The Adventures of a Pad Man – Part 3

Working the corner against the future heavyweight champion of the world – Fabio Wardley

Back in July 2019, Josh was sparring Nathan Gorman at Ricky Hatton’s gym, as Nathan prepared for his British title fight against future world champion Daniel Dubois. There was another fighter there that day, helping Nathan with his sparring.

He was well-spoken, friendly, and had a unique boxing style. At the time, he was still new to the game, but he already had an impressive record – seven wins, all inside the distance.

After both Josh and Fabio had finished sparring Nathan, they decided to have a round together. It was only one round, but Josh held his own and performed really well. So much so, that a couple of years later, Josh was invited down to Fabio’s gym in Ipswich to help him prepare for his upcoming fight against battle-hardened American veteran and former world title contender, Eric Molina.

After a two-hour drive, we arrived at Fabios gym – a large industrial unit with a CrossFit gym on the lower floor and a boxing gym upstairs. As always, everyone there was friendly and welcoming, chatting while Josh warmed up.

The sparring was competitive from the start. Their styles meshed perfectly - Josh, with his traditional high-guard approach, working behind his trademark jab and long backhand; Fabio, hands down, relying on sharp reflexes and slick footwork.

Fabio doesn’t seem to spar full pelt – you can tell he uses his rounds to work on things, to learn and refine his craft. After eight solid, competitive rounds, both Fabio and his trainer were really happy with how Josh performed and invited him back for more sparring.

It was another incredible experience, and looking back now, it’s amazing to see how far Fabio has come. In nearly every fight, he’s been the underdog. But his work ethic, hunger to improve, and unshakeable self-belief have propelled him to the number two heavyweight in the world.

Little did I know back then that while Josh was sparring – and I was working his corner – we were standing opposite the future heavyweight champion of the world.