Scots get the Roach treatment by British Boxing May 19th 2008

Braveheart Promotions' Gary Young and Jason Hastie have been preparing for the biggest fights of their respective careers with fellow Scot Craig McEwan at Freddie Roach's famous Wildcard Boxing Club in Los Angeles. The Edinburgh duo will both appear on the undercard of Willie Limond's IBO Intercontinental lightweight title defence against Graham Earl at Glasgow's SECC on June 14. For 21-year-old rookie Hastie, who will make his fourth start in the paid ranks at the SECC, the next fight is always the most important at this early stage of his career. However, Young, who has been plagued with injuries throughout his pro career, is determined to prove that the broken right hand which has kept him out of the ring since September has finally healed. Young said: “I have been out of action for a long time. I broke two bones in my right hand last year and then suffered the same injury again when boxing David Kirk. I thought my hand was okay, but I broke it again when sparring Gary McMillan in preparation for my scheduled Celtic title fight with Barrie Jones at Meadowbank last December. “I am now punching well with my right hand and the bones have set well. I have also enlisted the help of physiotherapist Sandi Lyall from the FASIC Sports Injury Centre to ensure that my hands are professionally wrapped from now on.” Young and Hastie have been using their two weeks in Freddie Roach's gym to complete the groundwork for their upcoming bouts before returning to Scotland to complete the serious preparation with trainer Billy Nelson. McEwan, who was in the Scottish 2006 Commonwealth Games squad with Hastie and his gold medallist winning stablemate Kenny Anderson, moved from the capital to train with Roach and sign with Golden Boy Promotions in 2006. The childhood friend of Young has won all ten contests thus far and will make his first appearance as a professional in the UK on the undercard of Ricky Hatton's clash with Juan Lazcano at the city of Manchester Stadium this coming Saturday. Hastie said: “I have been training hard and soaking up the atmosphere in the gym. The quality of sparring is amazing and sharing a ring with boxers from Mexico and the Philippines has helped me adapt to facing different styles of opponent. “I aim to make the most of being a professional boxer because it is a short career, and this trip has been a fantastic learning experience. I had a great learning fight against Robin Deakin last time out, but I wasn't too happy with my performance. “I will get back to using my boxing skills next time, but it is better to learn a hard lesson winning a fight than losing.” Tickets for the show at the SECC on Saturday 14th June are available from the SECC Box Office on 0870 040 4000.

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