A MAIN event billing beckons for Mount Gambier boxer Bobby “Trigger” Trigg when he faces Mark Schleibs to defend his current Australian bantamweight title.
Promoted by Team Ellis at the Melbourne Pavilion on October 5, it is certainly an important fight in Trigg’s career.
A win will simply add to his growing professional portfolio and open up further opportunities, while a loss will set his future back somewhat.
The challenger needs to drop a weight division to qualify for the fight, which is something Trigg is not unfamiliar with.
Trigg has competed in six fights in his professional career, with three wins, two losses and a draw.
A couple of those bouts have been against bigger fighters, with one in particular – against Jai Alexander – seeing close to four kilograms difference between the two, who were both chasing the vacant Australian super bantamweight title.
Alexander was too heavy and deemed ineligible to claim the title, but Trigg went ahead with the fight, which went the full distance, but against Trigg in a points decision.
It was still an impressive effort for the much smaller Mount Gambier boxer.
Once again it is a similar scenario, with Schleibs usually contesting the featherweight division, but that does not concern the Australian champion.
“It should be a cracker of a fight,” Trigg said.
“He reckons he will roll me, end my career, but I would like to see him do it.”
Trigg is in good shape, training well leading up to the event and currently at a good, healthy weight.
He said the extra work he has done will place him in a good position on fight night.
“I am confident I will beat him,” Trigg said.
“I cannot see him handling the pressure I’m going to put on him.
“All I know is to get in close, keep on their chest and wear them down, physically and mentally.
“If he does beat me, it will be the hardest fight he has ever had.”
Trigg’s trainer Colin Cassidy said his fighter was well prepared, probably more so than for any other fight.
“I keep saying Bob has got stronger and better, but he has, that is just a fact,” he said.
“I just keep his training harder and harder.
“He has trained really hard and even looks a different fighter now.
“He is normally a little bit bigger, but we have not even started losing weight yet.
“He has done it with pure hard work.”
Cassidy said he expects Trigg to win the fight.
However, he expects a tough bout, with Schleibs no slouch in the ring, boasting an undefeated record after nine professional fights.
“I think Bob can win it, because he (Schleibs) has not fought anyone like Bob before,” Cassidy said.
“He will not know what’s hit him.
“He did have a very good amateur career, which went along the same lines as Bob.
“They fought in the same tournaments overseas, so he is quite good, but I just cannot see him holding Bob off.”
Both Cassidy and Trigg see the importance of the fight in the scheme of Trigg’s career.
“It is pretty important, because there will be some good promoters watching,” Trigg said.
“I am one of those people who likes to win, but I want to put on a good show, especially being the main event.”
Cassidy said he was always looking at the big picture.
“You can only take one fight at a time, but they are all opportunities,” he said.
“We are putting ourselves in places to get opportunities for the right person to see us.
“We are hoping to fight Jeff Fenech’s boy, hopefully in Queensland when Jeff Horn fights Anthony Mundine.
“That will attract world-wide attention, which is why we want the opportunity.”
And there is one other thing driving Trigg to claim this victory, which is probably typical of boxing in any class.
“He has been talking smack about me and I don’t like that,” he said.
“I don’t like doing it, because anything can happen in a boxing ring.”
