No matter their pedigree, an accomplished amateur will always find that sparring a hardened professional is no walk in the park.

They might land a few flicky jabs and sharp counters but, eventually, there comes a point where the pro just simply drags them into the trenches.

It is then a case of displaying enough character to overcome such hardship, not wishing to bow down or show any hint of weakness.

Every prospect will encounter this test sooner or later but, thankfully, Olympic bronze medallist Charlie Senior did not have to go searching far and wide for a top-level pro.

In fact, it was at his gym in Bromley, where Senior is trained by the highly-regarded duo of Al Smith and Eddie Lam, that the 24-year-old discovered the “tougher side” of pro boxing.

He did so by sparring former world title challenger Sam Noakes, who took Abdullah Mason the distance in a titanic WBO title effort last November.

Speaking with Boxing News, Senior made no effort to downplay the quality and intensity of each round they share.

“We do a fair amount of rounds together. It’s definitely shown me the tougher side of professional boxing.

“Sam’s very fit, he’s strong, and, the more rounds I do with him, the more I pick up on things that he’s technically very good at.

“He’s also powerful in the sense that he might throw a nice, clean jab, but it feels like you’ve been hit by a big right hand.”

The good news is that, while Noakes boasts superior professional experience, Senior is able to hold his own by utilising the crafty footwork he developed as an amateur.

Even before Senior started boxing, the Bradford-born talent was no stranger to a two-step manoeuvre here and there.

“I did a bit of dancing when I was a kid, as well as gymnastics, acrobatics and trampolining – all the fun stuff.

“But I got to about 10 or 11 years old and felt that, as a young boy, dancing wasn’t really that cool.

“There was a boxing studio next to where I used to dance, so I walked over there and gave it a crack. My mum didn’t want me to do it at first, because I was young and small, but I just persisted and ended up boxing.

“When you’re dancing, and when you’re in the ring, it all corresponds. You always know where your feet are; you always find your balance, even in unusual situations.

“I feel like I never really come unstuck when it comes to my footwork.”

Advertisement

While born in Bradford, Senior spent the majority of his life in Australia – a place he considers home – before moving back to the UK.

The transition has been far from straightforward but, at the same time, the Olympian understands the importance of making sacrifices in a sport like boxing.

“It was hard. It’s still a bit difficult, sitting here in my apartment – you’ve got a lot of time to yourself, and a lot of time to think.

“But I always said that, once I go professional, I’ll move back to the UK. It can be a bit tricky at times, but I know why I’m here.

“Going out of your comfort zone, in general, will improve your mentality, let alone when you’re chasing your dream. I feel like I have to work even harder now, because I’ve sacrificed everything.

Advertisement

“I could just go back to Australia, get a job and be comfortable, but [being away from home] has just given me an extra push to chase my dream.”

Senior’s decision to move back to the UK was partly inspired by the fruitful opportunities for high-quality sparring and TV exposure.

After shopping around at a few different gyms, though, he ultimately stayed with coaches Smith and Lam for one specific reason.

“I feel like, with Al and Eddie, they let me be me. They didn’t try to change my footwork; they didn’t try to slow me down; it wasn’t “tighten up and walk forward” – they just let me box the way I box, while adding little things.

“I got to where I was [in the amateurs] by being me, so to not change what I was doing, and just add to it each time, was what sold me on [joining Smith and Lam].”

Advertisement

As a 4-0 (2 KOs) prospect signed to Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions, Senior appreciates the value of taking incremental steps to refine his craft.

He therefore anticipates no encounters with King Kong any time soon, but nonetheless expects to produce another stylish performance, this time on the undercard of Ryan Garner vs Michael Magnesi at St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton, on Saturday.

Aryna Sabalenka lost another deciding set without winning a game as an impressive Jessica Pegula beat the world number one to reach the Berlin Open final.

Belarusian Sabalenka never looked settled against Pegula, who recovered from losing a tight second set to come through 6-4 6-7 (4-7) 6-0.

American Pegula had lost five of her past six matches against Sabalenka but her flat shots and superb return of serve anchored her performance this time around.

For Sabalenka it is another disappointing deciding-set performance, having lost the third set of her French Open quarter-final 6-0 after squandering a set and double break lead.

Pegula had fought back from 5-2 down in the second set to force a tie-break and led 3-1 before rain delayed play for an hour.

When they returned, Sabalenka won six of the next seven points to force a deciding set – only for Pegula to dominate the top seed.

“She came out and ripped a bunch of winners and I told myself ‘I guess I wanted to win in the hard way anyway’,” Pegula, 32, said.

“I don’t get super emotional. People used to tell me when I was younger that I need to yell more and jump up and down.

“Honestly, it feels like a waste of energy to me. I just try to be myself.”

Pegula will face either Czech Linda Noskova or Alexandra Eala of the Philippines in Sunday’s final.

AEW has risen to mainstream popularity over the last few years and is now one of the top professional wrestling companies in the world. The Tony Khan-led promotion is set to host their annual Forbidden Door pay-per-view in collaboration with CMLL, New Japan Pro Wrestling and World Wonder Ring STARDOM next weekend. Ahead of the blockbuster event, the All Elite Wrestling Women’s World Champion recently attacked the STARDOM President Taro Okada.

Since 2022, All Elite Wrestling has been collaborating with New Japan Pro Wrestling and several other promotions to host the annual Forbidden Door pay-per-view. The concept behind the event is that stars from the Tony Khan led company get to face-off against wrestlers from other companies. The cross-promotional event has become an integral part of AEW’s pay-per-view calendar.

This year, the AEW Women’s World Champion Thekla is set to defend her title against STARDOM’s Starlight Kid. The match was made after the Toxic Spider disrespected the Joshi Wrestling promotion on several occasions. On a recent episode of Dynamite, Thekla spat on the STARDOM logo and has fired shots at the company’s President Taro Okada many times. This animosity stems from Thekla’s tenure in STARDOM which abruptly ended after Okada fired her.

At a recent episode of STARDOM, Thekla made a surprise appearance by attacking Taro Okada. She showed up right behind him at ringside and tried to shave his head with a trimmer. After Okada escaped her from there, she took him to the ring and whipped him several times with a leather belt. This is one of the most personal feuds heading into the Forbidden Door pay-per-view.

Fans are really excited to see if the Starlight Kid will be able to preserve STARDOM’s honor at Forbidden Door by defeating Thekla.

AEW Women’s World Champion Thekla confirms that she’ll never be a babyface

Ever since her debut in the Jacksonville-based company last year, Thekla has been dominating the whole roster. She captured the Women’s World title from Kris Statlander earlier this year in a brutal strap match and has been terrorising the Women’s division ever since.

Ahead of her upcoming title defense against Starlight Kid, she recently appeared in an interview with the Sal Licata Show. During the interview, the Toxic Spider revealed that she doesn’t ever plan on turning babyface.

“I was never going to be a babyface either, so ‘toxic’ is just like—you know—it tells you, ‘Be aware, danger.’ That’s me… I’m just an a**hole, man. I don’t like playing by rules. I don’t like bending down to authority. I’m just a little bit of a p**ck—and I’m having fun with that. And I think people like to watch me have fun being a p**ck. So there you have it,” she said.

Thekla is one of the best heels in AEW right now and it would’ve been very unusual to see her play the role of a babyface.