By Jake Donovan
The oft-postponed middleweight title clash between Andy Lee and Billy Joe Saunders is set to headline a BoxNation telecast on December 19 live from Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.
Tickets are officially on sale as of Friday morning. Three title fights are confirmed the show, including a quick ring return for Terry Flanagan and Liam Smith.
Lee (34-2-1, 24KOs) will attempt the second defense of the middleweight crown he won with a come-from-behind knockout of Matt Korobov last December. His lone fight since the title win came in April, fighting to a 12-round draw with Peter Quillin at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
The 31-year old Irishman - who resides in London - will face his third straight unbeaten opponent in Saunders (22-0, 12KOs). It has taken three tries to match together the southpaws, but injuries suffered by each saw postponements in September and October.
Saunders earned the title shot with a 12-round majority decision win over hated rival Chris Eubank Jr., who ironically has since gone on to fight and win a secondary title. The lone piece of ring action for the unbeaten Traveler from Hertfordshire came in July, scoring a rust-shaking 4th round knockout of Yoann Bloyer.
Had Saunders not suffered an injury, the title fight would have taken place atop the October 10 bill at the very venue hosting the December show. Instead, it was Flanagan and Smith who enjoyed the spotlight, both turning in career best performances.
Flanagan (29-0, 12KOs) picked up his third win of what has been a breakout year, scoring three knockdowns in tearing through American southpaw Diego Magdaleno inside of two rounds. The bout marked the first successful defense of the lightweight crown he acquired in a two-round injury stoppage of Jose Zepeda, who dislocated his shoulder and was unable to continue in their vacant title fight in June.
Smith (21-0-1, 11KOs) became the first of his four fighting brothers to capture a major title, rallying to knockout American contender John Thompson in seven rounds. The win netted the unbeaten 27-year old a vacant super welterweight title.
Opponents for Flanagan and Smith are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
Also gracing the undercard will be former bantamweight titlist Paul Butler (19-1, 10KOs) and unbeaten super lightweight prospect Jack Catteral (13-0, 8KOs), who is also coming off of winning performance on the October 10 bill in Manchester.
TICKET INFO
Tickets are priced at £40, £50, £75, £100, £200 and £300 are available from:
www.frankwarren.com
TicketMaster
0844 844 0444
www.ticketmaster.co.uk
Eventim
0844 249 1000
www.eventim.co.uk
Manchester Arena
0161 950 5000
0161 950 5229 (disabled access bookings)
www.manchester-arena.com
Tickets are subject to a booking fee.
Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com.
Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
Facebook Page: JakeBScene