Fast Facts:

Name: Tom Welland

Age: 19

X: @tomwelland04

Nationality: British/Filipino

From: Wickford, Essex

Stance: Orthodox

Height: 5ft 6ins

Record: 2-0 (1)

Division: Super-bantamweight

Next fight: Welland is due for his third professional outing on the Wasserman card in Telford on March 1.

When and why you started boxing:

I started boxing at 13 with the objective just to get stronger to help me when I was playing football for Cambridge Youth Academy. After my first session boxing, I didn’t go back to football!

Favourite all-time fighter:

Manny Pacquiao. Being Filipino myself, he’s a national hero and an inspiration to everyone.

Best fight you’ve seen:

Nonito Donaire vs Naoya Inoue 1. This fight just had it all!

Personal career highlight:

My best achievement in boxing so far is travelling to the Philippines to live and train with the Olympic squad and represent the Philippines.

Toughest opponent: 

Definitely Yuri Zanoli in my second professional fight. Everything I threw at him just didn’t faze him and he kept coming.

Best and worst attributes as a boxer: 

My boxing IQ, my power and my accuracy. However, my weaknesses are taking shots on the way out of clinches or exchanges.

Training tip:

Stay consistent and trust the process. Good things come to those who wait and keep grafting.

Favourite meal/restaurant: 

A good steak. It must be medium rare.

Best friends in boxing: 

Giorgio Visioli. We’ve spent a long time training alongside each other as amateurs on the England setup and at our clubs. We’ve shared many great rounds and he’s a great lad.

Which other athlete would you like to be? 

Vasyl Lomachenko as he’s just a world class athlete and can do anything.

Who would play you in a film of your life?

Jackie Chan because my friends say I look like him!

Have you ever been starstruck?

Loads of times, especially when I spent a Saturday night at the boxing with Jermain Defoe. This was so special to me as I’ve been a Tottenham Hotspur fan my whole life.

Last time you cried:   

Probably about a year ago when my local supermarket stopped selling my favourite sweets!

Best advice received:

Being a boxer is a pleasure but it’s your job to make weight.

Tell us something not many people know about you: 

Not many people know that I’m actually left-handed but I box out of the orthodox stance.