Professional journeyman Jake Pollard fights nearly every other weekend, fully expecting to lose. The Bradford fighter has accumulated 122 losses and secured just one victory since transitioning from white-collar boxing in October 2018.
Online critics mocked his record before his bout against Manny Safari on the undercard of Daniel Dubois against Fabio Wardley at The O2. However, the 34-year-old farrier ignores the trolls because his regular ring appearances provide enough income to choose when he works.
Pollard told SunSport: “I’ve got a mortgage by myself, my son’s been to Lapland twice, he’s been to Disneyland and he’s been to Spain numerous times.”
He added: “He’s got a motorbike; he’s absolutely anything he wants. Me and my partner live a really good life. We’ve been to Tomorrowland the last two years; we live a good life.”
“I never understood the saying, ‘Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life’, until I started boxing. And now I fully understand it.”
“I’m getting a good wage from it. And for me to be getting a good wage that means, ‘cos I am a farrier, I don’t have to go to work really.”
“I go and do a few jobs just to bring in a bit of extra money and pay some bills, but I don’t have to. There’s no demand for me to go to work.”
“So to be able to live a good life with a mortgage and take care of the people who are close to me and go on trips whenever they want, from doing something that I love, it’s a no-brainer to me.”
Pollard typically earns over £1000 per fight and handles internet critics by brushing off the negativity. He stated: “If you want to tell someone that you know absolutely nothing about professional boxing, write a bad post about a journeyman.”
“They can say absolutely anything disrespectful about me, but all I read when I look at those posts is, ‘I know nothing about professional boxing.’”
Promoters historically rely on journeymen to test rising prospects meant to become major attractions. Casual observers often focus solely on losing records while missing the vital function these athletes serve in the sport.
Without journeymen, young talents would struggle to gain essential rounds, leaving fight cards across the country full of empty spots. Pollard takes great pride in helping upcoming world championship contenders develop their skills.
He said: “I really do enjoy it. I still talk to a lot of fighters who I’ve fought and they’ve said to me that they’ve learnt so much from fighting me.”
“A lot of fighters will ask me what I think and their coaches will also ask me what I think and where they need to work on things.”
“That is my job, to help them learn. So when I’m speaking to them and giving them insights on certain things that I’ve noticed, that’s also part of helping them learn. That is part of the privilege of the job.”
Averaging roughly 15 bouts annually, Pollard has only suffered eight stoppage defeats in his career. He aims to retire after reaching 200 fights, though he will quit immediately if he sustains severe damage or exhibits cognitive decline.
He noted: “I will keep going for as long as I can fight without putting myself in danger. If I’m starting to get filled in regularly, then I will stop. I’ve got a good team around me as well who will tell me that it’s time to stop.”
“I think I’ve got at least 200 fights in me. Maybe [I’ll go on] ’til I’m 40 years old. I’m 34 now.”
“I know 40 sounds old, but I’m 34 now, but I am the best I’ve ever been, physically, mentally, everything. My boxing ability is at its best and I proved that last Saturday by being able to go in with such a top-class operator and not get in danger at all. It proved my boxing abilities.”
“I haven’t got a number on when I’d like to stop, but I’d like to go for as long as I can without putting myself in danger.”
