Brian Rose is ready for a Spanish test on his return to the ring

The 36-year-old heads to Spain to take on Lopez Clavero in a six-rounder for his first fight since August 2019, when he lost on points to Anthony Fowler.

Clavero, a former Spanish champion, has won 13 of his 28 professional fights, losing 14 and drawing once.

“I can’t wait around, I’m getting older,” Rose (31-1-6) said.

“My new manager (Kieran Farrell) found me a slot in Spain and I jumped at the chance.

“This fight will get me back in the rankings, it’ll get me back in the British title picture. I’m classed as an inactive fighter right now, so as soon as I’ve won this fight, the big fights come back into the mix.

“I don’t know much about my opponent. He’s got a half-and-half record but he’s only ever lost to good operators and he’s not been stopped many times.

“He’s obviously tough, so I’m not looking past him, but if I can’t beat someone like this guy, there’s no point in me doing it.

“I’m doing this for the big moments and the big opportunities. This is my last go at it, so I’m going to give it my all.”

Rose recently opened up to The Gazette about his personal struggles during lockdown, admitting he turned to alcohol having been unable to train for six months.

The former British champion had to seek help after Christmas in order to help deal with the problem, but since returning to the gym, Rose has managed to get himself back on track.

“My mental health did deteriorate during lockdown,” Rose admitted.

“I don’t want to be sat here in a position where I’ve got three kids and a wife. A lot of people haven’t got that, so I do look at other people who are self-isolating.

“They’re on their own, so I hate to moan about my own problems but I did really struggle.

“I like socialising with people. I’ve got my own gym and I couldn’t go there and I wasn’t training.

“I found that I was drinking a lot and I really, really did struggle. I’ve never been one to drink a lot but I found myself drinking at home and finding any excuse to have a drink because I was down.

“I actually saw someone about it after Christmas, but as soon as I started training I was fine. That just goes to show physical activity can help anyone.”

Ed Harrison, another boxer from Blackpool, has also been added to the bill which takes place in Barcelona.

The 26-year-old super-featherweight, who lost on points to Isaac Lowe last week, has won two of his eight fights so far.

You can watch the fight by downloading the FiteTV app.

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