Samuel Peter To Defend His WBC Heavyweight Crown In London On July 12th – Will Face Either Matt Skelton Or Audley Harrison!

sam peterby James Slater: WBC heavyweight king Samuel Peter is due to face the returning Vitali Klitschko later this year. But, as reported on ESB earlier this month, Peter is free to engage in a voluntary defence in the meantime. Well, according to promoter Frank Warren in an article on his official web site, Peter will face either Matt Skelton or Audley Harrison in this voluntary defence, and the bout will take place at The O2 Arena in London.

This is great news for British heavyweight boxing. Speaking on the record, Warren said the following:

“I’ve agreed terms with Don King for WBC heavyweight champion Sam Peter to fight at London’s O2 Arena on July 12th. In the opposite corner will be either Matt Skelton or Audley Harrison. I’m holding talks with all parties over the weekend and will make an announcement on Monday..”

No doubt the news that Audley “A-Force” Harrison is in the frame will come as a big surprise to most fans. Let’s face it, Harrison has done absolutely nothing to earn a shot at a world title. Matt Skelton would clearly be the better choice. At least big Matt proved his world class in his fight with WBA champ Ruslan Chagaev back in January – going the full 12 rounds and making the champion work for the full 36 minutes. Still, having said that, a second chance at world glory for Skelton comes as something of a shock also.

Putting aside the negative aspects some will no doubt bring up, however, the chance to see the exciting and big-punching “Nigerian Nightmare” over here in the U.K is more than welcomed. Obviously, Peter will be thinking a win over either British fighter will be pretty close to a formality, with his mega fight with the elder of the Klitschko brothers not being at all at risk. The WBC boss might get a pretty stern test from the much bigger and very durable Skelton, though.

Matt was due to face Sinan Samil Sam for the European heavyweight crown on July 7th. Presumably, should the 41-year-old land the much bigger Peter fight, the bout scheduled to take place in Turkey will be nothing but a memory. And who could blame Skelton for taking the much more meaningful and prestigious fight? As for Audley, he has no next bout planned as of yet, and really should not be given the world title fight. Don’t forget, the 36-year-old southpaw only returned to the ring this past April – having his first fight since being stopped by Michael Sprott. No way is “A-Force” deserving or ready for a fight this big.

Fingers crossed it will be Matt Skelton who gets the chance to swap punches with Peter on July 12th.