ANTHONY CACACE is on the verge of a crack at the British super-featherweight title.
The Belfast fighter, who makes his ring comeback in a six-rounder in Wigan on Saturday night, had been due to fight George Jupp in a final eliminator.
But news Jupp has pulled out of that fight means the way is now clear for him to take on the winner of the Martin Ward versus Andy Townend title fight on September 10, on the undercard of the Kell Brook v Gennady Golovkin world title blockbuster.
Cacace’s manager Pat Magee expects ‘the Apache’ to fight the winner of Ward versus Townend within 90 days: “The fight in Wigan is a warm-up for him,” he said.
“He was due to fight in a final eliminator for the British title against Jupp and there was an administrative error - that’s all I can describe it as - over the purse bids.
“The end result is that Jupp has been withdrawn and I expect that Anthony will get a straight crack at the British title. The next British Boxing Board of Control meeting is a few days after the Ward v Townend fight takes place and I would expect that the board will appoint Anthony as the mandatory contender.
“They’ll fix a time limit, which I would expect would be 90 days - that’s the end of December/start of January. In the meantime, I’ll get Anthony out again.”
Cacace also has a possible showdown with Benoit Manno for the vacant EU Super-Featherweight title on the backburner: “That fight was made, but never took place, so it’s possible as well,” said Magee.
“I don’t know whether that’s worthwhile anymore, with the British title coming up. If Ward wins, and I expect him to, I think Ward-Cacace would be an obvious fight for Matchroom on Sky Sports.
“The EU fight is something to keep in the background, if we decide to take it. The Jupp fight could have been in October and I have only had control of Anthony for the last five or six weeks, so we had to get him out before that was called, but now Jupp has withdrawn, so it’s all sorted out.”
Cacace will be relieved to return to the ring - his last fight was in October last year, when he beat Ronnie Clarke in Edinburgh to win the Celtic super-featherweight title.
“He’s talented, he’s 27 years-of-age and he has to be moved on,” said Magee.
“He is in a good place because he’s rated in Europe, he’s number one contender for the British title, he’s ready to launch. If he keeps winning, who knows where he can go in 2017?”
Meanwhile, another Magee fighter - cruiserweight Tommy McCarthy - is also closing in on a British title fight: “Depending on the Marco Huck against Ovill McKenzie clash in Germany on September 24 [for the IBO cruiserweight title], Tommy’s fight could be for the vacant British title,” he added.
“But at the minute, he’s in a final eliminator for the British title on October 22.”
PAUL HYLAND tops the bill against former WBO European, WBA Inter-Continental, WBC Silver International, WBC Baltic champion Felix Lora on the MHD Promotions ‘Another Level’ show at the Europa Hotel on Saturday, October 8.
Dominican Republic-born road warrior Lora is now based in Barcelona and the 32-year-old travels with an 18-20-5 record that includes points defeats at the hands of world champions Devon Alexander, Viktor Posol and Dejan Zlaticanin.
He has lost his last 10 fights, but is still rated as a durable campaigner who has also shared a ring with current European Lightweight champion Edis Tatli and the likes of Londoner Kevin Mitchell and Yvan Mendy.
All in all, it’s easily the toughest test of Hyland’s career so far. The Belfast lightweight had been linked with an Irish title rumble against Michael Divine, but the fight didn’t happen, despite Divine’s expressions of interest.
“Felix Lora is a big step up for Paul,” said MHD’s Mark Dunlop.
“He has only failed to hear the final bell once in 43 fights and is a true test for Hylo. I mentioned three names to him and I knew he’d want to take on Lora, who was by far the strongest, he is a gladiator in every sense of the word.”
New MHD addition Ronnie ‘The Shark’ Clark, the Scottish Super-featherweight champion, is acting as chief support against the strong and experienced Nicaraguan Reynaldo Morya over six rounds. The remainder of the card is also competitive and features Tyrone McCullagh, Ian Tims, Feargal McCrory, Jay Byrne and Gary Sweeny
Tickets are priced at £75 (VIP, including a four-course meal), £45 (reserved ringside) and £35 (unreserved). Call 07712 473905, email: mark@mhdpromotions.com or contact the boxers.
RICKY BURNS will defend his WBA world super-lightweight title against unbeaten mandatory challenger Kiryl Relikh.
The 26-year-old Belarus fighter has won 19 of 21 fights inside the distance and is trained and promoted by Ricky Hatton. Burns became Scotland's first three-weight world champion after stopping Michele di Rocco in Glasgow in May.
The Coatbridge fighter, who will return to the Hydro for the title fight on October 7, said: “My face at the end of the fight said everything - that win meant so much to me and proves I still have so much to give.
“I put more pressure on myself in that fight than any other. I took plenty of stick before that, as I was apparently finished and on the slide, everyone had written me off and it felt good to prove them wrong.
“Relikh is a very tough fight as a first defence. He's got a high KO ratio, so he will be very dangerous throughout. Trust me, he has my undivided attention and I will have to be at my best to get through this. There are some massive fights out there in the future against some huge names in the 140lbs division - but we're taking it one step at a time."
Relikh forced Joaquim Carneiro to retire after four rounds in Bolton in May and Hatton believes his fighter will emulate him and become a world champion.
“Kiryl is one of those cool, unflinching boxers - nothing fazes him," Hatton said.
“This is a big opportunity for him and he's not bothered about being the underdog. Kiryl's been training and boxing away from home for years, so he'll have no problem going to Scotland for the fight. I think having the crowd against him will bring the best out of him.
“Ricky Burns is a top-class fighter. You don't win three world titles by being anything less than world class, but there always has to be a changing of the guard and I think this could be Kiryl's time.”
The undercard will see Scotty Cardle defend his British lightweight title against Kevin Hooper, while Charlie Flynn, Joe Ham and Dillian Whyte will also be in action.
