BOXING coach Liam Lathbury says protégé Connor Gray is ready to make a statement as a professional with the Wiltshire fighter set to make his debut this month.

Gray, who is based in Calne and trains out of Lathbury’s Emerald gym in Chippenham, will feature on Neilson Boxing’s latest Fight Town show which is taking place on Saturday, November 20 at Swindon’s MECA.

Lathbury has been training Gray since he was a teenager, and says he is looking forward to the super-lightweight take to the ring.

“He was 13-years-old when he first came to the gym, and he was getting into a little bit of mischief in school and stuff like that,” said Lathbury, who also revealed Gray will be managed by Ronnie Davies.

“Then he started knuckling down and got right into it. We were planning on having another year as an amateur but because of the pandemic and boxing going the way it has we’ve decided for him to go professional.

“In a way, Covid has been a bit of a blessing in disguise for us because it’s given us time to focus on all the things we need to do, but he has always had a professional style because he has good movement and places his shots very well.”

Alongside Gray, there will be a host of talent from across the South West on the same bill in Wiltshire, with former Commonwealth champion Luke Watkins headlining.

Gray will be making a fast start to life as a professional, as he is also due to box a week later in Bracknell.

Promoter, Mark Neilson says he is anticipating a dominant display from the Wiltshire prospect.

“I’ve heard some great things about Connor and I’ve seen him spar some experienced professionals before, where he more than held his own,” he said.

“Liam has been working with him for a long time now and he has a really good reputation of developing fighters in the right way.

“With his amateur background and the amount of time he’s had to prepare due to Covid, I’m looking forward to seeing him in the ring.”