Rocky Fielding: I’ve been itching to get back in the ring ... the boxing bug is back

Briton has not fought in two years but returns to action on November 26 against Dmitri Chudinov in Dubai

British boxer Rocky Fielding is part of a star-studded card slated for Dubai on November 26.

The highly-anticipated card also features former two-weight world champion Badou Jack and Pakistan talent Muhammad Waseem.

The D4G promotion takes place at MotoSpace and will be broadcast live in the US on ESPN+ in association with Top Rank, and worldwide on IFL TV.

As part of his buildup to face Dmitri Chudinov, former WBA (Regular) super middleweight champion Fielding, who returns to the ring after a two-year absence, will provide weekly updates about his training regime in Dubai, as well as his thoughts on the latest boxing news.

This will be your first fight in almost two years, the excitement and anticipation must be building

I’m definitely looking forward to it and being in Dubai, with the surroundings, has given me a new lease of life. I was coming out to Dubai and Abu Dhabi quite regularly, and I remember being here in September 2020 and thinking to myself that I’d love to fight in Dubai. And now, with the way everything has turned out, it’s happening, which is really exciting.

The same thing happened with New York. Every time I went there, I would think about how great it would be to fight at Madison Square Garden, I even had a picture outside the venue, and then a few years down the line I was fighting there as a world champion. I moved to Dubai in March and I was speaking to my management team about plans for my next match, and then all of a sudden I’m fighting at an event out here.

I’ve been training smartly since March, the weight’s down and I’ve been getting some good sparring sessions in, so I’m looking forward to getting in the ring, putting on a show on and getting my name back out there in the mix. The boxing bug is back now. My coach Jamie (Moore) said it doesn’t look as if I haven’t fought for so long because my power, speed and timing is all there. Maybe it’s a bit of a blessing I had some time off because I haven’t since I turned professional. It’s been nice doing the school run and being a dad, but now I’m here, refreshed and I have a three or four-fight plan.

Rocky Fielding celebrates after defending his British and Commonwealth super-middleweight titles against David Brophy in 2017. Action Images

When you haven’t fought in so long, is it difficult to get back in the 'zone', or does that just come naturally?

I just needed to get a fight and a date confirmed. I’ve been itching to get back into the ring and from the moment I got the call about this fight, I’ve been in the gym. I’ve had two defeats but there’s so much more left in me. One of those was to Callum Smith six years ago, and then there was obviously the one against Canelo, too.

I’m fresh and I’m happy. That’s why I stayed in Dubai during the summer, while everybody was away, and went out training on the roads. Even though I was out there for 35 minutes at a time, and it was so hot, I still stuck it out. Then I was going to the boxing gym in the evening, so if I can put myself through that, I still have the hunger and motivation.

There have been a lot of changes to my training since I moved here and I’m doing a lot of cycling now, I do 50 kilometres once or twice a week. It’s hugely beneficial for the legs and for fitness so it’s really enjoyable.

How much do you know about your opponent?

I’ve seen his record and I know what he’s all about. I watched a video of him for about 30 seconds and that was it. When you get to this level, and you’ve been around boxing for a long time, you only need to have a quick look and you kind of know what type of opponent you’re up against.

His brother, Fedor, is a good fighter, a former WBA super-middleweight champion who fought against George Groves. My next couple of fights after this one will probably be at a higher level, but with me being out for two years it was important I went back in with the right fight. Chudinov will come and give me a fight, which is what I need, I want someone who will take close shots and get his hands going. Towards fight week I’ll probably have a look at his style in the later rounds, but at the moment I’m just focusing on training full-on myself.

Do you watch a lot of videos of your previous bouts?

No. I don’t really watch videos of old fights. My son keeps asking me to put the Canelo fight on because when we were out there, my girlfriend’s mum was looking after him and where it kept coming on the television, she was saying to him that daddy was fighting a guy called Canelo, and it just stuck with him. So now he’s always asking to watch my fight against Canelo and I won’t let him (laughs). But for me it’s all about moving forward so I don’t think too much about previous fights.