Ace boxer Waseem's coach Vaughan to arrive in Pakistan ahead of potential world title fight

Danny Vaughan, English coach of Pakistan’s premier professional boxer and former three-time WBC world silver flyweight champion Mohammad Waseem, will arrive in Pakistan on February 2.

Waseem told Nukta that he will land in Islamabad on February 2 and will hold meetings with the top officials of DHA Quetta and the government.

“Eventually we are now on track. Danny is coming to Pakistan and it will pave way for world title fight which we plan to hold in Quetta with the kind support of DHA Quetta,” Waseem said.

Danny, who has vast experience of imparting training to the world’s leading boxers during his illustrious coaching career spanning over decades, has been working with Waseem since 2018.

Waseem’s world title fight is expected to be held in April-May in Quetta and this would create a history as this will be the first time that the world title shot will be held in Pakistan.

“Danny will also brief the DHA Quetta officials on the fight which will also be finalized soon,” he said.

“If fight is held in Quetta InshaAllah, I will create history. The fight will also boost Pakistan’s soft image,” Waseem said.

He said that the world’s top streaming platform DAZN and Pro Box TV will also be engaged which will be a huge boost for the fight.

If the fight is held, it will attract a huge crowd from across the country and especially Quetta where boxing is followed madly.

Waseem returned to action after two and a half years when he defeated Jaba Memishishi of Georgia in a ranking fight in Malta last October.

Before this he had played his last fight, which was also the world title shot, against Sunny Edwards of England in Dubai in March 2022 which Waseem lost despite playing so well in the jampacked Dubai Tennis Centre.

Waseem has already started preparing for the expected world title shot.

“Yes, I have been regularly training and 10kilometer running and gym is among the daily routine. I have achieved top shape and will keep building on it as the time progresses,” Waseem said.

Training in Liverpool

Waseem will hold his camp for the world title shot in Liverpool under Danny when the fight schedule will be made final.

“Yes, I will rush to Liverpool immediately after the schedule of the fight will be made final. It will be important to undergo tough training so that top result could be yielded in the upcoming fight,” Waseem said.

Waseem is working with Manny Pacquiao Promotions. The promotions’ top officials were also expected to arrive in Pakistan but, due to their engagement in fights in the US, Danny has been handed over the entire details about Waseem’s fight.

Of the 15 fights he has featured in, Waseem has won 13 with nine knockouts while he lost his two world title shots which he played against South Africa’s Moruti Mthalane and Sunny Edwards of England. In both these fights it was seen that Waseem had won them but the eventual results went against him.

Waseem has been playing professional boxing since October 2015 after folding his amateur career following a bronze medal in the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. Since then, Pakistan has not won any medal in the Asian Games.

He became a rare fighter of the world when he lifted the WBC world silver flyweight title by beating Jether Olivia of the Philippines at Seoul, South Korea, in July 2016. He then defended the title in November 2016 when he downed the dangerous Giemel Magramo of the Philippines also in Seoul. At that time Waseem was playing under AK Promotions, owned by Andy Kim of South Korea, who was also the first promoter of the Pakistani boxer.

In November 2021 in Dubai, Waseem lifted the same title for the third time when he conquered Rober Barrera of Colombia.