Adam Azim aims to reschedule Aram Fanyan bout and fight George Kambosos: ‘I’d definitely stop him’ | Boxing News

Adam Azim was left bitterly disappointed he had to pull out of his fight this Friday with Aram Fanyan.

Azim would have been headlining at York Hall but in one of his final sparring sessions found his left hand had swelled up horribly.

It was a severe infection and prevented Azim from going through with the bout.

“Everything was going so well in the camp. I was looking sharp, strong and then this happened in sparring. I come out and my hand ballooned up,” Azim told Sky Sports. “I couldn’t even spar because that’s how bad my hand was.

“I had to withdraw because the doctor’s choice was for me to not fight.”

Azim does though expect the contest with the Ukrainian to be rescheduled. He needs to be able to use his left hand for that fight. When it happens, he also expects to knock Fanyan out with that hand.

“He’s definitely dangerous,” Azim said of Fanyan. “He’s enthusiastic to win.

“He’s going to be trying to win for his country. He’s not a guy to underestimate either so he’s a good opponent.

“This was the toughest fight of my career. I want to go into the fight fully prepared for it,” Azim added. “I want to go into that fight with both hands. I want to give out a great performance.”

He needs to wait on medical results before he can set a date for his next fight but hopes it can be in August or September.

Although he’s only had one contest this year, he got in a solid 10 rounds with Santos Reyes in February.

“I was grateful to get the 10 rounds in,” Azim said. “It’s all about learning in this game.

“I thought that I paced the rounds really well, the guy was really tough. He can take a shot. I was hitting him with so many thunderous shots and he was standing there taking it. He was like a brick wall.”

He did drop Reyes en route to taking a shutout decision win. “I thought he wasn’t going to get back up. He actually got up on the nine-count,” Azim said.

“Normally referees would just stop it but he let him go on. I’m pretty sure throughout the whole fight he was just trying to defend. He wasn’t throwing much back. So I’m pretty sure these opponents who are just trying to survive, you’ve got to surprise them with the third or fourth shot.

“With me in that fight I was throwing too many single shots and not following up with the third and fourth. But for this camp I was doing a lot of combination punching in my sparring.

“I was looking phenomenal. I was doing a lot of rounds, training hard. It’s unfortunate that [injury] this happened.”

Azim wants to be back in action as soon as possible and to be active in the latter part of the year.

He wants one of those bouts to be against former unified lightweight world champion George Kambosos, the only man to beat Teofimo Lopez.

“I’d give George Kambosos a good fight,” Azim said. “I was surprised that [now undisputed champion Devin] Haney didn’t stop him because of the amount of shots that he was actually hitting George Kambosos with.

“I was surprised that he didn’t go down. But Haney is not really a power-puncher. He’s more of a skilled fighter.”

Azim though is certain he has the power to halt Kambosos. “100 per cent. I definitely would [stop him],” he said.

“He’s a perfect fight for me.”

Frazer Clarke will headline Friday’s Fight Night at York Hall against Mariusz Wach, live on Sky Sports Action from 7pm.