Peters keen to stage all-Irish title fight

BRIAN PETERS would love to stage a world title fight involving Andy Lee and John Duddy in Ireland.

After Lee’s comprehensive victory over Jason McKay on Saturday night, the Limerickman’s trainer, Emanuel Steward, suggested that such a showdown would be spectacular for boxing.

Steward, linked with 19 world champions, insists Lee is the best middleweight in the world and would have no reservations putting him in against world champion, Kelly Pavlik.

But John Duddy has first shot at Pavlik who, incidentally, must give former champion Jermaine Taylor a rematch — a non-title fight — in the new year.

Should Duddy beat Pavlik — and Steward feels he has all the ammunition to demolish the world champion — then Lee will be gunning for his fellow Irishman.

“I would have no reservations promoting that world title fight,” Peters said yesterday. “I have not addressed the matter yet. In fact I had not thought about it until Manny Steward brought it up at Saturday night’s press conference.”

Steward said the fight had to take place and Peters was the man to promote it.

“I would love to stage that show,” Peters said. “I got thinking about it and Duddy’s manager, Eddie McLaughlin, was there on Saturday night. It might have appeared far- fetched at first but, from my point of view, if it makes dollars it makes sense.”

Meanwhile, the Dunshaughlin businessman is already working on Lee’s next appearance — in Limerick on February 2.

“We are working on a venue and looking at the UL Arena,” he said. “As far as I know this will be the first ever pro fight in Limerick.”

It’s likely he will face a European opponent and with Duddy boxing in the US on the same night, he has been discussing the possibility of linking up both shows with RTÉ.

He makes no secret of the fact that he wants to be involved in the show at Madison Square Garden in March, maybe through a live link up and he has already promised bantamweights Colin Moffett and Eugene Heagney a place on the bill.

They were meeting for the second time when Moffett won the Irish title on an eighth-round stoppage on Saturday night.

Paschal Collins is to announce details of another professional show for Cork later this week with Billy Walsh topping the bill.

David Barrett recorded the biggest win of his career when he beat David Joyce (St Michael’s Athy) on the top-of-the-bill contest at the Rylane show in Macroom on Saturday night.

Barrett, last year’s intermediate champion, was giving weight to the Leinster senior champion who is moving up a division for the senior championships but he was able to keep him on the back foot and get through with the punches to shade the verdict.

“It was a nice win on the eve of the national senior championships,” Barrett’s coach, Dan Lane, said. “We will be looking for some good spars for him over the coming weeks. He is only 19 but he has come on by leaps and bounds.”

It was a big night for Rylane club who had 12 boxers on the bill with 11 of them winning, including Donal Óg O’Leary who used his strength to beat Owen Hurley from Macroom in a close middleweight contest.