Crayford super bantamweight Lewis Pettitt cannot wait for the biggest fight of his life on Saturday night at the Copper Box Arena.

The 23-year-old called for a title shot after his last victory against Slovakian Elemir Rafael in February.

And this weekend his wish will be granted as he takes on Brazilian Emerson Santos Carvalho at the Copper Box for the vacant WBA international super bantamweight title.

Pettitt said: “I am definitely happy to have the shot at the title.

“I’ve stayed in the gym ever since my last fight and I’m in really good shape.

“It is the biggest fight of my career and I cannot wait for Saturday to come around.

“We are only a couple days away from the fight and it has got to that point where I just want to get to Saturday and to get in the ring.”

With 13 wins in 14 professional fights to his name, Pettitt was quick to praise the work of trainers Al Smith, Eddie Lam and Nik Sivyer from the Ibox Gym in Bromley.

He said: “We’ve done pretty much the same thing in the run up to this fight as we would normally.

“I’ve been training a lot with Bradley Skeete, who is also on the bill on Saturday, which has benefitted us both.

“We have a foundation set out by Al which includes a lot of 10 and 12-rounders, so we know what we’re doing when we come into the ring.”

Carvalho has a reputation for hard-hitting after recording 10 knockouts from his 12 fight wins in just 17 professional bouts and represents a step up in opponent for Pettitt.

However, the Crayford man is confident he has the necessary skills to cope with the man from Sao Paulo.

Pettitt said: “I’ve watched a few videos on him so I know a bit about him.

“He’s really strong, he definitely will be dangerous throughout the whole fight with the punching power he has, but I’ve just got to concentrate the whole way through and make sure I produce what I’ve been doing in the gym.

“I’ve seen enough of him to see what he does, and more importantly what he doesn’t do, so I’m feeling ready.”

Pettitt believes home support at the Copper Box will play its part on Saturday and hopes this fight will propel his career forward.

“I love it when the fans are all there cheering you on,” he said.

“It definitely gees you up, especially if you’re having a bad round and at the end of the I do it for them.

“The Copper Box is the best venue I have ever boxed at.

“There’s not a bad seat in the house and to be on TV as well gets my name out there a little more and gives me a better platform to move on from.

“This belt gets you in the top ten in the world so for me to be able to box for it and put on a show will be great.”

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