Sykes’ British title fight set for Liverpool Arena

The Dewsbury Moor boxer will enter a cauldron at the Liverpool Echo Arena for what should be an electrifying night of boxing.

Promoter Frank Warren won the purse bids to stage the fight and announced Smith’s first defence of his super featherweight crown against Sykes at a press conference yesterday.

It will be a historic night as two of Stephen Smith’s brothers — Paul and Liam — will also defend their British titles on the bill.

Paul Smith will defend his British super middlewight title against Luke Blackledge, while Liam will make the first defence of his light-middleweight title won with a unanimous points decision against Erick Ochieng last Saturday.

That victory created boxing history as it is the first time three brothers have held the Lonsdale belt at the same time.

Sykes now has the task of ending the Smith brothers’ monopoly and wrestling the super featherweight strap away from Stephen Smith and winning the Lonsdale belt outright.

Sykes returns to action tonight when he meets London-based Jamaican Mark McKray at Elland Road and he has vowed to remain fully focussed on that bout before switching attention to Smith in what will be one of the biggest fights of the Dewsbury man’s career.

A big Yorkshire crowd is expected at Elland Road with Sykes’s Central Boxing Club stablemate Josh Warrington defending his English featherweight title against Ian Bailey.

Tickets for the Echo Arena bill go on sale at 10am tomorrow (Saturday) priced from £40 by calling 0844 8000 400 or visit www.echoarena.com although Sykes will also receive an allocation in due course.