Boxing
TKV ready to let underdog status roar against Riakporhe
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Jeamie TKV admits he relishes his underdog status against Richard Riakporhe, while reflecting on his win over Frazer Clarke.
The British heavyweight champion defends the Lonsdale Belt tonight on the Tyson Fury-Arslanbek Makhmudov undercard.
Riakporhe, a former domestic champion at cruiserweight, has been tipped as a potential world-level operator in his new division.
That means, despite the silverware, TKV arrives as the underdog - but the star insists he feeds off those perceptions to prosper.
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"It fuels me, it builds that hunger," he told The Ring. "I gets me excited when I see that. I start shadowboxing, doing push ups.
"Maybe the fans, they probably expect it to be a quick little run-out for Richard. I don't believe that will be the case. No problem."
TKV also opened up on his frustrations following his victory over Clarke, admitting he "felt disrespected" in the aftermath.
"People are not talking about me, they're talking about Frazer," he added. "Everyone was just dismissing my win, in a way."
TKV out to defy expectations again
DAZN News correspondent Andrew Steel
Jeamie TKV has not done things the easy way, but his knack for finding a path through may serve him well once again here.
Richard Riakporhe already holds top-15 status with two of the four major governing bodies, ranked as a world-level rival.
Victory here surely would vault him into the conversation, even if the odds seem stacked against him to achieve that feat.
TKV believes in himself with an unwavering conviction that helped him get the better of Frazer Clarke for the Lonsdale Belt.
Now, on the biggest stage of his career, he has the chance to show that he means plenty of blockbuster business too.
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