Dave Allen will swap the centre of the ring for the safety of his corner this Friday night in Doncaster, England.
After winning his first title last weekend, following his emphatic fifth-round knockout of rising heavyweight star, Johnny Fisher, the 33-year-old Allen will now take a backseat in the corner, as his super-welterweight prospect Joe Hayden (17-0, 1 KO) fulfils a lifelong dream only 18 fights into his professional career.
25-year-old undefeated prospect, Joe Hayden, faces local Doncaster boxing rival, Lewis Booth, at Doncaster Rovers FC's 15,000-capacity stadium on Friday, May 23, live on DAZN.
The eight-round contest, which takes place on the undercard of Terri Harper’s WBO world lightweight title defence against Natalie Zimmermann, is the only one on a stacked GBM Sports card between two men from the city where it is being staged.
From the same town of Conisbrough as Dave Allen, Joe Hayden will enter the ring as favourite against Lewis ‘2 Smooth’ Booth, who lost for the first and only time in his career when he was stopped by Commonwealth champ Constantin Ursu five months ago.
Trained and managed by new WBA Intercontinental heavyweight champion Dave Allen, Hayden is excited by the prospect of appearing at the football venue he views as his own personal Las Vegas.
“A few years ago, I was asked what my dream was, and I replied it was to fight at Doncaster Rovers’ ground,” Hayden said to SportsBoom.com.
“Now, I’ll be able to tell people I’ve done that, which is pretty amazing when you think about it.
“I’ve grown up watching Rovers. This is my home, Doncaster means everything to me and Donny Rovers are our team.
“We’ve had a brilliant season, getting promoted and going back into League One. To think I’ll be stepping out where that happened, it might be a little surreal.
"I’m sure it’s going to be one of those things that only really sinks in a few weeks or months afterwards. That’s when I’ll probably look back at the occasion and think ‘Chuffing hell!’ It probably won’t sink in straight away.”
Hayden has been preparing for this clash at Jamie Moore’s gym in Greater Manchester, because Allen’s training camp was based there for his rematch against Johnny Fisher.
Despite being immersed in his own gruelling camp, Allen was still able to oversee his southpaw’s training as well.
Hayden reflected, “It’s been amazing, being over there and working alongside brilliant lads like Jack Catterall and Pat Brown. When you see how hard they push themselves, it really spurs you on even more.
“I told Dave that I think it’s been a brilliant experience for us both, especially because it’s so close to our own fights.
“Manchester has been good for me, and I’ve learnt a lot but, don’t get me wrong, it still feels great to come home to Donny on Thursdays.”
The meeting between Hayden and Booth, whose high-octane style contrasts starkly with the 25-year-old's more cerebral approach, is one of the most eagerly anticipated contests of promoter Izzy Asif’s outdoor event.
“It brings an extra dynamic because neither of us want to lose in our hometown,” Hayden said.
“It’s all about bragging rights, isn’t it. But I don’t feel any pressure, bad pressure that is, because I know I train hard, and I know I do everything right.
"This is what I do and if I execute everything, we’ve worked on correctly then I’ll come away with a good, statement, victory like Dave.
“For me, it’s not about external factors. It’s about controlling controllables.
“This fight has given me extra fuel,” he added. “I didn’t need that to train hard in the first place but of course I’m well up for this!”