OLYMPIC Power Mill boxing coach Paul Charnock is hoping the switch from the amateur ranks to the professional game will be a fruitful one for Bury prospect Marc Britton.

The 27-year-old has decided to turn pro after a frustrating time trying to get fights as an amateur.

He is the first boxer from the Hornby Street gym, run by head coach Wayne Jackson, to try his hand as a pro, and Charnock is confident it will be the right move for the middleweight.

“He won six out of 10 as an amateur but the fights dried up and, after watching him in training, I suggested he turned pro because he is certainly good enough,” said Charnock, who is formerly of Radcliffe Dynamics ABC.

“We realise that, at 27, time is not on our side but look at what somebody like Bernard Hopkins has achieved in his late thirties and into his forties.

“Marc is very fit and fresh and he has not had any hard fights as an amateur. There are not many miles on his clock.

“He is now sparring with different pros in the area, like Heywood’s Mark Thompson and Olympian David Price, and he is learning all the time.

“Harrison Promotions have signed him on a two-year contract and will keep him busy and then, if he does well, move him on to the bigger promoters. But, first, he needs to get his career moving by fighting the small halls.”

Britton’s first fight is expected to be at the end of June, once he has cleared all the medicals and paperwork.

And Charnock believes his protégé has all the attributes to be a success in his new venture.

“Marc is 100 per cent dedicated and we have changed a few things in his style and diet to ensure there are no problems when he makes the step up,” he said.

“He is a southpaw that fights upright and is naturally rangey. I am sure he will do well.”

Olympic Power Mill are keen to hear from other good amateurs with ambitions of turning pro.

For more information, contact Paul Charnock on 07841 356614 or Wayne Jackson on 07791 073386.