Brad Pauls exclusive: I was hoping and praying I’d get a rematch
Brad Pauls felt like a king without a crown after his fight with British middleweight champion, Nathan Heaney, in March.
Pauls and Heaney had to settle for a split draw after engaging in a close fight of two halves but in the immediate aftermath of the fight, the 31-year-old’s’ belief that he should have been announced as the new champion was continually reenforced.
“I felt comfortable in there”
Pats on the back and friendly words may be nice but they count for little, however, and all Pauls, 18-1-1 (10 KOs), had for his efforts was the hope that his exciting performance would earn him another chance.
He got his wish and the pair will meet in a rematch live on TNT Sports this weekend. For all the latest fight odds, visit our sportsbook.
“My team thought the same. Every encounter I’ve had since has been the same and on the internet, every message I got – which was a lot – had a similar tune,” Pauls told 32Red. “I think it sets up the next fight really well because it adds a bit of controversy and adds to the story.
“I’m not calling it a massive robbery or anything like that but it felt unjust and I was just hoping and praying that I’d get a rematch.”
Pauls steadily grew into the first fight. Heaney carried the momentum of his excellent title-winning victory over Denzel Bentley into the early rounds but ‘The Newquay Bomb’ refused to panic and waited for his opportunity to present itself. In the eighth round, the moment arrived. Pauls landed a big right hand that shook Heaney to the soles of his boots.
“I was in control of things”
The man from Stoke performed wonders to stay upright but lost his gum shield during the chaos and managed to survive the round. From that point on, the fight became a blood and guts battle and Pauls again came close to scoring a stoppage during a wild eleventh round. Still, Heaney refused to surrender his title.
Pauls has taken plenty of self-belief from the way the fight played out and now knows that he possesses the power to hurt Heaney.
“I felt comfortable in there and very confident. I felt like I was in control of things after the early stages. It sets me up well for the next fight,” he said.
“I feel like one more clean shot and he would have gone. The gumshield situation seemed to crop up at the perfect time when he needed a rest. That’s boxing. You’re one punch away at all times but I do feel like I had him hurt and with one more shot it would have been a knockdown.
“You’re one punch away at all times”
“It’s easy to say, ‘Don’t leave it to the judges’ this time but Nathan’s a durable, experienced opponent and it’s not that simple. I feel like we’re definitely gonna have another exciting fight. I think the styles will gel well again.”
Before the first fight, it was common knowledge within boxing circles that Heaney wasn’t only fighting to defend his British title. A win would have likely secured him an open air fight with one of the middleweight division’s major names at Stoke City’s stadium this summer.
Pauls ruined those dreams and didn’t receive the call asking if he fancied a wet, windy night in Stoke himself. Still, Paul’s couldn’t care less where the rematch happened. The most important thing was that he got it.
“No, it was never proposed to me,” Pauls said. “I think he had other plans but they fell through. For a good period of time I didn’t think the rematch was gonna happen and I lost hope a little bit. Frank [Warren] is a man of his word and he made it happen in the end so fair play to everyone.”
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