AS nicknames go, fledgling pro boxer Jack Cullen admits his could be worse.

Dubbed the “Little Lever Meat Cleaver” by the son of his trainer, Tommy Battel, the fearsome-sounding title has stuck.

And after selling nearly 400 tickets to friends and family before his professional debut at the Macron last month, the 22-year-old super-middleweight entered the ring to a pretty chilling chant, with the sound of “meat cleaver, meat cleaver...” reverberating around the Premier Suite.

“I wouldn’t have wanted to be my opponent, that’s for sure,” said Cullen, who trains at Tyson Fury’s Metro Gym in Halliwell.

“I got the nickname when I was an amateur boxer and it has just stayed with me.

“I think Tommy’s son was the first to call it me and the next minute everybody is chanting it.

“It seems to be one of those names I am not going to get rid of, but it’s not a bad one to have.”

Of course, it helps if you have the skills to back up such an aggressive-sounding moniker, and it seems Cullen’s no-nonsense style, based on explosive punching power rather than lightning quick speed, are perfectly matched.

His fans certainly seem to think so, after cheering him all the way to a unanimous victory on points following a flawless four rounds against Curtis Gargano.

“The noise was unbelievable at the Macron,” said the former Little Lever School pupil.

“You can’t normally hear anything when you are in the ring, it was something else.

“I was last on and everybody stayed behind to cheer me on.

“I sold 340 tickets myself, but there must have been hundreds of people there that know me who stuck around to support me.

“What can I say, I am a nice person and I know a lot of people.

“I tried to give the crowd a show and I think I did that. The other guy didn’t lay a glove on me and I won every round.”

Whether Gargano was intimidated by the Little Lever Meat Cleaver and his vocal support is impossible to say, but it couldn’t have hurt.

That kind of backing could prove crucial as the Boltonian tries to make a name for himself.

Being able to sell tickets is a handy thing to have up his sleeve, especially for a fighter without a sparkling amateur record make the promoters sit up and take notice.

Cullen won 43 of his 56 amateur fights, claiming the North West senior ABA title at 70k and making it to the quarter-finals of the national finals at Liverpool’s Echo Arena in 2014.

But while he did not set the national scene alight, the young boxer believes his style is more suited to the pro game.

“Amateur boxing favours the faster fighters, those who jab and move to pick up points,” said Cullen, who hopes to leave his current job as a landscape gardener behind to take up training full time.

“I’m not about speed, I’m about power.

“I normally take a few whacks, but I can take it and dish it out as well.

“I’m a fighter, I love to be in a scrap and I’m always looking for the knockout, so there is always going to be fireworks when I’m in the ring.

“That’s why I have been itching to get involved in the pro game, I think I’m more suited to it.

“The plan is to have a few more four-round fights, then step up to a six-rounder. I’m trying not to look too far beyond that, but one thing’s for sure, I will become a British champion one day, 100 per cent.”

Cullen is wasting little time. His next fight will be at Leigh Sports Village on Saturday, December 3.

Tickets are from £30-£50. For more information call Cullen on 07784 974536.