Lightweight Maxi Hughes has fighter of the night in Leeds, England on Saturday and the Yorkshire man has been rewarded with a multi-fight promotional deal from Matchroom Boxing.

Hughes (24-5-2, 5 KOs) dominated the heavily favored Jovanni Straffon at Headingley Stadium, hurting him badly in the fifth round and cruising to a brilliant 12-round unanimous decision triumph.

“Matchroom have provided so many opportunities for fighters, past and present, and to know those opportunities will be heading my way is all I could ask for,” said Hughes. “The victory wasn’t a surprise, not to me anyway, given the preparation I’d put in and the time we had spent tailoring our approach to deal with someone like Straffon. But to win every round and to feel that comfortable feels pretty epic in front of a Yorkshire crowd.

“It’s a pleasure to share a card with that amount of boxing talent and the fact that people think my performance stole the show feels unreal. I’m just glad I got to showcase my skills and make my team and family proud. I only spend a short time reflecting after any fight with Sean and the team, but after that I move on and we agree what step we take next. I’ll reflect properly on my achievements when I retire. I don’t intend to get too drunk on my own success.

“I’ve been on the domestic scene since Scotty Cardle and I fought him back in 2013. I’ve mixed it with the best British and European talent that was there at the time. Boxing careers don’t last forever so my hope is that Matchroom can deliver bigger fights than any of those I’ve had so far, to capitalize on my recent success.

“I’ve already spoken about Devin Haney simply because his opponents seems to be evading him. I might not be the ‘name’ he wants, but I’m game and willing to fight. If that doesn’t come off, then I’m only looking forward in the rankings. I’ll take whatever comes my way.”

“I’m delighted to welcome the ‘Cinderella Southpaw’ Maxi Hughes to the Matchroom Boxing team,” said Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn. “It’s been an incredible year that has seen Maxi inflict shock upsets and incredible performances. We feel there are plenty of more chapters left in this incredible story and we look forward to some big nights ahead live on DAZN.”

You can follow Hughes’ journey on Instagram: maxihughes and Twitter: BOXERMAXIHUGHES

Quotes courtesy of Matchroom Boxing.

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