By Terence Dooley
Gary Sykes is said to be in fine fettle ahead of his Matchroom promoted, all-Yorkshire showdown with Leeds’s Carl Johanneson in Huddersfield on Saturday night. Sykes defends his British super-feather title yet is coming off a crushing Prizefighter: The Super-Featherweights KO loss to Gary Buckland.
Veteran trainer Chris Aston works closely with Dewsbury’s finest, he feels that Gary is going to put his single stanza defeat behind him by producing a big display in front of the Sky Sport’s cameras.
“Gary is looking very sharp and come Saturday he’ll be ready to go. It’s going to be a top-drawer fight against Johanneson and I think Gary will be on his best form, because his latest sparring has been excellent,” said Aston when speaking to the Huddersfield Daily Examiner.
Sykes holds a 17-1 (4) slate; his resume includes wins over Anthony Crolla, the current British lightweight title holder, and former Lonsdale belt titlist Andy Morris. Carl, 30-4 (19), lost to Kevin Mitchell in 2008, a British and Commonwealth title dual, but holds wins over Ricky Burns, Michael Gomez and Billy Corcoran. The 32-year-old is heavy handed, the last thing Sykes needed after a stoppage loss, and he should provide Gary with a few moments of worry in a hotly contested battle.
Sky Sports HD1 and 1 televise from 8pm on Saturday night.
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