AS professional debuts go, it wouldn't have gone any better for Kurt Walker at Glasgow's Hydro Arena as he cut through Jaroslav Hriadel in less than a round.
The Tokyo Olympian had hoped to make a good impression on his first outing in the paid ranks and did just that with a left to the body closing the show after just 123 seconds of this super-featherweight bout.
While he may have liked a little longer to showcase his talents, the old saying of not getting paid extra for overtime rings true and the two-time European amateur champion showed there is power in his fists to back up the noted slick skills and movement as he cut through the overmatched Czech with ease.
"I felt brilliant," the 26-year-old said after his victory.
"I knew to work him to the body, so for the first minute-and-a-half I used the right hand to the body and then when I changed it up it came with a knockdown and the victory, so I'm delighted.
"I've been working on body shots. I threw them with not much force in the amateurs but now I'm trying to sit down a bit. I'm still a bit too fast but I've plenty of learning to do."
💥@KurtWalker7 off to a winning start pic.twitter.com/NQkx33XiFF
— Conlan Boxing (@ConlanBoxing) February 26, 2022
Walker was straight down to business, showcasing the timing and distance control that brought him so much success as an amateur, but mixed it with venom to land with a looping right that stunned Hriadel.
The Lisburn man couldn't miss with the right and each time he tagged his foe, appeared to stun him.
As Hriadel backpedalled to avoid the heavy fire and see out the round, Walker landed a thudding right to the body and then backed him up with a jab.
The right was a fine weapon, but it was the left that closed the show as he found the exposed ribs of the Czech to leave him down and unable to beat the count with referee Darren Maxwell reaching the count of 10 at 2.03 of the opening round.
It was a punch-perfect outing for Walker who will now aim to stay busy and is targeting up to six fights in 2022 to make the full transition to the professional code, but will be very happy with his night's work.
"I enjoyed it," he confirmed.
"It's different when you're fighting as an amateur as you're sitting in an airport for eight hours and travelling all the time. I was able to chill out (this week) and take the pressure of other fighters because they are in big fights, so I enjoyed it there and felt like I was on holiday.
"I'd like to be back out in the next month or two and keep working. Five fights minimum this year, maximum six, so I'm buzzing."
It was double delight for Conlan Boxing's new signings as Galway's Kieran Molloy forced a second-round stoppage over Spain's Damian Esquisabel at light-middleweight to get his pro career off to a perfect start.