Peters: I tried to set up Lee v Duddy showdown

PROMOTER Brian Peters spoke yesterday of his efforts to get Andy Lee and John Duddy into the ring and revealed that, despite a lucrative offer, both camps had rejected the deal because neither wanted to be tied into a bout with European champion, Matthew Macklin.

Lee re-ignited the Duddy debate at the weekend after he stopped 40-year-old Troy Lowry, in four rounds at the Horseshoe Casino in Indiana and claimed: “There has never been a better time for the fight. It is a fight where the stakes are stacked high and a fight that neither of us can afford to lose. It will be a defining moment in our careers.”

But Peters claimed yesterday he wanted to put the record straight on his recent efforts to make the much-mentioned fight happen, pointing out that a recent offer to both camps was rejected.

“I first tried to make the fight for November 2009 but I also tried again more recently – on August 17.

“The offer was for Andy and John to meet on a proposed date at the beginning of 2011 in Ireland with the winner to meet Matthew Macklin.

“Both (fights) would have been live on RTÉ and the offer to each fighter was a six-figure sum with the winner to receive a further six-figure sum to fight Matthew. From a financial point of view, it was certainly quite lucrative and above and beyond the type of purses that they could command for any other fight right now,” added Peters.

Despite the lucrative offer, both camps rejected the deal on the basis that they didn’t want to be tied in to a bout with Macklin.

“The indications I received from both sides were that they were interested in fighting each other but the prospect of the winner having to fight Macklin as part of the deal seemed to be the stumbling block,” said Peters, who insisted that both men remain in Matthew Macklin’s shadow at the moment.

“I don’t think there is much doubt at the moment that the leading Irish middleweight out there is Matthew Macklin.

“John is obviously coming off losing to Julio Cesar Chavez Jr while Andy has been winning recently, but not at championship level like Matthew, so I don’t think it’s really up for debate right now. But surely if John and Andy were to fight, then a fight with Matthew would be a natural?”