Kieron Conway is pinching himself, having landed a dream undercard spot on the Canelo Alvarez vs Billy Joe Saunders show in Texas next weekend (May 8).
Having previously plied his trade on small hall shows in his hometown of Northampton, Conway will now appear on boxing’s grandest stage when he meets French hope Souleymane Cissokho, in front of a possible 70,000 fans at the AT&T Stadium on Saturday week.
The slick Conway (16-1-1, 3 KOs) is riding a four-fight winning streak, since forcing a draw with British 154lbs champion Ted Cheeseman in a rousing encounter in June 2019. He was originally set to face former amateur star Cissokho (12-0, 8 KOs) last December on the Anthony Joshua-Kubrat Pulev promotion before the Frenchman withdrew due to administrative reasons.
“It’s a massive opportunity for me, coming off the AJ card last time out, that was a big stage and now this has come up,” said Conway. “It feels a bit surreal but I’m really looking forward to it and it’s a big stage and a good fight.
“I came up the hard way in the small hall shows where sometimes you are not even getting paid, so to be where I am at now it mad and I need to keep winning, keep entertaining and keep performing so people keep wanting to watch me.
“When I boxed at the Deco Theater in Northampton in front of about 1,000 people not being paid, I told people that I would be boxing on the biggest stages one day and in the space of about two years, I am. AJ cards, Canelo card in front of 70,000 in America – that’s unreal.
“I can’t wait to be in there with such a massive crowd, reacting to your punches and cheering, it makes it feel less like a sparring session. It’s back to big things, this is the biggest stage I’ve ever been on, I’ve got a good spot on the show so there will be a big crowd already in the stadium, so I can’t wait.”
Main image: Matchroom Boxing.