Ekow Essuman Says Nothing Is on the Line for Jack Rafferty — Welterweight
Ekow Essuman heads into his welterweight bout with Jack Rafferty this weekend in Manchester saying he has “nothing on the line.” The 37-year-old is coming back after Jack Catterall stopped him in November, the first time he had been halted in 24 fights.
Essuman and Jack Rafferty
“It's not a position I find myself in much. But how much is on the line? To me, nothing’s on the line. It’s just go out and do what I do. I’m not boxing for anyone aside from myself and my family. I’m going to go out there, do what I do, enjoy it, and do it well and get paid for it,” Essuman said ahead of the return in Manchester.
He also made clear he does not want a soft landing after that loss. “Even so, after the last match, I said, ‘I don't want to get an easy match to come down to,’” he said. “Put me back in. This is the level I belong at. This is the level I’ll succeed at.”
Jack Catterall’s stoppage
Catterall’s win in November ended Essuman’s unbeaten run in a very specific way: it was the first stoppage defeat of his career. Catterall has already moved on to a world title fight after beating him, which leaves this bout with Rafferty as the first direct answer to how Essuman reacts when the pace and opposition stay high.
Essuman said Catterall beat him with “a high-level trick,” but he is not approaching Rafferty like a man trying to protect a record. He is 22-2 with 8 KOs now, and he pointed to the group of opponents he has boxed since early 2023 — Chris Kongo, Harry Scarff, Owen Cooper, Ben Vaughan, Josh Taylor and Catterall — as the run that has kept him at this level.
The Engine in Manchester
Frank Warren described Essuman as one of the most stubborn boxers in his stable, and the fighter’s own explanation for that edge is simple. “The foundation of my fitness is just, it’s a state of mind,” he said, adding, “I’ve been blessed to have good lungs on me.”
He said his nickname, The Engine, comes from mindset, sports-science knowledge and the way he trains. “I prefer the Hyrox kind of S&C [strength and conditioning] to a traditional just get in the gym and push weights,” he said. He also tied that approach to his background, saying, “I know being born in Africa [in Botswana], certain people do things in a different way,” before adding, “I don’t know. I just do it.”
That leaves Rafferty with a fighter who says the pressure is gone and the level is familiar. Essuman says he wants to be put back in at the same level, and Manchester will show whether the first stoppage loss of his 24-fight career was a setback or just another result in a hard run through the welterweight division.
