FABIO WARDLEY'S IMMINENT NEW ARRIVAL PROVIDING NERVY BUILD-UP FOR JUSTIS HUNI SHOWDOWN
IPSWICH, England - Regardless of what happens in the ring on Saturday, June 7 in the centre of the pitch at Portman Road, Fabio Wardley’s life is set to undergo a profound change just days later.
That is because once the biggest fight of his life against Justis Huni, at the home of Ipswich Town, is out of the way, the 30-year-old’s partner is due to give birth to their first child, a baby daughter.
Wardley puts his head in his hands momentarily when it is suggested that the timing could be slightly tricky, given the risk of an early arrival interrupting his preparation. To borrow a football phrase, it is now ‘squeaky bum time’ for Wardley as he approaches fight week.
“This is a slightly tense topic,” Wardley laughs. “My Mrs wasn’t the happiest with this fight date.
“She is due a week later but it is Portman Road. It’s not just any fight, it’s the one at Portman Road. She said ‘yeah I know but…’.
“They say the chances are that the first one comes late but who knows. Whatever will be will be at this stage. I’m just focusing on my job at this point and that is winning the fight.
“It’s a mad 2025 and really just a mad June but I can’t wait. I’m ready for fatherhood. My best mate’s not long had his, a beautiful little girl as well. So being able to watch her grow and knowing that’s coming for me has made me a big softie to be honest. It’s going to be something special and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Over the course of his 19 professional fights, there have been few signs of softness for Wardley (18-0-1, 17 KOs), who is now ranked at No. 10 by The Ring. His 1st-round despatching of Frazer Clarke in their rematch in Riyadh on October 12 also marked the Ipswich man out as one of the division’s most devastating punchers.
So will Wardley lose any of his killer instinct once he is father to a baby daughter?
“I think I will be able to do both,” Wardley tells The Ring. “It will be double bubble for me.
“What I mean is that when I’m at home with her and my family I will be as soft as anything but once it’s training time, fight time, I’ll do the opposite.
“I believe it will make me even more determined, even more driven, even more relentless because now they’re relying on me. That little girl will be relying on and depending on me. I need to go out and do my job.”
For Wardley, that means taking care of fellow undefeated contender Huni, a late stand-in, when they meet at Portman Road next week. Huni has talked up his chances of spoiling the big homecoming but Wardley insists he is thriving on the pressure that comes with being the local favourite.
“Of course it comes with pressure,” Wardley said of fighting outdoors at Portman Road. “But pressure is a privilege. Being here is a privilege.
“Being able to fight here is a privilege and I think I have proven throughout my career that I do well under pressure.
“I like it. When the lights are bright, when the occasion is big, it's when you get the best from me. It's when you get the biggest amount of heart, grit, determination, the biggest amount of focus, and me firing on all cylinders.
“I'm in the best place I've been. I've got so much experience now within this professional game, from a variety of fights up and down the country. I've fought over in Riyadh. I've fought over in Gibraltar. I've fought in the UK, London, Sheffield, here, there, everywhere.
“Small Hall, York Hall. I've mixed it all. I've done it all now. Now it’s about bringing all that experience into one fight and that’s what will happen on June 7.
“Only then will it be time to go back home to become a dad.”
Fight Week! 