JUST a few months after he defeated Newport’s Craig Woodruff in their highly anticipated British title rematch, Treharris’ Gavin Gwynne has been granted a shot at the European lightweight title, writes Kailem Lowe.

Undefeated Italian southpaw Emiliano Marsili, who has won 42 of his 43 professional contests, stands in the way of Gwynne becoming European champion.

The lightweight pair set to meet later in the year on a show promoted by Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing.

Gwynne, who boxes under the guidance of the respected coach Tony Borg, has already enjoyed success as the Welsh, Commonwealth and British lightweight champion since he turned professional in the summer of 2016.

The popular Welshman, who is best known under his nickname ‘The Merthyr Mexican’, won the Commonwealth lightweight title at the start of 2021 when he stopped Sean McComb in Bolton, making him one of the few Welshmen to have won this belt.

Gwynne then went on to become British lightweight champion in April 2022 when he outpointed Luke Willis, adding the coveted Lonsdale belt to his Commonwealth title and in the process fulfilling a career-long dream of becoming British champion.

‘The Merthyr Mexican’ then had back-to-back contests with Newport’s Craig Woodruff, the first of which ending in a controversial draw after a 12-round slugfest between the Welsh duo.

The rematch was contested on the undercard of Joe Cordina’s IBF world title showdown with Shavkat Rakhimov in April this year, with Gwynne stopping Woodruff in the fifth round, putting an end to their bitter feud.

Not only did Gwynne retain his British title by defeating Woodruff, he also bagged an attractive 5-fight deal with Matchroom Boxing, and an opportunity to showcase his talent on the globally recognised broadcasting platform DAZN, who have worked exclusively with Matchroom since 2021.

There is a lot at stake for Gwynne as he looks to continue to make history for himself and his country, but there is no doubt that a chance at European glory will give him all the motivation he needs as he edges ever closer to a dream shot at a world title.