‘It is surreal’ - Jarrow bare knuckle boxer’s positive outlook as he looks to bounce back from defeat

Gary Slator, from Jarrow, is looking ahead to his comeback after suffering a bare knuckle boxing defeat to Dorian Darch at the Vale Arena, in Cardiff, on Saturday, February 1.

Welshman Darch, who has fought the likes of Hughie Fury, Anthony Joshua, and Daniel Dubois, was a step up in opponent level for 25-year-old Gary, who was making his BYB Extreme Fighting Series debut.

Gary suffered a first-round knock down after he damaged the metacarpal bones in his right hand and opted to not continue in an effort to preserve the longevity of his fighting career.

He said: “I hit him with an overhand right and I’ve damaged all the metacarpal bones in my hand so I couldn’t carry on.

“Stupidly, I landed the punch with my wrist and didn’t pull into it rather than landing it with my fist.

“I’m not a boxer and he has fought the likes of Anthony Joshua, Daniel Dubois, as well as Hughie Fury but I feel like I was out boxing him at the start of the fight.

“My corner team were shouting and telling me not to continue as I’m only 25-years-old and I don’t want to permanently damage my career.

“Hopefully I can get the rematch with it as it is an honour to be fighting people who have fought the likes of Joshua and Dubois, especially in what is essentially the Premier League of bare knuckle boxing.”

In 2024, Gary became the youngest heavyweight on the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship’s (BKFC) roster following a successful amateur career, in which he was Europe’s youngest bareknuckle heavyweight champion.

Known as ‘The Grim Reaper’, he has previously told the Shields Gazette that he took up the sport following a period of struggling with his mental health and a number of suicide attempts.

Despite not getting the result he hoped for, legendary sports reporter Tom Ross compared Gary’s confidence to that of Muhammad Ali - something which he is using to build on going forward.

Read South Tyneside’s latest news and sport on the go with the Gazette’s email newsletters - sign up online here

Once he has recovered from his hand injury, Gary is eyeing a rematch with Darch in the hopes of avenging the defeat.

He added: “I’m not sure what is next for me, I had to cut to cruiserweight for this fight and lose two stone so if I stay at cruiserweight then maybe the rematch will be next.

“I haven’t asked for the rematch with Darch yet but I’ll fight any opponent that is put in front of me, I’m willing to fight any man on the given day.

“My record now is 30 wins and two losses and it is surreal to be fighting top class boxers, especially as a kid who has come from nothing.”