Lindsay out until September

15 June 2010 – By Steve Wellings

Belfast fans will have to wait until the new season to see British featherweight champion Martin Lindsay defend his title, according to promoter Frank Maloney.

He will defend his British title in September, no opponent or venue confirmed yet, Maloney told Irish-boxing.com.

Things will all go quiet over the summer but well just wait for the September dates and then put him out again.

Mac Man Lindsay recently had his name linked with once-beaten Australian hope Billy Dib and the proposition that Lindsay could square off with Dib in an IBF title eliminator. Dibs subsequent withdrawal has put paid to that idea and now Martin will tread an alternative path to world glory.

Were going to look at going the European route first, explained Maloney.

Billy Dib pulled out and taking into account dates and availability we decided to pull our man out, he continued. We would have gone through with it if Dib was the opponent but we dont know too much about the other fighter we were offered and to go in blind would be a little bit dangerous at the moment.

24-year-old Dib is 27-1 (losing only in a WBO world title fight against champion Steven Luevano) and would have represented a solid, yet winnable, step-up in class for the talented Belfastman.

It had been rumoured that Lindsay could appear on the July 2 Jamie McDonnell-Rodrigo Bracco undercard in Doncaster. That card features Luke Wilton, as the flyweight edges himself closer to a title tilt of his own.

Theres no opponent confirmed for Luke at the moment but the idea is to steer him towards a British title crack, said Maloney.