MARTYN Grainger reckons it took him two months to recover from his bareknuckle boxing debut. As soon as he had healed, he was asking the promoters when his next fight was! “I must be crazy !” laughed, the 39 year old from Heywood ahead of his fight with Szymon Szynkiewicz at London’s O2 Arena on Saturday, September 16.

“It felt like I had been hit by a bus for two weeks after my first fight. “I hurt all over and it took a couple of months for my hands to heal. “But I loved it !” The crowd did as well, cheering non stop as Grainger and Eryk Majda fought toe to toe for three rounds.

The judges scored the fight a draw and Grainger says he knows what he did wrong. He said: “Everything I planned to do went out the window once the bell rang. “I didn’t throw any jabs, I didn’t box at all. I just got stuck in.” Szynkiewicz is a bareknuckle boxing veteran who’s been in with some of the sport’s biggest hitters.

He went five hard rounds with Ben Robinson in June and Grainger described him as “another big, tough lad.” He added: “I have seen one of his fights and I’m not expecting it to be easy, but if I stick to doing what I need to do I should win.” Grainger sees Synkiewicz as a stepping stone to bigger fights, including a possible rematch against Majda.

Majda’s stock rose when he beat ex British champion Ryan Barrett in his last fight and he takes on veteran Eric Olsen in the States hours after Grainger fights. Grainger said: “I’m up for any big fight they put in front of me once I get this one out of the way.”