Macklin on McCloskey v Khan card
15 March 2011 – Jonny Stapleton
Matthew Macklin could open a path to a coveted World title shot with victory over respected middleweight gatekeeper Khoren Gevor on the undercard of Paul McCloskey and Amir Khans world title fight.
A week after receiving the nightmare news that his dream bout with ring legend Ronald Winky Wright was off, the Birmingham born fighter of Irish decent has been handed the chance to further enhance his contender status with victory over the tough Armenian. The Tipperary Tornados inclusion adds more Irish flavour to an MEN hosted fight menu that includes Andy Murray versus Dezzi Higginson and Jamie Kavanagh against a yet to be named opponent for starters, as well as a main course that includes Dungiven ace Paul McCloskey.
Victory for Macklin over a fellow former European Champion will place the Brian Peters managed and Golden Boy promoted fighter right on the cusp of a shot at one of the world middleweight champions.
I am proud to showcase some of the most exiting and talented young champions from the Hatton Promotions stable on what I believe is one of the best undercards that has been staged in the history of the M.E.N. Arena, said Hatton Promotions president Ricky Hatton. The chief support for this card sees Matthew Macklin take on Khoren Gevor, with the winner looking for a world title shot.
It is the philosophy of Hatton Promotions to stage well matched and entertaining fights. Craig Watson, Scott Quigg, Martin Murray and Anthony Crolla are four champions who are never in a dull fight and who will hopefully be challenging for world titles themselves in the near future, Hatton continued. On top of that, we have prospects like Richard Towers, Adam Etches, Tasif Khan and Dezzie Higginson all hoping to make their mark as they move up the professional rankings.
The full fight list includes: Matthew Macklin vs. Khoren Gevor, Craig Watson vs. Lee Purdy (British welterweight title) Scott Quigg vs. Andrei Isaeu (WBA super bantamweight interim title), Martin Murray vs. John Carvalho (WBA middleweight interim title),Dezzie Higginson vs. Andy Murray, Jamie Kavanagh vs. TBA, Richard Towers vs. TBA, Adam Etches vs. TBA and Tasif Khan vs. TBA.