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James Tennyson has opponent changed for Belfast bill

James Tennyson [18(14)-2(2)] has been handed a late change of opponent, but remains in an intriguing fight this Saturday night against an opponent of Irish stock.

The Irish super featherweight champion was due to box Ben Jones on the Ryan Burnett v Lee Haskins undercard at the SSE Odyssey Arena in Belfast on Saturday, but will now face Manchester-Dub Ryan Doyle[14(8)-1(1)-1].

The Steve Wood-managed Doyle is the reigning English featherweight champion and steps up in weight for this contest – which will see the vacant WBA International title on the line.

Doyle, intensely proud of his Irish roots, would claim the English title back in November with a rematch revenge victory over Ian Bailey, whom Tennyson has also outpointed. This was a second attempt at the English belt for 25 year old Doyle who had previously drawn with Commonwealth champion Isaac Lowe.

ryan doyle v ian bailey

‘The Assassin’ Tennyson comes into the bout off the back of a move up in weight and the reclamation of the Irish 130lbs strap.

23 year old Tennyson’s Irish title will not be on the line here due to recent Boxing Union of Ireland rule changes which now require European based boxers to have held an Irish licence for six consecutive months to be considered eligible for the green belt. The British licence-holding Doyle does not fulfill this criteria.

The Burnett-Haskins undercard at present also features an Irish cruiserweight title fight between Luke Watkins and Ian Tims, Feargal McCrory v Paul Holt, Paul Hyland v Adam Dingsdale, and appearances from Carl McDonald, Sean Magee, Matt Wilton, Tyrone McCullagh, Paddy Gallagher, Padraig McCrory, and the return of Mike Perez.

Tickets for ‘Belfast Boy’ on June 10th at the SSE Odyssey Arena cost £30, £40, £60, £100, and £150 (VIP), and can be bought from the boxers involved or HERE.

Photo Credit: Ricardo Guglielminotti – The Fighting Irish (@ThefIrish)

frayne carpentry

Joe O'Neill

Reporting on Irish boxing the past five years. Work has appeared on irish-boxing.com, Boxing News, the42.ie, and local and national media. Provide live ringside updates, occasional interviews, and special features on the future of Irish boxing. email: joneill6@tcd.ie

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