paulin certainly enters the fight as an underdog but the unpredictability of an important domestic rivalry, between the two Edinburgh fighters, makes this an appealing fight.
Promoter Sam Kynoch sees this as a thrilling night of Scottish boxing in the making. He told Boxing News, “I feel it is an excellent contest” and reminded fans of the unbeaten domestic draw of the bout. When it came to a prediction he argued, “Both fighters have their strengths but I feel that Tiffney will win on points”.
Stablemate Tommy Philbin predicted that Tiffney will achieve “at least” a British Title and claiming the Scottish Title could take Tiffney closer competing for the Londsdale belt, currently held by Ryan Walsh, in a few fights time.
The only limiting factor on Tiffney’s record is his age. At 29 with only eight professional bouts on his record, there will have to be an element of fast-tracking for him to realise British title ambitions. He made an important step up against Troy James though and, if he wins again on Saturday, the Scottish title will add to his credentials.
Tiffney will face Paulin on December 16 as part of MTK Scotland’s Christmas Cracker promotion.
