Sutherland weighing up options
28 August 2008 – by Mark Doyle
Darren Sutherland is fully aware that he is entering a ‘minefield’ in trying to make a successful switch from amateur to professional boxing.
The 26-year-old middleweight, who claimed a bronze in the Olympic Games in Beijing, has long been expected to move into the paid ranks and he confirmed on Wednesday that he now intends to start weighing up the promotional and management options available to him.
Frank Warren has already expressed his interest in offering Sutherland professional terms but the 26-year-old Dubliner insists that he will not be rushed into deciding with whom to entrust his future in the pro game.
“That’s the minefield that I’m going to have to take my time and go through. I have to look at all the offers and find the deal that’s right for me,” he said.
“Everyone kind of knew even before I qualified for the Olympics that my heart was always in the professional game. It was always where I wanted to go.
“But at the same time I wanted to go out on a high note and to reach the pinnacle of my amateur career.
“I’m probably going to take a week or two weeks off now, just to relax and let it all sink in and then sit down with the different trainers and managers and see what they have to offer. And then its about making the right choice and finding the right team that I gel with.”
