By Terence Dooley
Josh Kelly (6-0, 4 KOs) meets Kris George (14-1, 8 early) for the Australian’s Commonwealth welterweight title at the Metro Radio, Newcastle on June 16 and he has vowed to put in the type of performance that will unite the football fans of Sunderland, where Kelly hails from, and Newcastle supporters as the two cities aim to helm a boxing revival in the North East.
Kelly and Newcastle-based Lewis Ritson top the Eddie Hearn-promoted bill—Ritson meets Paul Hyland Jr. in a British lightweight title defence—and they hope it is one of many more big shows to come for the region following a recent fallow spell.
“I will break him down,” said Kelly when speaking to the Sunderland Echo about George. “I feel as though he will be confident. He is tough and raw—they (Australian’s) all are. I will win that title on June 16.”
The Adam Booth-trained boxer believes that the fiery football rivalry between the area’s clubs can be bridged by boxing, especially when you consider that, Newcastle aside, they have struggled in recent times.
He added: “It's a massive night for boxing in the north east and it's a big step up to fight for the Commonwealth title in my seventh fight,” said Kelly. “It's another puzzle for me to solve, I like to look at fights like they are problems to work out and I feel that I'll do it in good fashion.
“Lewis has got a massive fanbase and I am really building a good following too so it should be a brilliant night.
“I've seen videos and clips of Kris in action, I like to study them. He's quite raw and as an Australian he's going to be tough and a proud champion, he's a worthy title holder but I feel that I'll show I'm a level above.
“I have to keep winning so that we can keep coming back and putting on big nights like this. The north east hasn't had anything this big for a long time and to look at the quality of young talent on the bill it shows that there's a bright future up here - as long as we all perform. That's what I intend to do on June 16 and I'm sure the other boys will as we want to put it on the map.
“When boxing is involved, what football team you support goes out of the window. There will be Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Newcastle fans there on the night and they'll all come together to support the lads.
“When you are this end of the country you are fighting from day one to get noticed, so to box on a card like this on Sky Sports it's massive, and we need the fans from all over to get behind us so we keep coming back. I'm moving fast and I cannot wait to see where I will be in a year’s time.”
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