KASH FAROOQ has had quite a time of it over the past few weeks.

Last month, the 23-year-old fought Lee McGregor in the biggest all-Scottish fight in over a decade, losing out controversially in a split decision. And then last week, Farooq announced he had been signed by Matchroom Sports, the promotions company led by Eddie Hearn.

It is quite a step for Farooq, who is now stablemates with the likes of Anthony Joshua, Katie Taylor and Callum Smith. And the Glaswegian, who has signed a multi-fight deal, admits having the backing of Hearn, who is arguably the biggest promoter in the sport, is a huge confidence boost and has only served to increase his drive even further.

“It makes me feel really happy that he wanted to sign me and it gives me extra motivation,” said Farooq. “It’s the next chapter of my life now. This is the pinnacle of boxing - this is where you want to be in your career; with a good promoter backing you and getting you the fights you want.

“This is going to make me even more hungry and give me the extra drive. I’m more than ready for 2020, it’s going to be a big year for me.”

Farooq’s defeat to McGregor last month was the first of his professional career and it was hugely controversial, with many observers believing he was robbed.

It would have been easy to mull over the loss, and lament the decision by the judges, but Farooq insists that just a month on from the fight, he has already moved on.

“As a person, I don’t really get down about things,” the bantamweight said. “I could have dwelt on it for weeks and thought about why it happened but I’m not that type of person. I’d rather brush it off and move on.

“I always keep my chin up – that’s the purpose of boxing, and in life actually – you need to keep moving forward. Setbacks are going happen so you just need to get over it.”

In the aftermath of the McGregor fight, Hearn got in touch to express his interest in signing Farooq, as well as telling the Scot he believed the decision had gone the wrong way.

But Farooq is not interested in reliving the McGregor fight and instead, is already looking towards his next fight.

Such was his keenness to get back in the gym last month, he took only a week off training – that was, he says, more than enough rest.

“I couldn’t keep myself occupied, I needed to get back into it. I’m not really a night-life person, I don’t really drink or go out so I needed to do something and the best thing to do with myself was to get back into the gym,” he said.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been enjoying myself and seeing my friends but I’ve still been training.

“Boxing is funny. When you’re away from it, you miss it so much but then you get back to it and you hate it. It’s hard going – your sleep, your training, your food, everything is controlled when you’re in a camp but I can’t stay away from the gym.”

Farooq expects his next appearance to be towards the end of March or the start of April, although he does not think it to be a rematch against McGregor, with that more likely to happen at the end of 2020.

Hearn has already spoken of his desire to get Farooq fighting for international titles and while there are few who would suggest he is not capable of getting his hands on a belt or two in the near future, this is not the former British champion's motivation.

“To be honest, titles mean nothing to me; for me, it’s all about winning,” he said.

“Of course I’m up for a rematch with Lee, and I think Lee is too. The managers and the promoters can sort all of that though. And as I’ve said before, I’ll fight anybody.”

Farooq’s deal with Matchroom could potentially make him some serious money over the next few years. But despite having been handed the opportunity to set himself up for life if things go well, Farooq has little interest in chasing pound signs.

“I’m really not in it for the money,” he said. “When I started boxing, I never thought about the money. For me, it’s all about security. I’m never thinking money, money, money – as long as I’m secure, that’s good enough for me.”