25.04.05 – English Light-Welterweight Champion Nigel Wright will still head for work at the Spennymoor Leisure Centre in County Durham on Friday 27 May but will not check-in as usual to do his shift as a lifeguard. Instead, the hard-hitting Hartlepool southpaw will headline Sports Network’s Fight Skool show with the first defence of his title against Northampton’s former English title-holder Alan Bosworth..
The exciting 25-year-old – a double ABA champion at light-welterweight and England rep at the 1998 Commonwealth Games and ’99 World Championships – captured the first title of his pro career with a cracking performance over unbeaten Dean Hickman last month in Doncaster
And now Wright, who combines his boxing alongside working as a lifeguard, is thrilled about topping the bill in his hometown for the first time.
“I will feel right at home at the Spennymoor Leisure Centre where I have worked for a few years now but it will be strange having to knock someone out where you work!” said Wright.
“After four years as a pro and fighting up and down country it’s absolutely fantastic to fight in Hartlepool at last,”
“I’ve got hundreds of loyal fans who have stuck by me and followed me wherever I’ve fought and now I can pay them back by successfully defending my title by beating Bosworth,”
“He’s got bags of experience and is a strong boxer but I don’t rate his ability. I’ve got the superior boxing skill and will use it to my advantage.”
Bosworth represents a serious test for Wright and will have the edge in experience over him.
The wily 37-year-old has been in with some of the best fighters around the weight in Britain and Europe including Eamonn Magee, Junior Witter, Jan Bergman, Allan Vester, Colin Dunne, Wayne Rigby, Stephen Smith and Shea Neary.
The Sports Network show, promoted in association with Gus Robinson, will also feature Hartlepool’s British Super-Bantamweight Champion Michael Hunter as chief support in a ten-round contest.
The card will also feature Hartlepool lightweight Alan Temple, Darlington super-bantamweight Issac Ward and the Bucchanan brothers, Paul and Andrew, both middleweights.
Tickets, priced at £30 main hall, £40 balcony, £50 ringside, are available from:
Gus Robinson Promotions: 01429 234 221
Spennymoore Leisure Centre: 01388 815 827