Join Bartholomew Hall as we sit down with Chatham boxer Robert Caswell on the search for his first title.
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00:00Hello and welcome to Invicta Sport, the only show on your TV dedicated to Kent's sporting
00:17action.
00:18We're switching things up and trying a new format to the show you know and love.
00:21Today we're bringing you an interview with Robert Caswell, the 24-year-old Chatham-based
00:25boxer eyeing up a title fight this summer.
00:28We've been following Robert Caswell's journey from the beginning.
00:31His rise has been electric with 11 knockouts and one defeat so far.
00:35He's got the backing of his local side Chatham Town who will be hosting his title bout and
00:40speaks highly of Kent's ability to foster some great boxing talent.
00:44We hope you enjoy.
00:46Robert Caswell's career has been off to a flying start following in the footsteps of
00:50some of Britain's greatest boxers by fighting at some of the most iconic venues like London's
00:55York Hall.
00:56However, it's not always been easy.
00:58Back in February 24, the boxer faced his first loss against Michael Webber Kane, a fight
01:04that actually had to be rescheduled after the Chatham boxer suffered a perforated eardrum.
01:09However, the defeat has not stopped the 24-year-old from making an incredible comeback over the
01:14past 12 months.
01:15After training hard and recovering from hand surgery, Caswell has hit the ground running
01:19this year in February beating Brian Mariana with confidence.
01:24Caswell's now won three fights since his only professional defeat.
01:27Now his eyes are on the prize with just a few months until a potential title fight.
01:32Caswell says he's ready to fight harder than ever before.
01:36Thank you very much for coming back into the studio.
01:38Good to have you here again.
01:40Straight off the back of a big win over at Brentford.
01:43How are you doing at the moment?
01:44Yeah, I'm really good, thank you.
01:45Yeah, it's been I think three weeks since my last fight in Essex.
01:48So yeah, back in training now and just waiting for a new fight day to get back in there.
01:55When you're off the back of a win, you're kind of in this sort of interim period.
01:57What's that like compared to, I know obviously a few months ago you had your first professional
02:03loss.
02:04What's the sort of difference between that kind of general feeling?
02:06Yeah, it's just like, you know, it's sort of like a down period so you relax as much
02:11as you can.
02:12You're obviously allowed to eat a little bit more but yeah, it's good just waiting about
02:16now really.
02:17That's the frustrating bit but as soon as I get a fight date and I'm getting ready for
02:21the next one, I'm all good.
02:23Good stuff.
02:24Well, lots to unpack today.
02:25I want to start by talking about how you came into boxing.
02:28You see you're a Chatham boy.
02:29We've had a few Chatham boxers that have sort of been going up through the ranks recently.
02:34Tell me how it all started.
02:35Yeah, so I think I was about 10.
02:38Grandad said I'd like to go down to the boxing gym.
02:40I kept pestering him saying I want to go down to the boxing gym.
02:42I think I was too young at the start so he said I'll come back in a year or two's time
02:47and I went down to a local pro called Johnny Armour, one like European title and he was
02:51a good boxer and he was from St. Mary's where I later joined.
02:55So I started off with him and then he said you need to take it a little bit further now.
02:59There's talent there and then he said you need to go to an amateur gym.
03:02So the amateur gym that was local to me was St. Mary's.
03:05It's got a good history.
03:07It's brought through so many boxers and I started down there at about 10, 11 and then
03:12yeah I was there for 10 years as an amateur going up and down the country.
03:16I got to national finals and I won some box cup goals, boxing places like Alexandra Palace
03:24in box cups and then when it got to that point of when I was like 20, 21, COVID hit so it
03:31just really put sport on hold but professional boxing was still going so I thought right
03:37this is the time to turn pro and yeah it's been a good journey so far.
03:41Yeah, really sort of capitalising that.
03:43Talk to me a bit more about St. Mary's because we have seen a lot of fighters come out of
03:46there.
03:47We talk about the Atama brothers.
03:48I know you actually grew up with them as well.
03:51What's that sort of community been like to have that behind you at St. Mary's?
03:54Yeah, it's been great.
03:56St. Mary's is basically all I've ever known as an amateur boxer so I've literally grew
04:01up from my childhood down there throughout the years so it was like a family run club
04:08at one point when we were down there.
04:10Like you said we had the Atama brothers, we had loads more and it was such a successful
04:15period of that club in that time so yeah it's been great growing up down there and now obviously
04:21I've moved on but I'll always be a St. Mary's boy.
04:24And lots of support from family I assume as well.
04:27You mentioned your grandfather as well.
04:29What did they say when you said look I want to take boxing seriously?
04:32Yeah, I worked with my grandad as well so that was my career before I turned pro and
04:38he's always backed me, let me have days off work to go to the gym and if I said I was
04:43sparring one day he'd let me have a day off and then now luckily I'm able to box full
04:47time so yeah my family has supported me from the very start.
04:51Yeah, definitely.
04:52Did any of them box before you?
04:53No, it was literally just me like I was the only one that has boxed but now they're all,
04:59now I've started they're all boxing fans so they watch every big fight on the TV and that
05:03so yeah I've got them into it.
05:05Yeah, definitely.
05:06I mean what was it in those sort of early days that made you think oh I want to do this
05:10sort of professionally, I want to do this for the rest of my life?
05:12Yeah, I just got the bug straight away really like I think when you have your first spar
05:16it's like a make or break like you get hit in the face and you either say oh it's not
05:20for me or I really like that and I really liked it so yeah from the start I've had the
05:26bug and through the ups and the downs like when you lose as an amateur and you've got
05:30to go back into school the next morning and tell everyone you lost and then when you win
05:34you're up on a high so throughout the highs and the lows I've always stuck in the gym,
05:38got better and just always tried to improve and from the very start everyone used to ask
05:43me what did I want to do as a job and I'd say I want to be a professional boxer and
05:46they'd be like really?
05:47But now it's paying off so yeah.
05:50And now you're doing it, now you're sort of living the dream I suppose.
05:53Was there any big sort of heroes of yours growing up?
05:56Just the usual lot really like the Ricky Hattons and people like that growing up when you watch
06:00them on TV and they're like they're selling out arenas and you think oh I'd love to do
06:05that so yeah now when you do it and you're boxing in front of people and you're selling
06:10tickets and everyone's cheering your name it's a great buzz.
06:14And you're at some of the big venues as well where some of those have played at before,
06:17have fought at before as well, what's that like going into these big places that have
06:22got big history behind them?
06:23Yeah like especially like York Hall where everyone's boxed really and I've had like
06:28seven, eight, nine fights there now so yeah it's quality like when you're there you think
06:33oh he's boxed here, he's boxed there and now you're doing it yourself so yeah you can't
06:37ask for much more.
06:38Yeah definitely and we've got a picture on the screen here of back at Brentwood just
06:42a few weeks ago and we were talking about how much that sort of production value is
06:45getting up now, you've got sponsors behind you, Chatham Town have been obviously very
06:48supportive of your journey, that must give you that sort of extra level of confidence
06:52in yourself and what you're doing.
06:53Yeah it's you know like boxing's such a hard sport and without like big sponsors that back
07:00you and now the football club that back me it's pretty much nearly impossible at times
07:05like a lot of professional boxers have to work and juggle training but I'm lucky now
07:09I'm at the stage where I can train full time now and I've got good backing and yeah without
07:16them it'd be impossible at times so yeah I'm really grateful.
07:19And of course where you come from as well, Chatham Town, local club, you know you can't
07:23knock them really for supporting you.
07:26What's been the most difficult period since you've gone pro, because I know you've had
07:30a few injuries here and there that have kind of set you back but you've always managed
07:33to sort of bounce back from that.
07:35Yeah like the loss obviously, I think it was a year ago the other day that I suffered my
07:39first loss as a pro, that was really hard because I got to the level where you know
07:45a title level and I was ready to push on with my first title and when you're in that, when
07:50you've got a fight coming up you never think you're going to lose and especially for the
07:53first time and it did happen so that was very hard but I bounced back well from that.
07:59Like you said I've had a couple of injuries, I broke my hand which last year was just such
08:03a tough year, I felt like I'd set back after setback, I had a loss and I broke my hand
08:08all in the space of three, four months so it was really tough but yeah like it's all
08:13part of the journey and you bounce back stronger and you learn a lot and now I feel like I'm
08:19at the best part of my career, I've bounced back so well and I think this year you'll
08:23see the very best of me.
08:25Yeah and what's sort of in the pipeline, anything you can share with us, I know you've teased
08:30on your social media over the past few days that potentially you've got a fight on the way.
08:34Yeah, hopefully yeah, we're looking at April, April, May time, get back out and then it
08:41all just leads to the big fight which is in talks and trying to get over the line at the
08:46moment at Chatham Town which I think will happen and yeah I'll box for a title at Chatham
08:52Town in the summer so yeah one more before that and then the big Chatham Town fight where
08:57I think the place will be sold out and it'll be massive.
09:01Definitely I don't think Chatham Town have hosted anything of the kind before have they?
09:04No and just boxing in Chatham in general, obviously there's boxing going on in Chatham
09:09but it's unlicensed, white collar but professional boxing in Chatham has not happened and I couldn't
09:14look back and see when it happened so yeah to have professional boxing in Chatham and
09:19at a football stadium under the lights on the pitch, yeah it's massive.
09:24Yeah it's going to be great and you've got quite a big following behind you now as well,
09:28what's that sort of been like to be at these fights and to see people out there cheering
09:32for you?
09:33Oh it's unreal, to have a support system like that is unbelievable and when you lose sometimes
09:40you worry that you might lose the support and lose the sponsors and stuff like that
09:45but if anything it's got even bigger like the ticket sales are even better, the sponsors
09:50are still backing me and yeah it's getting better and better and when it gets to the
09:54Chatham Town fight it's going to quadruple in size so yeah it's going to be massive for
10:01my career and for the club and for the town.
10:05Fantastic, alright we're going to go to a quick break now and when we come back we're
10:08going to talk about everything that you've got coming up in the future and I want to
10:11pick your brains a bit about some of the wider movements in boxing world as well.
10:16Perfect.
10:17Don't forget you can keep up to date with all the latest football news by heading over
10:19to Kent Online.
10:20But did you also know you can have your weekly digest of non-league and Gillingham news from
10:25around the county sent directly to your email inbox.
10:29Just search Kent Online email alerts and sign up on the website for all the latest written
10:33transfer news, match reports and interviews.
10:36You can also head over to our website kmtv.co.uk, click on the sports tab and you'll be able
10:41to see all of our reports including this one.
10:44So many great British motorsport careers began passing through these corners and that's what
10:49bosses here at Buckmore Park want to see continuing on.
10:52It might not be on the track that an ex-Lewis Hamilton or Orlando Norris is discovered here,
10:58instead it'll be over there.
11:00The plan is to replace a previously overlooked paddock building with a 20,000 square foot
11:05hub including a restaurant, sports bar and 18 top of the line motion simulators.
11:11So these facilities will also mean that they can come here and use the simulator rooms
11:15which is now such an important part of training for a motorsport career.
11:20Well that's it for part one.
11:21Join us after the break as Robert and I talk all about his future and the current state
11:25of boxing.
11:26See you in just a few minutes.
11:35Hello and welcome back to Invicta Sport right here on KMTV.
11:42Today we're speaking with chat and boxer Robert Caswell about his journey so far.
11:47Here's part two of our chat with him.
11:49Here with Robert Caswell, thank you very much for staying with us today.
11:53We were talking a bit about the setbacks that you had over the past year, things looking
11:57much more positive now, you've just got quite a big win under your belt, you're eyeing up
12:02a title in the future.
12:03Where do you see yourself in five, ten years' time?
12:06Five, ten years' time, probably retired from boxing.
12:12Boxing is such a short part of your career so by the time you're 30, 35 you're probably
12:18retired.
12:19But the plan is always to stay in boxing and it's been most of my life growing up so it's
12:25all I really know.
12:26So I'd like to open up a boxing gym, give a bit of time back that was given to me as
12:32a youngster and bring through the next crop of talent.
12:37Would that be here in Medway, where you're based now or just outside the Kent border?
12:42Yeah, Medway definitely.
12:45Medway are known for bringing through good boxers so on my doorstep, bring through the
12:49local talent and that's the plan.
12:53We spoke a bit about the Atalmo brothers, you've seen them shooting up, obviously Moses
12:57on the undercard of Tyson Fury now, are you still staying in touch with them at all?
13:02Yeah, me and Carol have known each other for years and his brother, they're doing great.
13:08You always knew they would do good from when they were kids, they're so dedicated and Moses
13:13is leading the way for us Kent boys and he's doing a great job.
13:17There seems to be quite a buzz around, there's quite a few Kent youngsters that have gone
13:22through the ranks, you've obviously got the Noakes brothers as well that are doing a lot
13:25for themselves.
13:26Do you see a change happening with Kent boxers and what's to come?
13:30Yeah, I think this is probably the golden age of boxing in Kent really, you always get
13:36one or you get two maybe maximum that are doing well but now you've got five, six of
13:42Kent lads doing really well that are climbing up the rankings and the ladder so that's why
13:48I think the Chatham Town show will be massive because there'll be not just me on the card,
13:53we've got loads of Chatham lads like Timmy Phillips who's making his way on the Fresh
13:57Boxers, he's had three or four fights and there's others on the way so I think that
14:02show will really showcase Kent talent and especially Chatham.
14:07We talk a lot about the effects that boxing can have, you get these communities like the
14:11one that you were so heavily involved with, the St Mary's and the effect that they can
14:14have on the local area and tackling loads of different issues, anti-social behaviour
14:19and getting youngsters out of trouble as well, is that something you've seen growing up,
14:23the effect that it can have on people?
14:24Yeah, so I worked before, like during my boxing, I was working with Olympia Boxing
14:28as well and they were doing sessions with people with Parkinson's, dementia and people
14:34that were obviously in trouble with crime and stuff like that and I used to help run
14:38the sessions and that and it just makes such a change, like boxing makes such a change
14:43to people's lives and people say, oh but I don't want them getting hit and stuff like
14:47that but the amount of positive outweighs the negative by a tonne and if you don't
14:54become a professional boxer that's not what boxing's about, you learn so much through
14:58boxing like just manners, respect and being on time and it gives you such great core values
15:06for life so even if you don't end up becoming a boxer you still learn so much from being
15:10in a boxing gym and learning it.
15:13Yeah, I mean you mentioned that it's something that you've done ever since you were at school
15:17and before then you were telling people I want to be a boxer so you must have even at
15:21that age known of some of the benefits and been getting them as well.
15:24Yeah exactly, like you see people come in into the boxing gym that are naughty at school
15:29getting kicked out of school and they change their lives around, like you see it so many
15:32times, it's not like a one off, so many people come in the boxing gym and change their lives
15:37and it's no surprise.
15:39And I think there's been another sort of wave of youngsters sort of being interested in
15:43boxing over the past few years, we've seen some of these YouTuber fights that all started
15:47with KSI and all the rest of it, they've now got their own series that they're hosting,
15:52do you think that's a positive thing for boxing?
15:54Yeah I think so, like more eyes on boxing the better, I think boxing's in a big place
15:59now at the moment especially with like Saudi Arabia and they're bringing big fights and
16:04a lot of money to the sport and like you said with the misfit stuff, that's big as well
16:09so yeah more eyes to boxing the better.
16:12Is it ever a path that you've considered at all, sort of getting up some of that social
16:15media sort of positivity in that sense?
16:18Yeah it's always good to improve your social media, it helps with the tickets and it helps
16:22with popularity and stuff like that, but yeah you've got to have your eyes focused on the
16:26boxing as well.
16:27No of course it is the boxing, I know that there was a fight that you had a few fights
16:32ago where there was a bit of sort of tough talk between the two sides, is that something
16:37you like to get involved in?
16:38No I don't really like it, I wouldn't start it first if that makes sense, but if they
16:45start giving me a little bit of jip then yeah you've got to go back, but yeah I just let
16:50my boxing do the talking, I always have done since I was a kid, I'm not one of them people
16:53that show off and let everyone know I'm a boxer, I sort of just go about it and quote
16:58quite about it, but yeah if needs to be.
17:01Let's talk about training then because you've got plans obviously for the rest of this year,
17:05so what is training looking like at the moment, you're kind of in this in-between period,
17:09but what's the regime?
17:10Yeah so trying to keep my weight down the best as possible and try not to get too heavy
17:17in between fights, it makes my job a lot harder when I have got a fight and I've got to lose
17:21loads of weight, so yeah training, still training, still ticking over, still training like six,
17:26seven times a week, sparring like once a week here and there just to keep my eye in and
17:31keep sharp and then obviously it will ramp up when I get a fight, then I start to double
17:36up my sessions, so I'll start doing ten sessions a week which will be two a day, Monday to
17:41Friday and then my dieting will start, so yeah it's just all about ticking over now,
17:46staying sharp and just standing in the gym and learning and improving as a boxer.
17:50Yeah I mean how do you strike that balance when you're in training between really pushing
17:54yourself to that next level and avoiding injury and avoiding sort of damaging yourself?
17:59Yeah obviously injury is part and parcel of boxing and any sport really, everyone gets
18:04it as their injuries and their niggles and stuff like that, you've just got to be sensible
18:08with it if you feel like you've got an injury and go and get looked at, I've got a good
18:12team around me like physios and stuff like that who keep me in check and stuff like that,
18:17so yeah you've just got to know when to push it and when to hold back and give yourself
18:22a day of rest or two days of rest and stuff like that.
18:26And sparring partners as well, are they easy to come about? How do you go about finding
18:31a sparring partner, someone that you go up against?
18:33Yeah so my coach does it all, arranges the sparring and luckily I've got a lot of good
18:38in-house sparring, so in the gym we've got a lot of people that are my weight that we
18:42benefit off each other and then we obviously get sparring from other gyms to come to us
18:47or go to them, so yeah it's good.
18:51And what stage, I know you said that you're kind of looking at something maybe April time
18:54but what stage do you ramp it up?
18:56Yeah so around now really, so you start getting it, I like to give myself eight weeks to get
19:03in the best possible shape I can, so around the eight week mark before fights I like to,
19:08but sometimes you don't get that, you're not lucky enough to get that sort of notice, so
19:13that's the benefit of staying ready, so if you get a call four to five weeks you're in
19:17decent shape enough to take it anyway, so that's the benefit of being in the gym.
19:23And one question that we're asking all of our guests in these sort of longer interview
19:27shows is if you could talk to your younger self now, what would be your message to them?
19:32Just learn, listen, listen before you speak, so yeah just listen really, take everything
19:39on board and just try and keep improving, stay in the gym and keep learning and you'll
19:45get there.
19:46Was that ever a problem that you had, maybe speaking before you listen?
19:51No, just like sometimes you think you know it all when you're young growing up, so yeah
19:57it's just good to listen and get advice off other people first and then yeah, improve.
20:03What kind of mentors have you had around growing up?
20:06Yeah so all of my boxing coaches growing up were a big part, like my amateur coaches,
20:11and people forget like they do it for nothing, it's volunteer work, so they're taking you
20:16all these different places on the weekends and spending time with their kids and stuff
20:20like that, so all my amateur coaches growing up and then now I'm blessed to have a good
20:25team as a pro, like Adam Martin, my coach and manager, he's been there from the start
20:29of my professional career and hopefully I get to finish it with him, so yeah I've had
20:34great mentors growing up.
20:36Fantastic, alright Robert, best of luck for the year ahead, we hope that you get as many
20:41wins as, I hope you win them all of course, and I'm sure we'll be following it along and
20:47maybe even coming down to Chatham if they let us in with some of our cameras.
20:50Definitely, thanks very much.
20:51Good stuff.
20:52Well that's just about it from us on today's episode of Invicta Sport, but before we go
20:56there's a few extra minutes of added time to have a look at this week's Action Replay,
21:00it's of course the segment where we take a look at clips and pictures sent in by you,
21:04the KMTV audience, of you taking part in sport, whatever it is, we're happy to show it.
21:09Take a look.
21:10First up on today's Action Replay, Imogen Amos from near Ashford took the world record
21:15at a Hyrox event in Vienna, she claimed the record in the 16-24 age category with a time
21:20of 1 hour and 10 seconds.
21:23Hyrox is a competition that combines both running and workouts and Amos is now looking
21:27forward to June's Hyrox World Championships in Chicago.
21:31We wish her the very best of luck.
21:33And next, St Michael's Colts boys hockey A team managed silver at the UKSA hockey tournament
21:39held at Burgess Hill on March 5th.
21:42The competition featured 16 teams and saw the boys team ending their first match with
21:47a draw and their second with a well-deserved win.
21:50After passing through the quarter and semi-finals, St Michael's faced off against Skippers High
21:54School but were unable to take the win after conceding a goal.
21:58Ultimately they finished second.
22:00And finally, our local democracy reporter Gabriel Morris took on KMFM in a push-up challenge.
22:06They set the standard at 15 push-ups and after putting in a solid effort live on our breakfast
22:10show, Gabriel matched it.
22:12Well, that's it for today's Action Replay.
22:15And next week it could be you.
22:16Just send your photos and videos to our social media or to sport at kmtv.co.uk.
22:22And if you want to appear in next week's edition of Action Replay, you absolutely can.
22:27Just send us an email as you heard Tim say to sport at kmtv.co.uk.
22:32Just tell us where it is you come from and what sport it is you do and we'll feature
22:35it right here on the show.
22:37Don't forget there's plenty more sports news, interviews and features from right across
22:40the county available on our website kmtv.co.uk.
22:44Just click on the sports tab or watch back previous episodes of Invicta Sport by clicking
22:48on programmes.
22:49Well, that's it for now.
22:50I'm sure we'll see you next time.