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Josh Warrington insists Patrick Hyland has his full attention as he prepares to defend his WBC International Featherweight title at the First Direct Arena in Leeds on July 30, live on Sky Sports.
Warrington puts his title on the line for the third time against Hyland as the Leeds hero looks to build up momentum for a World title shot. The 25 year old has been busy planning his August wedding and has had to contend with continued talk of a potential World title clash with IBF king Lee Selby, but Warrington knows he has to be on his guard in his latest outing.
Hyland enters the bout having challenged for the WBC title against the talented American Gary Russell Jr in March and Warrington knows he has to be at his best against the dangerous Irishman to protect his World title ambitions – putting both World title talk and his forthcoming nuptials to the back of his mind.
“There’s a lot at risk against Patrick but that’s how it should be,” said Warrington. “I’ve seen how he fights and I know I’m not going to have to go looking for him. He comes to fight and has a dig on him, you need that bit of fear factor to go into fights and that’s what I have got – it should be a great fight for the fans on top of a brilliant card. The fans are going to be here from 5pm until the last bell and they’re in for a treat.
“Patrick has been on my radar for a while, a good year or so, he’s a very good fighter and as tough as they come, he’s got a good KO ratio and I am in for another hard night.
“I didn’t expect to be getting such a hard fight with the wedding coming up, I thought it might have been a bit of a tick over in the States or Germany, but all of a sudden there’s guys that want to fight and Eddie wanted to come back to Leeds with me headlining so we’ve got another tough fight in front of us with Patrick.
“I’m not looking at any other fight than a World title fight if I come through against Patrick. Whether it’s Selby or any of the other World champion’s, it doesn’t matter, I’m ready now and I really want a World title fight next.
“That’s why my full attention is on Patrick. I know that this is a really tough fight against a guy that has operated at a higher level than I have, so I need to prove that I’m ready for the biggest fights out there.”
Tommy Coyle says he will make history by becoming the first British champion from Hull when he challenges Tyrone Nurse for the Super-Lightweight title at the First Direct Arena in Leeds on July 30, live on Sky Sports.
Coyle’s clash with old amateur foe Nurse is his second fight at 140 lb, having made the move from Lightweight in May over six rounds in Manchester.
The 26 year old had some memorable moments at 135 lb with his epic fight of the year clash with Daniel Brizuela, brutal second round KO win over Michael Katsidis and stadium showdown with Hull rival Luke Campbell MBE, but Coyle is happy that his first shot at the Lord Lonsdale belt is at a weight that he feels suits him best.
“I feel brilliant at Super-Lightweight,” said Coyle. “I’ve been 9st 9lbs [135 lb] since I was 16 years old. When Tyrone and I boxed as amateurs I was 9st 9lbs then and that was ten years ago. That extra five pounds on fight night is going to be a huge difference, I don’t have to take it off in the last week so I think I will be a completely different animal at the weight and you’ll see the difference in the fight.
“It’s the prettiest belt out there and it’s every young fighters dream to fight for the British belt. It holds a lot of credibility and I’m really excited to be fighting for it, so I’ll be leaving everything in the ring on July 30.
“This is for my little boy – I want him to be able to say that his Dad was British champion. I’ve been in some great fights, exciting fights and memorable fights, but I want that silverware to show for it and Hull has never had a British champion so it would be nice to be a part of history and become the first. There’s lots to play for and I am in a good place.”
Warrington’s clash with Hyland is part of a huge night of action in Leeds as Luke Campbell MBE faces his toughest test in the paid ranks to date in the shape of former World champion Argenis Mendez.
Bitter Heavyweight rivals Dillian Whyte and Dave Allen meet for the vacant WBC International title, Barnsley’s Josh Wale gets a shot at the Commonwealth Super-Bantamweight title against Birmingham’s unbeaten starlet Gamal Yafai and classy Belfast man Ryan Burnett defends his WBC International Bantamweight title.
Tickets are on sale now priced at £30, £40, £60 and £100 available from the First Direct Arena at www.firstdirectarena.com and on 0844 248 1585. VIP tickets priced at £150 are available exclusively from Matchroom Boxing at www.matchroomboxing.com.
Tickets for July 30 are also available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/
