Boxing News Boxing News
The destiny of the eight Prizefighter Heavyweights III contenders lies in the hands of one of the greatest fighters of all time: Mike Tyson.
Iron Mike will be conducting the draw for the quarter-finals of the next Prizefighter event later today in Las Vegas.
“’I’m looking forward to making the draw for Prizefighter on Friday,” said Tyson, the former undisputed Heavyweight World Champion. “British fight fans are in for an explosive night and I’m excited to see how the match ups will come out for October 2nd.”
Matchroom Sport Chairman Barry Hearn has flown to Las Vegas and will carry out the draw with Tyson at 1pm local time (9pm BST) on Friday.
Tyson is still the youngest man to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles and won 50 of his 58 professional fights, 44 by knockout.
Ironically, Tyson’s career effectively ended when he lost in 2004 to England’s Danny Williams, one of the eight competitors in Prizefighter Heavyweights III.
The draw throws up a number of potential rematches as many of the eight men have fought each other before.
Current British Champion Williams has won twice and lost once against Michael Sprott, beat and lost to Audley Harrison and defeated Scott Gammer, while Sprott has also beaten Harrison.
A number of fighters have also sparred with some of the other Prizefighter contenders so there could be a lot of bad blood and unfinished business between the fighters.
Prizefighter Heavyweights III had originally been scheduled to take place at the York Hall in Bethnal Green but a huge demand for tickets saw it relocated to the ExCel, where it is expected to be a 5,000 sell-out on Friday, October 2.
The all-in-one-night event features eight heavyweights including current British Champion Danny Williams, former Olympic Games gold medalist Audley Harrison and three former British Champions, all vying for the £32,000 top prize.
Dancing group Nemisis, who reached the 2008 final of popular ITV programme Britain’s Got Talent, will be performing as part of the pre-show fun in what will be a thrilling night’s entertainment in and out of the ring.
The full list of competitors is Coleman Barrett (Galway, Ireland), Scott Belshaw (Lisburn, Northern Ireland), Scott Gammer (Pembroke Dock, Wales), Audley Harrison (London / California), Michael Holden (Manchester), Danny Hughes (Sunderland), Michael Sprott (Reading) and Danny Williams (Brixton).
Tickets cost £40 and £80 and are available from See Tickets on 0871 220 0260, www.seetickets.com or from Matchroom Sport on 01277 359900.
