By Mark Vester
Promoter Frank Warren solidified the recent word on BoxingScene.com, stating in his recent column for The Sun that a fight between Matt Skelton (21-1, 18KOs) and WBA heavyweight champion Ruslan Chagaev (23-0-1, 17KOs) is close to being done. The fight is likely heading to Chagaev's backyard of Germany, in either February or March of next year.
"I'm really close to securing a WBA heavyweight title fight for Matt Skelton against current champion Ruslan Chagaev," said Warren. "It would be a real fairytale story as Matt only turned pro in his late 30s and didn't have an amateur fight before taking up boxing. Things are looking so promising that purse bids for a proposed European title fight for Skelton have now been postponed to allow us to negotiate. It would be great news if Britain could get a heavyweight world champion, especially as it's an area we haven't been strong in since the retirement of Lennox Lewis four years ago.
Warren said Skelton, should he win, could face whoever comes out on top of the February unification bout between heavyweight champions Wladimir Klitschko and Sultan Ibragimov. If the fight falls through, Warren will move forward to match Skelton with Alexander Dimitrenko for the vacant Euro heavyweight title.
"After years of being in the doldrums, the division is getting itself in shape, with Wladimir Klitschko and Sultan Ibragimov in a unification fight in New York in February. That's the first for eight years. If Skelton does win the WBA belt, he could fight the winner."
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