Paul Butler this weekend has the chance to land the second world title of his career.
But footy-mad Butler is still gutted he won’t be able to pull on the boots for the Saturday side he plays for and manages – or travel to Rome to see his beloved Reds.
The big Liverpool FC supporter takes on Puerto Rico’s Emmanuel Rodriguez for the vacant IBF world bantamweight belt on Saturday night.
The bout is the chief support to the heavyweight rematch between Tony Bellew and David Haye at The O2 Arena.
That means Butler had to scrap plans to watch Liverpool’s Champions League semi-final second leg in Rome on Wednesday night – and stop playing for Sutton Athletic.
The Ellesmere Port boxer is player-manager of the Chester & Wirral League outfit and he is desperate to follow in the footsteps of Mo Salah and claim the golden boot.
But the blow of having to watch on from the sidelines will certainly be softened if he manages to overcome the unbeaten Rodriguez and win the IBF crown for the second time.
Chester-born Butler, 29, said: “Me and one of my best mates, Tom McGill, manage a Saturday team and last year, because it was our first season, we had to start off in the bottom league, and we went the whole season unbeaten and did the league and Wirral Junior Cup double.
“We got the chance to skip Division One and go straight to the Premier Division this season, and now we’re two wins away from winning that too. We’re also in the final of the Wirral Amateur Cup, so we’re flying.
“I’m devastated at not being able to play because I’ve got two people right on my heels for the golden boot. There’s a young lad called Connor Doyle, whose dad, Maurice, used to play for QPR and Millwall, and still plays for us now, and my strike-partner Peter Barnett, so I’m not happy.
“I try to carry on playing as close as I can (to a fight) but my dad reminds me that I’d be letting myself and everyone down if I got injured, so I stop four of five weeks out from a fight.
“I look forward to my football because that’s my break from boxing. I buzz off the thought that I’ve got games on a Saturday and a Sunday. Joe Gallagher, my trainer, doesn’t particularly like it because I come in on a Monday aching, but it’s something I look forward to.
“I’d still play this weekend if I could but it’s the biggest opportunity of my life and you can’t let these chances slip away.”
Butler, who also plays for CDS Flooring Studio in the Chester & District Sunday League, is not the only boxer at top trainer Gallagher’s gym in Bolton who plays football at the weekend.
Liam Smith also turns out for West Cheshire League Division One high flyers Newton.
But whereas ‘Beefy’ has been forced to postpone his scheduled world title fight with Sadam Ali due to illness, Butler will step into the ring on Saturday night in an attempt to reclaim the IBF strap he reluctantly relinquished in 2014 after beating Stuart Hall.
The ‘Baby Faced Assassin’ said: “I’m feeling good, feeling sharp, and I’m ready to go.
“It’s a massive bill and the whole reason why I came over to Eddie Hearn was to be involved in big shows like this.
“It will be a tough fight. We’ve watched a lot of him (Rodriquez) but the more I watch of him the more flaws I see in him. He’s a very talented kid, and I’m going to have to be switched on for 12 rounds, but I was always going to take this fight.
“Ryan Burnett (the WBA super world bantamweight champion) didn’t fancy it but I fancy the job and believe I can do the job, and if I can come through as champion, I’ll bring them all on.”
Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool have taken on all-comers in the Champions League this season and, providing they avoid a second-leg collapse in Rome on Wednesday night, Butler has already made plans for the final in Kiev on May 26.
“I’m a massive Red and I would have gone to Roma but it’s on May 2 and obviously this fight is more important,” said the Vauxhall Motors ABC graduate.
“But hopefully we’ll get through, I’ll win the world title, and then I’ll travel out to Kiev. That’d be the dream.”
Not forgetting doing the double with Sutton Athletic, of course.
- You can listen to the full interview with Paul Butler on the podcast section of the LFC Echo app, which is free to download for Apple and Android devices. Once you have downloaded the app, tap the Anfield+ section to listen to the Liverpool Echo’s new, free-to-try, daily Liverpool FC podcasts.
