WBO to decide Harrison fate

The World Boxing Organisation will decide on the fate of featherweight champion Scott Harrison once official confirmation his latest defence has been cancelled is received.

The 29-year-old was due to face challenger Nicky Cook at the ExCel Arena in London on December 9.

But, after failing to secure his release from a Spanish jail yesterday, promoter Frank Warren has withdrawn the Cambuslang fighter’s defence from the bill.

Harrison has been in prison since October 6 after an alleged assault in Málaga, where he had been training.

Now the Puerto Rico-based governing body could strip the boxer of his title after he also withdrew from a defence against Gary St Clair in the summer.

A WBO spokesman told The Daily Record: “Once we receive official confirmation from Sports Network of the decision to call off the fight, we will convene a meeting of the Championship Committee immediately and our decision on the world title will be announced.”

Meanwhile, Warren hopes Harrison can bounce back from his latest setback after receiving treatment for depression and alcohol problems.

He said: “The boxing has to take a back seat.

“The first thing I would like to see is Scott get himself well and sort out his problems. That’s the main consideration.”

He added: “We have given him a lot of support but it’s been very disappointing from my point of view because the information we were getting was scant, to say the least.

“We were picking up the pieces rather than being informed from day one what the situation was.

“I’ve been told for the last couple of weeks he was going to be bailed and that the charges would be dropped.

“Unfortunately, he keeps getting himself in the wrong places at the wrong time.

“I don’t know whether he will get bail or not. If he gets bail, that’s fantastic for him. If they drop the charges, that’s even better, but he still has two cases to face in Glasgow in February. He has to sort those out first.”