Boxing - Gibraltar-based businessman wins in first outing as professional boxer

Gibraltar-based businessman Alan Graves, 33, recently took on the ultimate challenge outside the office by stepping foot in boxing the ring for a professional licensed boxing match under the glitzy lights of Dubai, in the UAE.
Graves has several businesses that employ many people throughout Gibraltar, the most recent of which is Body & Mind, an advanced wellness centre on Devils Tower Road offering top of the range gym equipment, a sauna and steam room and cutting edge cryotherapy treatments.
Graves decided he was going to take on the mammoth task of stepping up to be pro boxer in late August 2023, when he contacted Fabian Ene and Marcel Montana Rumpler, a nine-time Austrian boxing champion and former Olympian, to train him for his upcoming challenge.
He began online training in October through their online martial arts school, FightGecko.com, and utilising his own Body & Mind wellness centre for therapy and recovery during the initial training for the fight.
It was in Dubai that Graves got his professional boxing license and went into an intensive two-month boxing camp, with his two coaches in preparation for his upcoming fight.
The event was called EMD Fight Night, the 6th fight night put on by Eisa Al Dah, the first ever professional boxer from the UAE, hosted in Dubai late February.
His opponent was Walusimbi Arafat, a younger, taller, more experienced Ugandan with a tricky southpaw style.
The day before the fight, the weigh-ins and press conference were attended by all, and Graves was asked to say a few words to the media that day. Both weighed in under the 75kg required weight for the bout, and the fight was on.
Graves vs Arafat was the 4th fight on the card, which came slightly sooner than expected due to fight number three being over in the first round.
Graves, whose fight name is El Tolelo, a nod to his nieces and nephews (Eli, Tom, Lexi, Logan), sporting monochrome black shorts with white writing, was accompanied on his ring walk by his two coaches, to the sound of Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond.
He was welcomed by over 100 travelling fans who had flown specifically to see him, hailing from Mexico, Gibraltar, USA and the UK. The atmosphere was electric.
Commentators for the evening, which included ex UFC fighter Luke Barnatt, noted how the atmosphere changed when the Englishman stepped out on his ring walk. However, supporters could not take the punches for him, and the commentary noted that Graves was the underdog here.
Graves, in the blue corner, started the fight strong, taking centre ring position against the Ugandan in the red corner, pressuring him with a flurry of punches, one of which, a right
cross lands right on the button of his opponent, which was responded by Arafat resorting to the clinch.
Graves displayed strong ring generalship as the round progressed, leading with the jab and keeping good distances kept keeps Arafat’s advances at bay, with Graves managing to land the occasional right to the body as well.
Arafat with the reach advantage manages to catch Graves with a few in/out jabs but nothing that seemed to bother him too much. The next minute and half of the 3min round was very back and forth, both fighters exchanging jabs and combos, no real damage done by either. At 2:30, the Ugandan ends up on the ground, the referee concludes this is just from a trip and is not worth of a count.
The last 25 seconds after the fight resumes started cagey, ending with both fighters swinging as the bell rang to signal the end of the first round. The commentators were judging the round very evenly.
During the break, Graves’s trainers were in the ring, barking tactics and showing what needs to be done. Graves was breathing heavy, no doubt from the nerves of his first ever professional boxing round.
Round 2 began with Graves on the front foot again, pressuring the opponent with his lead hand controlling the range and centre of the ring. Jabs from both fighters breaching the guard of each other, as well as missed hooks from both parties.
Arafat’s experience shone through as looked very calm and loose for the next 45 seconds of the round, almost too loose, using the teasing jab to lure Graves in, but he did not fall for it.
At the 55 second mark, Graves set up the jab and stunned the red fight fighter with a brilliant stepback right cross. Graves pushed Arafat into his own corner and unleashed a tirade of punches, attempting to close out the fight early, knowing the opponent was hurt.
After a momentary escape by Arafat, he was back on the ropes again, with Graves catching him with a lovely right cross to the body, which forced him to clinch onto the Gibraltarian to buy himself some time to recover.
After the referee split up the pair, the match resumed, with Arafat looking to his corner, a tell-tale sign of a fighter who is questioning if he still wants to be there.
Graves acted on this opportunity with precision and technique, launching a combo, with a right uppercut sneaking through Arafat’s guard. The Ugandan slumped to the floor and the referee dived in to halt the action.
Graves walked to the neutral corner to catch his breath, but the referee had seen enough.
The fight was over, Graves won with a second round knockout in his first ever outing as a professional boxer.
The fans went into rapturous song and dance, and Graves’ father, also Alan, entered the ring to celebrate with his son.
The announcer called and the referee raised Alan’s hand in the air, and declared him winner by knockout, halfway through the second round.