By Alistair Hendrie

Adam Etches is well aware that despite winning the IBF Youth middleweight title against Andrei Abramenka this weekend, there is still room for improvement. There are no airs and graces about the Sheffield man, who on Monday returned to full training at the Ingle Gym, Wincobank.

“Even at domestic level I’m still learning; I need to keep my head in gear and keep doing what has got me so far,” Etches reasoned. “Thanks to the IBF title, I’m now ranked as Britain’s number 10 by Boxrec. My ranking on the world scene will also go up.”

Indeed, Etches faced a significant step up by tackling Abramenka, a former European title challenger. He took the opportunity with both hands, however, and scored a knockdown with a wild haymaker in round one.

“I couldn’t believe how fast, clean and flush I hit him,” said Etches. “I really thought he was gone but when he got up I said to myself: ‘This guy is tough, this could be a long night’. I got caught with a few daft shots though, so I had to be quite clever and cute.”

Although Abramenka managed to block a lot of shots from thereon in, Etches put the result beyond any reasonable doubt in an explosive fourth round. He sent his rival sliding under the ropes with a shovelling uppercut, and then ended matters for good with a shower of straight punches, capped off by a hook to the chin.

“I almost knocked him out of the ring with that uppercut. He got up after the third knockdown but although the ref stopped it, I knew he probably wouldn’t have stayed down unless I’d hit him with a hammer!”

“His head must have been spinning at the end. I know that at this level, people aren’t going to lie down and they’re going to be tough and keep getting up. I couldn’t believe how many punches he took.”

While Etches progressed to 12(10)-0 with his seventh consecutive knockout, it seems his ferocious, well documented power could be a problem for any British middleweight.

“I know that even if I’m losing a fight in the 11th round, if I connect flush in the 12th round, whether it’s at domestic or world level, I can cause some real damage.

“I’ve seen Chris Eubank Jnr hasn’t stopped many guys recently, and Billy Joe Saunders struggled to put away Nick Blackwell. When I’m this young, when I’m still learning, I need to be getting rid of guys and stopping fights. For me to stop Abramenka, who has only been knocked out twice, I think that shows a lot.”