Expect a leaner, meaner Ridhwan
Local boxer says he will be stronger and faster after drop in weight class
Boxing enthusiasts, take note: Muhamad Ridhwan will be a leaner, meaner fighting machine come September.
The local professional boxer, who has won all 10 of his professional fights, made the switch down from super featherweight (up to 59kg) to featherweight (up to 57kg) in April.
He will be dropping another division to super bantamweight (up to 55kg) for his International Boxing Organisation (IBO) world title fight against Thai Pipat Chaiporn on Sept 29.
Also known as "The Chosen Wan", Ridhwan believes that his lighter frame will allow him to pack more punch, saying: "With this new weight class, I'm going to be stronger and faster, and it's going to show.
"We've been working a lot on power, so we really want to go for the knockout in September."
For the reigning IBO inter-continental featherweight champion, any additional power will be a welcome boost; seven of his 10 victories have come from knockouts.
The 30-year-old was speaking yesterday at the weigh-in for his non-title bout against Indonesian Rivo Rengkung. Ridhwan successfully made the weight at 56.9kg.
The fight will serve as a build-up for his title fight in September and will take place tonight at The Ring Fighting Championship 4: Time of Valor event at The Ring Boxing Community at Kim Yam Road from 6pm.
Coming after the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, it meant that Ridhwan had to make major changes to his eating habits and training schedule. Besides observing the fast, he also had to tweak his twice-daily training schedule by moving it from 6am and 4pm, to 4pm and 11pm.
However, he believes it should not hinder his performance, saying: "I've been training in the middle of the night but it's okay, it's part of my job.
"People buy tickets and it's my job to put on a good show."
His opponent Rengkung, 34, is no slouch, having notched 36 wins, 25 losses, and six draws throughout his 67-fight career.
He comes into the fight on the back of two consecutive losses, the first of which was against Chaiporn last August.
With this new weight class I'm going to be stronger and faster, and it's going to show.Muhamad Ridhwan, who will drop to super bantamweight class for his IBO title fight in September
Despite it being a non-title bout, Ridhwan insists that he will be treating the fight like any other, saying: "This is going to be like a teaser as to what to expect in September, and I'm not here to play games. I'm not going gentle tomorrow and the goal is to put him to sleep."
The evening's other bouts include three amateur title fights, which will feature four Singaporeans.
Leona Hui and Ashley Tang will be facing off for the women's light flyweight title, and Nur Sabrina will take on Taiwan's Tawee Tong Yu in the featherweight category.
The final title fight will see Velvan Tan square off against Egyptian Jr Helal for the men's light welterweight belt.
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