Butlin: I’m just really enjoying my boxing

Dave Butlin…suffered cut eye scare at the Holiday Inn

TIME, says Dave Butlin, is not on his side. At the age of 30, he must up the ante, increase the risks and chase a title fight next year.

The Tamworth light-heavyweight, grounded and sensible, is now unbeaten in five after outpointing vastly experienced Harry Matthews at the Holiday Inn, Birmingham Airport, on Friday.

But he didn’t emerge unscathed from the four rounder. Dave suffered a nasty gash over his right eye in the last session and the claret spilled down his face.

The injury injected more urgency into Matthews, a veteran of over 110 bouts and he took the round for a 39-37 defeat.

Up until that late drama, Butlin had controlled the action with stiff jabs and uppercuts. Matthews felt hard done by. He wasn’t.

“It’s no one’s fault, but I thought it was a six rounder and I’d trained for a six,” Butlin said. “I didn’t realise it was a four rounder until the third round.

“I was taking my time and in the fourth tried to rush things. My plan was to keep stepping it up every round. I hurt him a couple of times in the third with body shots, he tucked-up and I thought, ‘keep them there’.

“In the fourth, I just went in there to stop him, which isn’t me. There was a clash of heads, the blood was coming down quite heavy and he caught me a couple of times. It was the first time I got cut and, because of experience, I was rubbing it.”

Butlin, who turned pro in 2023, juggles the demands of boxing with running a warehouse that buys and sells mainly household goods.

“I wouldn’t call myself a successful businessman,” he laughed. “I’m about as successful as Del Boy!”

He was a solid amateur for Tamworth ABC, capturing Midlands titles, reaching a national final and winning Sweden’s Kings of the Ring tournament.

He still trains at the Tamworth gym and has retained the services of his old amateur coach, Alan Keast.

Butlin refuses to make bold predictions of future glory.

“I really enjoyed the last camp,” he said. “I’m just enjoying it (boxing), I don’t want to do it when there’s no enjoyment.

“It’s hard juggling work and everything at the same time, I just try to put in as much as possible. I’m in the gym all year round. Hopefully, I’ll fight again a couple of months after Christmas and get a six rounder in.

“I want to really focus on it in 2025. The plan is to stay at light-heavy, but I think I can get down to super-middle (12st).

“The problem with me, I never really feel I show my full potential in a fight with a journeyman, but a lot of boxers probably feel the same way.

“I’m really happy, I’m 5-0 and just want to push on – I’m 30, I feel it’s time to push on. Another fight, possibly against another journeyman, then go for the Midlands title.

“I’d push it a little less if I was 22, but time isn’t on my side.”