Robbie Davies Jr set his sights on making a statement after weighing-in for his fight with Darragh Foley on Friday afternoon.
Davies Jr, who is returning to the ring for the first time since May at the M&S Bank Arena tonight, weighed-in at 139.12lbs for his 10 round contest against Foley. While the Australia-based Irishman, who arrives in Liverpool brimming with confidence following four straight wins, came in at 139.6lbs for the super-lightweight contest.
“My past few fights have all been must-wins for me. Obviously it was unfortunate with Liam Paro pulling out but I was thankful for Foley for stepping up,” Davies Jr said.
READ MORE: Eddie Hearn provides Callum Smith update and makes Artur Beterbiev WBC title prediction
READ MORE: Claressa Shields makes offer to Natasha Jonas as summer UK super fight targeted
“He still gives me a chance to show the general public, the Liverpool fans, what I’m about. Get the win in dominating fashion and then move onto bigger things later in the year.
“He’s seen cracks in me, I can’t have that going into the big fish. I need to make a statement and not only win, I need to look good as well when doing it. Hopefully I can break him down, get to him and get him out of there.”
Peter McGrail, meanwhile, weighed-in at 123lbs ahead of his bout against Argentine Nicolas Nahuel Botelli on the undercard of tonight’s bill.
One of Merseyside's most decorated amateur boxers, McGrail returns to the ring for the first time tonight since he beat Hironori Miyake at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo back in December.
And the unbeaten 26-year-old, who trains out of the renowned Everton Red Triangle Gym under Paul Stevenson, is looking forward to a special night in his own home city.
“He’s a good step up and he’s a good fighter. I respect him, I respect any fighter but I don’t think he’s on my level Ed,” the huge Everton supporter said.
“We know what the nights are like in the Echo, they’re special nights. Even my debut when Beefy boxed Fowler – it was amazing.”
Elsewhere, Paddy Lacey (7-0, 1KO) weighed-in at 162.8lbs for his all Liverpool clash against James McCarthy (2-4-1, 0KOs), who topped the scales at 160.9lbs.
“When you had me on the Benn vs. Algieri card I was in the gym at 7 in the morning, fitting flooring in the afternoon, Chester training at night,” Lacey said.
“I actually missed a Chester game to box that night. I’ve packed in the football unfortunately – gutted to pack it in but I’m fully focused on boxing now.
“I think it will make a massive difference going forwards. I’m living the boxing life now and not getting pulled from here to there. I think everyone likes the story of the underdog.
“Things kind of fell apart. I picked myself up and had a go at something else. This city is amazing for us. Thanks Eddie for keeping the show on after Callum got injured.
“We’ll all get paid now. James doesn’t shy away from a fight. He’s a tough kid. It’s going to be fireworks Saturday night.”
While McCarthy said: “I’m more than proud to be on this show. Obviously it’s in the Echo Arena, M&S to anyone that doesn’t know, and it’s against Paddy Lacey.
“Paddy is from the same area as me so half of his army know me as well. It’s going to be a good interesting fight and I believe that both of us are going to put on a good performance.
“It’s not a fight to be missed. I’m looking forward to it. Of course I fancy it, I wouldn’t have taken the fight if I didn’t fancy it.”
READ MORE:
