Tommy Welch says Oleksandr Usyk is an inspiration in the land of the boxing giants.

The Brighton fighter faces a Bridgerweight tussle at York Hall on Friday.

He is impressed by how Usyk – himself eligible for Bridgerweight - has taken over the world heavyweight crown by outpointing Tyson Fury last weekend.

Speaking ahead of his latest bout, Welch said of Usyk: “He is the same size as me and he has just dominated the division, against all these giants.

“For me, looking at that, it’s doable.

“My dad (Scott) wasn’t a big heavyweight. He won the British Commonwealth and fought for the world title.”

Welch aims to extend his unbeaten record on what is billed to be a night of fireworks at York Hall.

He takes on Bryan Santander from Colombia in an eight-round contest.

Welch is 13-0-0 to date, with eight knockouts, and should get a stern test against Santander, who is 11-1-0.

The plan is that victory would then set up Welch to push for a title fight later in the year.

He has been working in recent weeks with his dad, who fought at the legendary Bethnal Green venue on three occasions in the 1990s.

Welch said: “We have a little bit of family history here.

“He had three fights, knocked them out in two and went the distance in one.

“I’m looking forward to following in those footsteps, giving it a good crack and putting on a solid performance in front of the London fans.”

Santander lost last time out, beaten by Nelson Hysa.

The bout is one of nine on the London Calling bill, which features three title fights.

But there will also be a lot of interest in fighters such as Welch and Michael King.

Promoter Izzy Asif of GBM said: “I can promise there will be fireworks.

“It is a big statement we are looking to make.

“We are going to do York Hall like York Hall has never been done before.”