Aarron Morgan [9-0-0]

Judging by the manner of his victories to date, East London's Aarron "The Marksman" Morgan looks more than ready to prove himself on the British domestic scene in 2016. Aarron took the time discuss with BoxingQnA his boxing background and career progress so far.

What is your boxing background?

I always messed about when I was younger, hitting the bags as a youngster. At the age of 17, I had put on quite a lot of weight. I looked at boxers like Mike Tyson and Nigel Benn, who I was a huge fan of being from East London myself. I saw the tremendous condition these fighters were in and thought to myself "if boxing can get you in shape like that, then that's what I'm going to do!" So I started going to a local boxing club. I had a friend from school who had been boxing for a little while and he invited me to his club in North London. I went there with him to try it out and the rest is history as they say.

I boxed for Islington Boxing Club during my amateur career. I had a great time in the amateurs, winning a national ABA title, various box cup gold medals, boxing in various countries and culminating in being selected for trials for Team GB, where I made it to the final selection stage, but unfortunately didn't make the team. The fact that I wasn't able to make the Great Britain team gave me the push to turn professional as I knew I could compete with the elite.

Throughout my amateur career, I was very aware that I was a popular and exciting fighter and thought that would transfer well to the professional scene…looks like I made a good decision with 9 wins and 7 KOs from 9 fights so far!

For those who aren't familiar with you, who in all does your team comprise of?

I am currently trained by Bevis Allen and Roy Callaghan. These guys have been involved with me throughout my amateur career (Bev from the very beginning). We have had a successful working relationship so far. We work hard and prepare diligently, I think this is evident in not only the results so far, but the actual performances. I am currently managed by Mickey Helliet.

And for anyone who hasn't seen you in action yet, how would you describe your style?

My boxing style is like water, formless. I do whatever is needed to get the job done. If you run, I am going to cut off the ring, hunt you down and knock you out! If you come to press me and come forward then more fool you, you will be met with fierce resistance and stopped in your tracks. I am a fighter that is always looking to end the fight at any given moment, so don't blink.

You haven't even been a professional for 2 years yet, but you've already crammed in 9 fights. Was a high level of activity planned from the outset and how beneficial is it to be getting out so regularly at this stage?

I would actually like to be busier than I have been. At the early stage in my development, I am aware that I need as much ring time as possible. Given the fact that I am getting these guys out of there, I would love to fight more often.

Obviously no disrespect to the journeymen that have been put in front of you, but it seems as though your learning curve as a pro has been very steady and it would appear that your fundamentals and punching power have made it difficult for them to put you through your paces. You've even been stopping guys that usually have no issues taking a prospect the distance. With all that in mind, do you feel as though you might be already coming close to reaching the stage where you will not be learning much from boxing journeymen and that much sterner tests will be needed before long?

I feel that I am ready to fight any 154lb fighter in the country and I am confident that it is going to be very hard for any of them to hear the final bell. I am looking forward to the next stage in my boxing career as I will be fighting guys that will be coming with more ambition than just wanting to hear the final bell. I think this is actually going to work against them as they will be opening themselves to being KO'd clean!

If everything falls into place for you, roughly what do you hope to achieve within the next couple of years?

I want to prove myself as the best domestic operator in my weight class and then push on from there. I came into professional boxing for big nights and big fights.

What would you say are some of the most important things for a prospect like yourself in terms of career direction and ensuring that you go on to reach your full potential as a professional?

Management is probably the most critical aspect of a prospect's development. As the boxer, it's our job to train hard and prepare, to live the life and fully commit. All this sadly doesn't mean much if you're not being moved at the correct rate and properly promoted to build your brand and fan base. From the training side, sparring is a huge component to your development, so it's important that your trainer either has the necessary connections or makes them to enable you to practice your craft with quality operators. This is imperative to avoid your tools being blunted.

As a boxing historian yourself and with your own personal preference of doing things traditionally with regards to titles pursued, how do you feel about the numerous instances where fighters bypass the domestic scene completely and pick up a lightly regarded intercontinental title or something along such lines? Do you see it as something which is bad for boxing, but good for the fighters? Or do you perhaps see it as a case of "going in another direction", allowing a fighter to continue building a profile, thus potentially leading to bigger fights down the road which perhaps would not have happened for them otherwise? How do you see it?

I think it's just where we are in this current boxing landscape. These titles are here to stay unfortunately, so to downplay them or their importance I think would be disrespectful to any fighter that does fight for one. We are in a place right now where boxing is no longer as popular as it was in years gone by. Now some may argue that is because the best are not fighting the best, but if the financial rewards are not viable to make some of these fights happen without marketing fighters as "x times international abc champion", then I can understand why the powers that be do what they do. It's a problem in the sport as a whole! We need to bring this glorious sport of boxing back to the popularity it enjoyed in yesteryear. To do this though, we need everyone singing from the same hymn sheet.

If you could spar with anyone from past or present, who would it be and why?

I would love to share the ring with Miguel Cotto. One of my favourite fighters, as well as someone I have learned a lot from and modelled aspects of my style on.

What are your interests outside of boxing?

I am a family man outside of boxing. I love to spend time with my son, my family and my friends who are like brothers to me.

Message to your fans?

Message to my fans…thank you for all of your support so far. It's been an amazing journey and I have already enjoyed some nights I will never forget. With that being said, this is only the beginning! There will be big nights and big fights on the horizon, so your continued support will push me to great heights. I am looking forward to the next chapter of this story…don't blink! MAN DOWN!

Final words?

I would like to thank my sponsors who have shown faith in me from the beginning. I appreciate your support and could not do the things I do without you; Aberdeen Asset Management, Garbanzo Snacks, Steve Miles Plumbing & Heating.

Feel free to follow me on Twitter and Instagram @aarronmorgan and my snapchat is MarksmanMorgan.