Abril To Defend Title Against Tatli on 9/20 in Helsinki

By Per Ake Persson

WBA lightweight champion Richard Abril (18-3-1) will defend the title on September 20 at the Hartwall Arena in Helsinki (Finland) against Edis Tatli (23-0), the current WBA I/C title holder and official challenger for the EBU title. There had been some talk that Abril would face Anthony Crolla on a September date in the UK, but that won't happen.

Tatli is first Finn to challenge for a world title since 1952 when Olli Maeki, promoter Pekka Maeki's father, took on the ill-fated Davey Moore. Maeki, plagued by weight problems was stopped in two.