Rory Booth has discovered his inner-rooster.

And he has Danny Green, a four-time world champion across three weight divisions, to thank for it.

Light heavyweight Booth, 26, will make his professional debut on the Thunderdome 56 undercard at Metro City in Northbridge on November 27, with Green in his corner, when he takes on China’s Yi Zheng.

“Roosters are pretty staunch. There is only one rooster in the pen. They look after the hens and fight off the foxes and they strut around. I’ve got a bit of a strut myself, so the name fits,” Booth said.

Booth is making his pro debut after a 75 fight amateur career that began in Canberra when he was 12, stalled for six years and then was revived in 2023 after he had moved to Mandurah to take up a carpentry apprenticeship.

He met Green through the boxing champion’s son Archie, who has embarked on his own pugilistic journey and has so far had eight amateur fights.

“I’ve been very blessed to have Danny Green take me under his wing,” Booth said. “He’s taught me a lot. He’s the best bloke I’ve met. He believed in me when my closest people didn’t.”

When he was working out a nickname for Booth as a pro boxer, Green was strong on the “Rooster”.

”He wanted to be Rory “The Truth” Booth. I said, ‘No, mate. You’re The Rooster’. Because he struts around like a rooster, you know? He controls the pen and he’s got all the hens running around,” Green said.

“I like him as a person. He’s a strapping young bloke and he’s got a lot of ability.

“He introduced himself a year over a year ago when Archie had his first amateur fight and from that moment on, I thought he is a good young fella. I like how he fights. I like his style.”

Booth has been training with Green’s original coach Pat Devellerez and with the boxing champion.

“He throws a lot of punches. He comes forward and he uses fantastic angles. I’m just doing some work on getting him to be less frenetic,” Green said.

“He’s had a lot of fights as an amateur. The kid has got so far but I’ve been teaching him the fundamentals of actually throwing a correct punch to generate power and force.”

Booth always gets nervous when he steps into a ring.

“It’s always the same. That’s the way it is. But when I get nervous I get those butterflies and I put those butterflies in formation, like a flock of birds and then they work for me, not against me,” Booth said.

“I like the feeling of the butterflies. I use them to my advantage.”

Booth caught the boxing bug at age eight when he watched a fight on television and began pestering his Dad, who is the head coach of Winnunga Boxing Club in Canberra, to let him take lessons.

“I hounded him. I would flip our trampoline on is side and punch it, just trying to show Dad I wanted to box and he finally cracked,” he said.

“I fell in love with it immediately. I remember after my first session, I went home and I couldn’t sleep that whole night.

“I had school the next day and all I was thinking about was going back to my next session.”

He gave it away at 17 to “do what young kids do” but always knew he would return to the ring.

“I was still kicking around the gym. It was always a part of my life. And I said to my mates, ‘I’m going to go back to boxing. I’m going to fight again’ and some of my closest mates said to me, ‘We’ll just see what happens when you’re working full-time’ because I was doing big, big days when I came over here.

“I was 105 kilos when I got here but dropped down to fight again at 86 kilos and now I am 79.8. I was just fuelled by everyone thinking that I couldn’t do it. I always did have that love and that big break made me grow that love more.”

Booth’s opponent Zheng (3-1-1-1) fights in a similar go-forward style.

“I can adapt to whatever’s in front of me,” Booth said.

“I’ve fought all different types, short people, tall people, pressure fighters, counter boxers, so I’m confident I can adapt to that. I won’t say too much about my tactics, but whatever he comes at with me with, I’ve got an answer for.”

Green said it would be a tough pro debut.

“The Chinese guy comes forward too and like Rory, he won’t die wondering so it’s gonna make for a fantastic fight,” he said.

The headline act will be a light heavyweight contest between WA’s Owen Corrigan (7-0) and Canberrian Bryan Roberts (11-5).

Undefeated WA heavyweight Michael “Big Bad” Bazley (4-0) will face China’s heavy-handed Huang Jiayi (3-0).

Perth welterweight Tanaka “Tsabz” Saburi (4-1) takes on undefeated Bangladeshi Joynul Islam (2-0).

Tickets are available through Megatix Australia.