October 26 will be a first for Marcos Nader (17-0-1, 2 KOs). On that date, the Austrian middleweight will have his first title defense. Back in April, the 23-year-old secured the EU Championship with a win over Roberto Santos. In Oldenburg, Germany he will once again lock horns with a Spaniard when he meets Luis Crespo (9-5-1, 4 KOs) inside the ring.
“Winning my first title in the professional ranks was something special,” remembers Nader.
“However nothing is more transient than yesterday’s glory. Currently I am fully focused on defending my belt against Crespo. That is the only thing I am thinking of at the moment.”
Regarding his upcoming opponent, Nader believes that he has a tough challenge ahead of him. “Crespo is a few inches taller than me and is also fighting southpaw. You can believe me when I say that it was very hard to get some good sparring partners to prepare myself for this fight,” said the prodigy of coach Otto Ramin.
“The key to victory is to get close to him and work on the inside.”
In contrast, the 32-year-old challenger from Madrid knows about Nader’s best asset.
“He has really good hand speed and moves well,” knows Crespo, who was a former kick-boxer before switching to boxing. “Dedication will be the deciding factor in this fight. The one who wants it more is going to take the belt home.”
