Defeated, but Azeem leaves Riyadh with his head held high!

Hamza Azeem…late call-up to Grand Prix. Pic: Manjit Narotra/BCB

HAMZA Azeem rolled the dice in Riyadh, but walked away from the biggest test of his fledgling career with confidence high.

Last Saturday, in the capital city’s pristine Global Theatre, the Kings Heath southpaw tangled with Australian powerhouse Dylan Biggs, a man who had lost only one of 15 contest and stopped nine opponents.

It was Azeem’s stiffest test – and then some. Biggs, from Beaudesert, Queensland, had twice been the 10 round distance, was ranked fourth in Australia and his sole defeat came against world ranked Nikita Tszyu for his country’s light-middleweight title. He dropped Tszyu in the first of that wild affair before being stopped in the fifth.

Azeem, by day a custody officer ferrying prisoners from jail to jail, lost a clear six round decision, was docked a point in the fourth for holding, but tested the prospect and emerged unscathed. He did that on very short notice.

“I’m proud of what I did,” the 25-year-old told me.

The pair clashed as part of the WBC Grand Prix middleweight tournament – a major, last-man-standing competition that offers huge rewards for the winner. For Saturday’s first round, there was a 32 strong line-up.

Much has been written about Wolverhampton fighter Gully Powar’s success in the Grand Prix’s featherweight category.

Hamza’s participation went near unnoticed – and there’s a reason. He only received the call eight days before the bout, filling a late space created when one competitor pulled out.

“I was coming off Ramadan,” he said, “the weight was OK, but I hadn’t done the fight training to the level needed.

“My career is a journey and this was part of the journey. The chance came and we took it. It was an experience. Riyadh is what Riyadh is, it was amazing. They treat you like royalty. I’m just upset I didn’t have time to properly prepare, but I think they’ll have me back. They said they’ll have me back.”

Biggs represented a big step-up for an unbeaten Birmingham boxer who faced journeyman Shane Smith (2-12-1) in his previous contest. Hamza came through with his self-belief boosted.

He said: “He wasn’t a better boxer than me, he was just strong. He can punch, but he didn’t hurt me. If I’d had a proper camp, I would’ve done things differently.”

He added: “The fight made me realise what I can achieve, what’s coming.”

What’s immediately coming is a match on BCB’s July 4 show at the Hangar Venue, Wolverhampton. After that, Hamza’s on the hunt for a Midlands title.