Connal McDonald aims to defeat Lucas Roehrig in his Zuffa Boxing debut on Saturday night, live Sky Sports.
Roehrig is an exciting cruiserweight prospect being guided to the top by former world champion George Groves.
But McDonald downplayed his credentials. He is a Scottish titlist and was an experienced amateur. Notably in the unpaid ranks, he defeated Daniel Dubois in the final of the 2014 UK Junior Championship as a junior.
Dubois, of course, is now a two-time heavyweight champion of the world.
“Even at that age, there was all this talk about his power,” McDonald said Sky Sports. “Winning looks great now! But back then I was very, very confident, cocky.”
He recalled: “I was a very different fighter at that age. When Daniel came out, he was built like a big, superhero. I was 17 and he was either 16 or 17. I was like, ‘I’m going to smash him.’
“I was standing in that ring thinking, ‘I’m going to school this guy, I’m going to smash him.’
“It was a tough fight. The only thing I remember was how easy it was to land him. I landed quite a few punches. I definitely thought at the end of the fight, I definitely won, but looking back it was a tough fight.
“But I never thought it would be like this [one of the world’s best heavyweights]. Now you are talking about Usyk and probably Daniel Dubois. Just respect him for what he did.”
McDonald warned Roehrig: “I’ve come a long way since then, I’m a different boxer, but come fight night I’ll be the same.
“No matter who’s in there, I’m going to go in and win.
“I’ll be ready to go.”
Watch Roehrig vs McDonald live this Saturday Sky Sports.