Lee unfazed by opponent change

Unbeaten Irish middleweight Andy Lee is refusing to be distracted by a late change of opponent after Carlos Aballe pulled out of both men's fight in Las Vegas on Thursday.

Lee (22) had been due to meet Aballe at the Orleans Casino but the Cuban was withdrawn yesterday and has been replaced by American Arthuro Ortega.

Limerick southpaw Lee was studying videos of Ortega last night and reckons that the 29-year-old Arizona based puncher is a step up from Aballe.

He said: "I was only told yesterday that Aballe was pulled out but I never tend to focus

too much on my opponents anyway just on the fight itself.

"Having said that I have studied a tape of Ortega and he looks he means business and he definitely has a better record than Aballe".

Tomorrow nights contest will be Lee's 7th pro fight and his first eight round contest.

Lee, who fights out of the Kronk in Detroit, will go into training camp with Wladimir Klitschko in Majorca ,Spain after Thursday night.

The Castleconnell man is due to appear on the same bill (in separate bouts) as his fellow Irish middleweight John Duddy at Madison Square Garden in New York City on March 16.

Ortega has won twelve (7 KO's) and drawn three of his 17 fights so far.