Frank Warren eyes stadium show for Andy Lee fight

Promoter Frank Warren is ready to bring world championship boxing back to Ireland this summer should he arrange a deal to promote a showdown between WBO champion Andy Lee and Billy Joe Saunders. 

Warren was instrumental in staging Steve Collins’ memorable victory over Chris Eubank at Páirc Uí Chaoimh in 1995 and believes he could create similar magic this summer.

The London-based promoter is locked in negotiations about whether his charge, Saunders, will face Lee next.

Saunders is the mandatory challenger to the belt, which Lee won by beating Matt Korobov in Las Vegas in December, and had hoped to face the champion in his next fight.

However, Warren wants the pair to clash in a showpiece event held in an open-air stadium, which is not logistically viable until the summer.

Meanwhile, Lee is ready to defend his belt and has had big-money offers to do so from promoters in America, with a lucrative clash with former WBO belt-holder Peter Quillin understood to be on the table.

British, Commonwealth and European champion Saunders was supposed to face Korobov last year, but Warren arranged a step-aside deal so that his man could instead face Chris Eubank Jr in a big domestic fight last November.

That allowed Lee to fight the Russian, with the vacant world title on the line, on the basis that the victor would fight the winner of Eubank-Saunders. But, because the timing is now not ideal for Warren, yet another step-aside agreement is being thrashed out.

Warren said: “We’re working on something interesting at the moment and we should be able to announce what happens this week. There may be an arrangement so they wouldn’t fight each other next.

"Andy Lee and Billy Joe is a fight that should happen in a stadium and that cannot happen at this time of year. Saunders will be fighting in the first or second week of April definitely with a view to that stadium fight in late May or June.

"It’s all good for the game. Chris Eubank Jr is fighting for a title, Billy Joe is British, Commonwealth and European champion and Andy Lee is the world champion. It’s a bit like the old days — couple of Brits and an Irishman.”

He added: “I think the last real big turn out for something like that was when I took Eubank to fight Steve Collins in the Páirc Uí Chaoimh all those years ago.

"And yes, there is definitely a big market for a fight like that to take place. I think it’s about wherever it makes financial sense for the boxers. I’d be happy to make that fight over there.”

Meanwhile, in the super-middleweight division, Carl Froch has vacated his IBF world title, leaving the No.1 contender James DeGale to fight for the vacant title against an opponent to be confirmed.

Froch sustained an elbow injury which prevented his dream Las Vegas fight with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in March. He is likely to fight the Mexican in the summer but has now decided to vacate his IBF title, although he remains the WBA regular champion.