Maxi Hughes wants to create some real memories after his much-vaunted homecoming turned into something of a damp squib.

On Friday night, the world-ranked Yorkshire lightweight outpointed Archie Sharp at Doncaster’s EcoPower Stadium, but the 12 rounds the two shared will be quickly forgotten.

Before the fight, Sharp told The Ring that rather than playing into Hughes’ hands and pressing the action, he intended on using his footwork and speed to force the older man to use his legs.

He took his plan to the extreme, however.

Rather than aimlessly plodding forward after a constantly moving target, the experienced Hughes boxed patiently and landed a handful of eye-catching shots. After a fight that would have tested the patience of even the most hardcore boxing fan, Hughes’ cleaner punching and intent earned him a unanimous decision victory.

“I’ll try and have this beer to forget about the fight that's just happened,” a typically honest Hughes (29-7-2, 6 KOs) told Boxing Now as he opened a can in his dressing room after the fight.

“What can you do? He didn't want to come and really engage. At this level you can't come and try and pick and pinch.

“We’ve had this big homecoming, and it's just not [lived up to expectations]. It's just frustrating, but ultimately we got a win. That's the most important thing. We got the win and we move forward. I’ll quickly forget about that.”

At 35, Hughes doesn’t need any unnecessary miles added to his clock, and whilst the fight with Sharp meant a lot to him in terms of the occasion, he wouldn’t have benefitted from putting himself through hell to secure a win which won’t have made more than a ripple on the deep 135lb waters.

On Saturday, Hughes was speaking with plenty of leftover adrenaline coursing through his system. When he sits back and evaluates the night as a whole, he may be a bit more positive.

Although his lightweight rivals won’t lose any sleep over his performance, they would certainly have noticed had Sharp, 30, managed to pick his pocket.

Hughes ensured that he remained relevant, emerged totally unscathed and should see his No. 13 WBC ranking receive a decent boost after collecting the governing body's silver title.

He and his team can sit back and weigh up their options. Encouragingly, it seems like there may be a few to sift through.

“I feel fresh. I don't feel like I've been in a fight so I'll get straight back to it. It's just a shame I've trained so hard and put in all them rounds,” he said.

“I’ll be back in the gym and we'll have a meeting soon with Izzy [Asif] from GBM and speak with Lou DiBella [his promoter], we'll find out what our next moves are going to be.

“I did speak with Lou yesterday and he said a few people in the U.S are asking on my availability so we'll find out now who they were and ultimately what the money is. I've built a little bit of a name there.

“I'll go anywhere. Wherever the money is, wherever big fights are, that's where I'll go. I've said it for years, whoever pays me the most money and whichever offer's right.”

Those big paydays will all come with a much higher element of risk and Hughes has experienced mixed results at the highest level.

He acquitted himself well against former unified and Ring Magazine champion George Kambosos and appeared extremely unfortunate to drop a majority decision to the Australian in 2023. That came four months after he was stopped in four rounds by Mexico’s William Zepeda.

The one-sided loss didn’t end Hughes’ world level aspirations.

Serious visa issues disrupted his preparations for the Zepeda fight and he was left with the uncomfortable feeling that he had been denied the chance to do himself justice. He would love the opportunity to prove himself by taking on the winner of Zepeda’s upcoming fight with WBC champion Shakur Stevenson.

That fight is one of the major attractions of Ring III, the third show which takes place July 12 at Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, New York.

If that can’t happen, he also would jump at the chance to pit his wits against one of the sport’s modern greats.

“[Vasyl] Lomachenko, I know he's off at minute but I’d have always loved to share the ring with him," he said.

“They took that chance off me when they give it to George [Kambosos in April 2024]. So yeah, “Loma.””