ALL good things come to those who wait and Swindon’s Jamie Cox admits he learned that the hard way after losing to George Groves in his WBA super-middleweight title shot last October.

Cox battled it out with Groves at Wembley Arena as part of the World Super Series and despite being something an unknown quantity to many, he made a decent start against his fellow Brit.

Before the fight, much focus was on Groves having a size advantage over the Swindon southpaw, but that failed to materialise as Cox went toe-to-toe with the defending champion.

The 31-year-old lost the fight in the fourth round via a thumping body shot but says the mental side of the sport cost him, not the physical.

The defeat took Cox’s record to 24-1 and the Swindon man says his winning mentality from his previous bouts meant he rushed in prematurely, and was subsequently punished by Groves.

“A bit of patience is what I need. It’s not the physical attributes, the fitness and all of that. With that sort of stuff, I think I am on par with anyone in the world," Cox told the Advertiser.

“The Groves fight showed I was able to compete at that level of boxing, we were winning every round and I was in the competition.

“It’s always in my mind. In all my fights before Groves I had never been hurt, I’d never been down and never been aware of getting caught.

“You think you’re a gorilla. Now I’m a bit more aware, I’ll take my time and when I see an opportunity, maybe I’ll wait a couple of rounds before taking it.”

Following his first defeat as a professional, Cox is back in action this weekend at the O2 Arena on the Dillian Whyte v Lucas Browne undercard against an as-yet unnamed opponent.

All being well, the 31-year-old will head back to the capital in early May, where he will take on John Ryder in a 12-round contest live on Sky Sports Box Office.

After October’s defeat, Cox also believes it was better to get back in the ring, sooner rather than later.

“I had a few weeks off after the Groves fight because we worked very hard for that. I went to Dubai because it wasn’t just that fight,” he added.

“I was gutted when I lost. I was gutted for everyone, my team, my family and my friends, especially because I believed my style would win the fight.

“It was hard to take but you can’t dwell on it. I don’t want to dwell on it, I want to use it to progress and get better.”