Miles Shinkwin isn’t afraid of making bold decisions. The Bushey boxer vacated his Southern Area light heavyweight belt last week because he has his sights set on a greater prize; a British title.

“It had got to the stage where it (the Southern Area title) held no great value to me,” an honest Shinkwin explained earlier this week.

“That isn’t me disrespecting the Southern Area title, don’t get me wrong, I loved winning it and I loved defending it.

“I am ranked quite high in the country at light heavyweight now and a couple of guys turned down the chance to fight me for the Southern Area title.

“So we would have had to go outside of the top 20 to get a fight and I felt that wouldn’t have been fair to those guys. Also I would have everything to lose and nothing to gain.

“I think it was the right thing to do. We’re looking to the future now and I believe that is away from the Southern Area title.”

Given Shinkwin’s record it is understandable that he is aiming big. On Friday the 27-year-old extended his winning run as a professional to 11.

He faced Hungarian Bela Juhasz at the top of the bill at York Hall. It was a bout that was scheduled for ten rounds, it lasted just three. A Shinkwin victory was never in doubt.

“You don’t get paid overtime in boxing so I have no issue with only going three rounds,” he said. “To be honest I thought it would be a harder fight and he had knocked a few people out in the past.

“But I just caught him right. I’d actually looked to save some energy for the ten rounds early on but once I knew he wasn’t getting past my jab I knew I could finish it fairly quickly.”

Shinkwin plans to next step into the ring in September but he will continue to work hard in the gym and continue to spar with the likes of George Groves and Andy Lee.

“Sparring with those guys is better than just fighting for the sake of it,” Shinkwin said. “Those sparring sessions really help me improve.

“Hopefully the next time I am back in the ring I am fighting for an international title. If things go well in that fight then the next step is a British title.

“I said at the weekend I was the best light heavyweight in the country but I’d like to correct that, although confidence is never a bad thing in boxing.

“There are a couple of guys who are the next level up but I feel I am the best of the chasing pack. I feel ready to make a step up,” Shinkwin added.