Hennessy Boxing: McIntosh Relishing Cleverly Unification Clash

Danny McIntosh is brimming with confidence ahead of his British title showdown with Nathan Cleverly at the York Hall in Bethnal Green, London on July 18th.

The undefeated Norwich man currently holds the English Light Heavyweight title and he has no doubts that he will be adding the Lonsdale belt to his honours list next month.

The mouth watering clash headlines the next Hennessy Sports event and will be live on ITV4.

Despite his perfect record McIntosh has been labelled a 7/2 underdog by the bookies but he’s scoffed at those odds. “There’s going to be a lot of people with egg on their face after this fight,” predicted McIntosh.

“It’s a great fight between two undefeated guys and it’s a fight that needed to be made. I’ve heard people like Barry McGuigan saying that it’s too soon for me and that I need more experience but I couldn’t care less what anyone else thinks.

“When I fought Joey Vegas people said it was too soon, when I fought Steve Spartacus they said it was too soon and when I fought Matthew Barney they said it was too soon and guess what? I’m still undefeated, I won all those fights and I’ll will this one as well and I’ll prove an awful lot of people wrong in the process.

“People don’t see what I do in the gym day in, day out. I know I’m ready for this and I know I’ll be leaving that ring with the Lonsdale belt.”

Although McIntosh has only had 10 pro fights in comparison to Cleverly’s 16 he feels that the calibre of his opposition has been better. “Some of the guys Cleverly’s been in with have been complete unknowns,” said McIntosh.

“He’s looked good blowing them away but anyone would have looked good against those guys. He’s a nice technician and a decent boxer but I don’t think he’s been tested at all yet and he’s going to get a shock when he gets in the ring with me.”

The 29-year-old who trains out of the Ingle Gym in Sheffield is currently stepping up his preparations for next months contest. “I’m sparring with George Groves at the moment and I’m hoping to get some sparring in with Carl Froch shortly as well.

“I’m really buzzing for this fight, it’s a huge opportunity for me and I know I’m going to walk away with that British title, all I have to do is go into that ring and collect it.”

An action packed undercard at the York Hall features former British and European Lightweight Champ Jon Thaxton, unbeaten Heavyweight sensation Tyson Fury and contests featuring hot prospects Steve O’Meara, Dwayne Lewis, Bradley Evans, Del Rogers and Bobby Ward.

Tickets priced from £35 are available from the Ticketline box office on 0844 888 4402 or via www.ticketline.co.uk.