‘I have fought against more tough boxers than even Vijender Singh’- Neeraj Goyat puts himself over the star boxer
Neeraj Goyat-Vijendra Singh (source: Twitter)
Since turning professional in 2012, Neeraj Goyat, a three-time World Boxing Council (WBC) Asian champion, has been a consistent name from India on the pro boxing circuit. Goyat recently won fights against Thai boxers at a pro boxing event in Thailand. He made a winning return against New Zealand’s Obedi Maguchi in a pro boxing match in March 2020 after a car accident.
Goyat was asked where he sees himself when compared to other Indian boxers in an interview with The Times of India. He responded by claiming that he has fought more difficult opponents than any other Indian boxer, including Indian superstar Vijendra Singh.
“No professional Indian boxer has fought against tough boxers more than me or even fought for 12 rounds. I have fought against more tough boxers than even Vijender Singh. I have defeated a world champion (Xu Can) from China in his own country (in 2014). After that, I fought and defeated an Australian as well as Mexican champions, which is the toughest fight in the world,” he said.
I want to push for good fights: Neeraj Goyat
When asked about his immediate and long-term plans, the boxer stated that he wanted to compete against higher-ranked opponents more frequently. Outside of boxing, he stated that he wished to concentrate on his acting career as well. He went on to say that he wanted to promote sports through acting.
“n terms of immediate, I want to push for good fights, meaning that I want to fight against boxers with good rankings, which include a nice fight purse too. In terms of long-term plans, after I leave the sport, I want to promote Indian pro boxing well. I also want to get good fights and good fight money for Indian professional boxers,” he said.
“Outside of the sport, I would also focus on acting career and along with that, want to push those boxers into movies so that the sports gets promoted more,” he added.
