Toronto, March 3: Sukhdeep Singh Chakria, who hails from a generation of farmers in Punjab and turned to professional boxing in Canada, has done it once again. He showed his prowess in the ring to maintain the IBA Intercontinental Middleweight title.
On Feb 20, he defeated Richard ‘The Frog’ Holmes in a much-anticipated International Boxing Association bout to crown himself the Canadian middleweight boxing champion.
Sukhdeep’s rise makes an interesting story. The 29-year-old fighter, who switches between orthodox and southpaw during fights, came to Canada after an excellent amateur career in India.
Boxing has been a foundational part of his life since Sukhdeep was 13. He grew up in a village in Chakar, Punjab, hailing from an endless generation of farmers in Panjab.
He used to hang about the yard of the Sher-E Punjab Sports Academy watching as a bystander. Until, that is, the day that a confrontation with one of the Academy’s boxers led to a critical decision: leave the academy grounds for good, or join the academy and learn how to settle disputes in a professional manner, according to an entry at his website.
He started making good in boxing. He had captured gold medals at the 2012 Senior National Boxing Championship and 2011 Boxing Super Cup. In 2016, he also trained with the Indian Olympic Boxing Team in Ireland.
In 2018, United Boxing Promotions (UBP) signed the then Indian super middleweight prospect for his professional debut.
Canada gave him the big break. In November 2019, he first won the IBA Intercontinental Middleweight title when he defeated Argentina’s Hector Carlos Santana by first-round TKO. He required less than three minutes to dispatch Santana’s quest and earn the title for himself.
Since turning pro in Canada and hooking up with Toronto-based trainer Ryan Grant, Chakria has established himself as a rising middleweight star.
Sukhdeep told ProBoxing-Fans in an interview published last year that After performing well in the village, state-wide and national competitions, the family that started the academy in his village presented him with an opportunity to come to Canada periodically and train with Ryan Grant, his current coach and confidant.
“I would come for periods at a time and realise that the training, expertise and resources in Canada were helping me develop at a faster rate than my training in Punjab, so I tried to come as often as I could in my early 20s.
“When I transitioned to professional and signed with Tyler Buxton at United Promotions, I decided that Canada is where I need to be to elevate my game and get to the next level,” he said.
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