Newcomer ready to face Raka

By PARKER TAMBUA
RICHARD Paul may be inexperienced in professional boxing but he wants to make his mark when he faces Papua New Guinea’s lightweight champion Junior Kauko Raka in the Oceania Fight Promotions (OFP) fight night on Saturday.
The 31-year-old from Manus is an experienced amateur boxer but he knows it would be tough at the professional level. Paul has only two professional fights under his belt and he has won one and lost another.
Paul told The National yesterday that beating Kauko Raka at the Hideaway Hotel on Saturday would be his ticket to international fights in the future.
“Junior Raka is a senior boxer at the professional level and he has experience at the international level as well,” Paul said.
“He is still the PNG champion and I respect him. But for myself I see this as an opportunity to make my name.
“I’ve been in intensive training in the last three weeks and my mind is fixed for this fight. I want to win and I’m confident.
“If I can beat Junior Raka, then obviously the next best lightweight boxer in PNG pro-boxing is Joe Kara so definitely I’d have to fight Kara.
“But that’s for the future and I don’t want to get ahead of myself. I have my goals and the obvious one is to make my debut in an international bout.
“In order for the promoters to consider me an international fight, this is the fight I have to prove myself.”
Paul, who is working with a firm at the Port Moresby wharf, said it was a bit of a struggle juggling work and his training schedule.
“It’s been tough, you know I have to work and then training is a must so it’s a challenge but I’ve been handling it well.
“I’m hoping it pays off on Saturday.”
The Paul and Raka showdown is the main bout of the nine local bouts organised by OFP.