By Terence Dooley
Frank Warren has won the purse bids for the massive Merseyside showdown between British super-middle champion Tony Quigley and local rival Paul Smith, who starred in The Contender a couple of years back.
Liverpool boxing derbies are the stuff of legend here in the UK; indeed, Quigley won his title with a stunning final round KO of fellow Liverpudlian Tony Dodson back in March. Warren is convinced that this fight will equal, or even surpass, the Quigley-Dodson war.
“I'm delighted to have won the purse bids for what I believe will be a fantastic fight between Smith and Quigley,” said Warren. “Liverpool has a history steeped with great boxers and fights and I'm sure that this fight will be a classic that people will talk about for years to come. It's a throwback fight and has all the ingredients for an explosive encounter.”
“We have some cracking fights coming up in the next few months and there's more to come,” he concluded.
Paul Smith has been in good form in recent months, recovering well from his points loss to Steven Bendall in June of last year, Smith’s only professional defeat. Smith is bullish about his chances in the Quigley fight.
“I can't tell you how relieved I am that this fight is finally on,” said Smith. “It's the only fight that anybody is talking about in Liverpool. You can forget Miguel Cotto versus Manny Pacquiao because that doesn't mean a thing here; all that matters is Smith versus Quigley. We've got business to settle and it will be settled on the night and I will emerge victorious with the British title.”
Quigley improved as the fight with Dodson wore on, finally stepping up to end matters with that thrilling finish; Smith, though, is a deceptively languid fighter, local trainer Billy Graham told Boxingscene that Smith is the biggest puncher he has ever worked with, labelling him a ‘murderous one-shot puncher’; win, lose or draw, the fans are in for treat come October.
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