\n Former Hook & Jab fighter O\u2019Rourke lifted the world heavyweight hybrid boxing belt on Torquay\u2019s World Boxing League show organised by promoter Lee Sibley.\n<\/p>\n
\n The 22-year-old, who floored Chard-based Brendon Moore after only 36 seconds, stepped in after several opponents withdrew.\n<\/p>\n
\n He has since been amazed at the reaction to his stunning title success, with so many people asking for a photograph with him, and he has confirmed his first defence will be in Warrington early in the new year.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cLike a lot of things in boxing getting to compete for the title wasn\u2019t straightforward,\u201d said O\u2019Rourke.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cSeveral boxers pulled out and then my name was next on the list.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI\u2019ve previously won 18 unlicensed fights with 16 by knockout and some possible opponents were nervous of fighting me.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cThe fight when it came was short-lived as I deliberately backed myself onto the ropes to lure in my opponent.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI then knocked him out with one very powerful punch and this after just 36 seconds. It\u2019s my style.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cThe smaller gloves in hybrid boxing make such a punch devastating. Within a minute Brendan was on the canvas, and I was celebrating my win. The crowd went wild.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n Conor O’Rourke stands over Brendon Moore after flooring him with a left hook(Image: Freddie Fryer)\n<\/p>\n
\n The hybrid version of the sport has the same rules as traditional gloved boxing except that bouts are fought in four-ounce MMA gloves, rather than 10-12 ounce boxing gloves.\n<\/p>\n
\n Born and bred Warringtonian and licensed doorman O\u2019Rourke explained how he first got involved.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cMy twin brother and I were playing rugby in the same team,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI decided aged 12 to give boxing a go. I started out at Hook & Jab. There\u2019s no family history in the sport and my family was apprehensive about full contact bouts.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI took to it like a duck to water and won my first bout by knockout which has become my fight signature.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n He added: \u201cHybrid boxing has a great future and suits my style.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cBare knuckle is also growing in popularity, but you can\u2019t punch too hard as you risk breaking your hands which can end a career.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
WATCH CONOR O’ROURKE DECK BRENDON MOORE WITH DEVASTATING PUNCH:<\/p>\n
\n His support is growing and defending his crown in his hometown promises to be a great occasion.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI took 20 supporters to Torquay. I\u2019m grateful to them as it\u2019s a long way but the reaction since coming home has been amazing.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cComplete strangers approaching me for autographs and photos. I\u2019m now looking forward to defending this title here in Warrington on a massive boxing show on January 31.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cEveryone\u2019s talking about the fight and the knockout. The list of sponsors is growing by the day. I was in the market and a fruit and veg stall owner offered me a deal. Like I say it\u2019s crazy.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n Contact O\u2019Rourke on Facebook at Conor O\u2019Rourke or via Instagram @ace.boxing_ or e-mail conororourke123@gmail.com for further information about sponsorship or to get tickets for what he describes as \u2018Warrington\u2019s new year fight mega-show.\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former Hook & Jab fighter O\u2019Rourke lifted the world heavyweight hybrid boxing belt on Torquay\u2019s World Boxing League…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":213041,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[2560,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-213040","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-boxing","8":"tag-boxing","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213040","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=213040"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213040\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/213041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=213040"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=213040"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=213040"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}