Brooklyn Andresen will be hoping to for more success after his unanimous victory in Melbourne.
Shepparton fighter Brooklyn Andresen is in full preparation mode as he looks to back up an impressive performance on his professional debut with another victory.
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The 23-year-old lived up to his promise as one of Australia’s best emerging talents during a garland occasion down at Melbourne Pavilion in May, claiming a unanimous points decision victory over Emirhan Cosar.
Fighting out of the Victorian state capital’s Team Ellis Gym, the Goulburn Valley pugilist will come up against Mike Esgandari on July 11 as part of a stellar “Pretender to Contender” card featuring contests involving Mitch Leek and Dane Alchin.
With the countdown to his date with destiny now on, the man known as “Kid Brook” is embracing the challenge posed by his next opponent.
This upcoming bout will represent another intriguing test of mettle for the emerging star, with Esgandari boasting experience across multiple combat sports including Muay Thai.
Speaking exclusively to the News, Andresen is fully focused on executing his own game plan in his second professional outing in the ring as he continues to put in his preparations in the gym.
“You’ve got no time to think about anything else, you’re in there to do what you’ve been training for, just to fight,” he said.
“The intensity in training has stepped up but a lot of that is not just for fitness, it’s for building your mind and mental strength to handle the capacity of the pressure.
“You can’t just go in there being super-fit and expecting to get the win, you’ve got to be mentally strong too to get through each round.
“You might lose a round and then you’ve got to be able to bounce back from that.”
Reflecting on what he learned from his first outing at Melbourne Pavilion over a month ago, the youngster outlined how his understanding of the mental and physical demands of competing at this level has improved.
“First of all, I feel like I got a bit of experience (versus Cosar) with the walkout and the whole and being in front of all those people with the bright lights,” he said.
“Now I’ve got that fight out of the way, I know what to expect and not to get carried away because the first round really dictates how the rest of the fight will go.
Brooklyn Andresen is well-supported by his coaches and promotion ahead of his second pro bout.
“I went in there and got a few big shots onto my opponent, I rocked him - that switched me on and I went in hard for that whole round.
“I wasn’t able to back off and that affected how I was feeling in the later rounds but luckily it was only four rounds.
“I see why we train so hard now to be as fit as we are so we can go that hard,” he said, reflecting on the Cosar battle.
“However, I should have established the jab more and boxed a bit smarter to establish the pace in the first round, using skill and not turning it into a brawl.”
“The training is very similar to first time around but in terms of technical things, it’s about trying to use my jab more, slow the pace and be calmer in that first round and then hopefully that will bleed into the later rounds.”
Sizing up next opponent Esgandari, Andresen respectfully outlined his rival’s key attributes ahead of what promises to be a different kind of test to the one posed by Cosar last time out.
“He’s been around the fight game a while, he can switch from orthodox to southpaw,” he said.
“He’s a big show pony, who plays to the crowd and he’s fought some good fighters like Jason Marley, the former Australian champion, as well as Mitch Leek and Ky Hodgson.
“It’s a good test and a step up, he makes you work for it with his awkward style.”
In a parting comment, Shepparton’s famous son expressed his hope that his growing army of fans will be there to cheer him on once more down in Melbourne in June.
“A lot of the guys fighting on the night are from my gym and a lot of the people on the tables on the night are from my gym,” he added.
“My family will be there too and friends will be going so I’m expecting a similar turnout to last time!”
