By Terence Dooley
As previously reported on BoxingScene.com, Sam Eggington (16-2, 9 KOs) will defend his British, Commonwealth and WBC Silver welterweight titles against former British and Commonwealth title-holder Frank Gavin (22-2, 13 early) in a local derby.
The news was confirmed during a press conference Tuesday morning in Birmingham, with the city's Barclaycard Arena hosting the bill on October 17th. Also revealed was the addition of former middleweight contender Matthew Macklin, who will now campaign in the super welterweight division.
Eddie Hearn is promoting the show, which will be shown live on Sky Sports here in the U.K.
“This show has taken a remarkable turn in past 24 hours with Eggington and Gavin added to it,” stated Hearn when confirming the clash. “Eggington is a fairy tale boxer because of the way he has come through. This a genuine match-up in the Welterweight division.”
“If you offer me a fight, I will take it,” added Eggington. “I have full confidence I will win. I'm enjoying headlining shows. It is a massive fight for me. I can’t wait to get in there and fight—I’ll definitely win.”
Gavin fought Kell Brook for the IBF world title in May; he was stopped in the sixth round, but is confident that he can take his former titles from Eggington.
He said: “It’s going to be a big night in Birmingham. Fair play to Sam for taking the fight. He’s very confident, but I will win.”
Following three failed bids at a middleweight crown in addition to hitting rocky waters as of late, Macklin (32-6, 21 KOs) has decided to take his business to 154lbs in a bid to regain old form.
Title defeats to Felix Sturm (a contentious decision loss), Sergio Martinez (L RTD 11), and Gennady Golovkin (L KO 3) are easily forgivable, but a surprise knockout loss to Jorge Heiland last November was enough to convince the Birmingham-based boxer to give a new weight a try.
The 33-year-old meets Tividale’s Jason Welborn (17-3, 6 stoppages) on the bill.
“I may have lost some muscle mass over the years so 154lbs will be comfortable for me to make—I’ll be much stronger there,” he argued when revealing the step down in weight. “This like a world title fight for Welborn.”
Welborn believes that he can upset the local favorite and add his scalp to his record.
“Matthew is a good fighter and a great name for me,” Welborn countered when speaking about the match-up.
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