Lee to make pro debut with Atlantic City fight

Simon Lewis

The Athens Olympics light-middleweight quarter-finalist had previously been pencilled to kick off his career in the paid ranks in Detroit last weekend but his handler, legendary trainer Emanuel Steward, felt that the Irishman needed more time to prepare.

Lee, 21, will debut as a middleweight in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on September 24 on the undercard of an HBO show at the Boardwalk Hall featuring Wladimir Klitschko’s WBO/IBF heavyweight title eliminator against Samuel Peter, aka “The Nigerian Nightmare“.

The bill, co-promoted by Bob Arum’s Top Rank organisation and Klitschko’s K2 Promotions management company, also features Miguel Angel Cotto’s fourth defence of his WBO Light Welterweight title in a 12-rounder against Gianluca Branco.

No opponent has been lined up yet for Lee, who announced his decision to turn professional at the end of last month following a visit to Steward’s Kronk Gym.

Steward, Lennox Lewis’s former trainer, had been keen to get Lee into the ring in Detroit last weekend but the southpaw instead stuck to his plans for a holiday in France, prompting the delay.

The Limerickman had also been under pressure to retain his amateur status until the 2008 Beijing Olympics with the Irish Sports Council earlier this year having offered Lee E42,000 a year, the biggest deal in Irish amateur boxing history, with an additional E15,000 for any medal success at European, World or Olympic level.