James Tennyson is confident he can mix it with the top fighters after moving into the lightweight division and has his eyes set on a second world title shot.
A six-fight unbeaten streak at super-featherweight saw the hard-hitting Belfast man earn a number one ranking with the WBA before securing a bout against IBF champion Tevin Farmer at the TD Garden in Boston in October 2018.
'The Assassin’ (26-3, 22 KOs) made the decision to move up to lightweight after being stopped by Farmer and he has carried his knockout power into the new division, having finished all four of his contests at the weight inside the distance.
Last August he stopped Englishman Atif Shafiq in spectacular fashion to secure the WBA 'international' lightweight belt.
"I think that Vasiliy Lomachenko and Teofimo Lopez are the two top men at the weight," Tennyson told the Matchroom Boxing podcast.
"Once Lomachenko moves down (to super featherweight) it opens up the whole division. As for the other guys like Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney, I am confident I can mix it with any of them and win a World Title at this weight."
WHAT A KNOCKOUT! 💥 @JamesT931 shows his power by stopping Atif Shafiq in the 2nd round
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) August 31, 2019
📺 Order #LomaCampbell here: https://t.co/vQ6smvjTNC pic.twitter.com/ETTqF5UehD
Tennyson was due to battle Welshman Gavin Gwynne for the vacant 135lbs British Title in Cardiff in May before the event was postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
The 26-year-old insists he would have no issue with taking the fight behind closed doors this summer.
"With how things are I would fight behind closed doors not a problem," he said.
"When you fight on the big shows early it’s usually empty barring your own support so it wouldn’t make much difference.
"Like a lot of fighters, I have itchy knuckles and have plans of becoming a World Champion - because of that I need to get this fight, win, and then kick on.
"This will be my first British title win, I'm really looking forward to it and it will be a great fight against Gavin Gwynne."
