Lights, camera, action: Jack Rafferty says he is ready for a big platform

Last weekend, Jack Rafferty was sitting at home watching Lewis Crocker’s fight against Conah Walker when his eyes suddenly closed to reality. His own face was featured in a commercial for Marco Huck’s return to action and Juan Francisco Estrada’s superfight against Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez.

Rafferty (22-0, 13 KOs) will fight on a major platform for the first time this weekend, and his fight against India’s Sabari Jaishankar will be the highlight of Conlan Boxing’s show on DAZN.

“There it was: ‘Jack “The Demolition Man” Rafferty is coming out next week on June 29th.’ I’ve never experienced that before. The amount of people mentioning it or including me in things was crazy. It really got real. I’m thrilled to be getting all that attention and on Saturday I’m going to show why I should get it,” Rafferty told BoxingScene.

“I did it the hard way, but I talked to my coach Steve Maylett beforehand. The hard way feels even better.”

At a time when major promoters are desperate for exciting, popular fighters, Rafferty, 28, has somehow slipped through the net. He is a Commonwealth junior welterweight champion, sells hundreds of tickets and has an action-packed, TV-ready style.

Things have finally started to pick up steam. He has attracted plenty of interest since needing less than a round to stop the respected Lee Appleyard and win the Commonwealth title last December, and earlier this month the British Boxing Board of Control ordered a fight between Rafferty and the undefeated Henry Turner for the British junior welterweight title, recently vacated by Dalton Smith.

Rafferty has been a professional since 2017 and has spent the last five years at The Finest Gym in Manchester, where his trainer Maylett has worked hard to bring a more subtle touch to his style and a more considered aggressiveness. Maylett believes Rafferty is now ready for the best of the British scene and Rafferty himself believes fans will like what they see on Saturday night.

“I think there will be a good reaction,” Rafferty said. “People will wonder who this guy is that came out of nowhere, and they might do a little research and see that I can do some stuff. They’ll think, ‘Wow. Why wasn’t this guy on those platforms?’ I’ll show them what I can do and put myself in a position where I can stay on them.”

“It’s so hard, and this professional in this gym and Steve’s eyes are the biggest cameras I could ever get. I’m trying to impress him and do the things he wants me to do right, and his eyes see more than any camera I’ll ever have in my face. I’m well prepared and – I know everyone says this – it really was the best training camp I’ve ever had. On Saturday I’m going to put all that hard work into a top performance.”

Although Rafferty is a junior welterweight, he will fight this weekend at welterweight against Jaishankar (11-2, 5 KOs). The well-traveled Jaishankar is a hard puncher who has boxed at championship level for several years and won a WBC ranking belt in 2022 by defeating Australia’s Michael Pengue.

There is already talk behind the scenes about the British title fight with Turner, but having been looking for attention and the chance to impress a big audience for so long, Rafferty jumped at the chance to stay busy and showcase his talent on a big stage. Jaishankar may be unknown, but he is a solid fighter and Rafferty certainly isn’t viewing the fight as some sort of exhibition.

“This is another opportunity that opens new doors for me,” Rafferty said. “I’m still a super lightweight fighter, but I have a platform to compete at welterweight and I’m going to show that I can do both.”

“People talk about the British title but it’s hard to talk about that yet. I’ve got a job to do this weekend and it’s become even more important because there’s so much at stake next. I’ve got to get that fight over with on the 29th and we’ll cross that bridge when we have to.

“If I don’t win this fight, there won’t be another fight and that would bring my career to a massive halt. I don’t want that. I’m on the title train now and I want to stay that way. I think I’m getting into my best shape and I want to show what I can do. I love boxing. I love training and I love fighting. I’m going to keep going with this recipe that Steve and I have mixed.”

Britain has a strong 140lb scene. Jack Catterall tops the list after drawing level with long-time rival and former undisputed champion Josh Taylor, while Dalton Smith proved himself a legitimate world-class fighter by stopping Jose Zepeda in March and former European champion Adam Azim is scheduled to face Harlem Eubank next. Rafferty is in an exciting group with fighters such as Turner and Irishman Pierce O’Leary.

Rafferty wants to take the British scene by the scruff of the neck and get into the slipstream of the more established names.

“I can put myself on a high pedestal in the British rankings,” he said. “I can make a name for myself in Britain. I will be ready for those big calls, but I can’t ignore this fight. The British title is a dream. I think it’s something every boxer wants.”

“Every boxer wants to win a world title, but come on, let’s beat this guy first and then win the British Championship, then my career will go in a very good direction.”