Michael Conlan to face 'hardest fight of his career' after Vladimir Nikitin pulls out

Michael Conlan's scheduled fight with Vladimir Nikitin has fallen through due to an injury to the Russian.

The pair were due to meet in a rematch of their Rio 2016 bout, a fight Nikitin won in controversial circumstances.

The bout was due to take place in Belfast on August 3, but Nikitin has torn a bicep so a replacement opponent for Conlan will be lined-up.

Michael's brother, Jamie Conlan, said: “These things happen in boxing and we'll now be looking to bring in an opponent that’ll be a harder fight than Nikitin would have been.

“In some ways, Nikitin was a step back in terms of level and we all know it’s a match-up based on sentimentality.

"Instead, we’ll now seek a fight that will push Mick up the rankings quicker. It’ll be the hardest fight of his career."

"We are already in discussions with some high-class opponents to step up to the plate and we'll be bringing the public news on that - along with further attractive match-ups on the bill - as soon as we can, so stay tuned."