Frazer Clarke says an eagerly-awaited rematch towards Fabio Wardley has been agreed after the British heavyweight rivals had been pressured to accept a draw of their epic first encounter earlier this yr.
Wardley retained his British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles after the thrilling cut up draw at The O2 in March, throughout which Clarke was knocked down within the fifth spherical earlier than recovering emphatically to open up a nasty gash on the nostril of his rival in a brutal, unrelenting 12-round battle.
It will grow to be an instantaneous fight-of-the-year contender, attracting a peak tv viewers of 746,000 and changing into the fifth-most watched boxing occasion on Sky Sports activities within the final 10 years.
Each Wardley and Clarke have since loved a deserved break as they recuperate bodily, the latter revealing he has now agreed a second combat with a date and venue to be confirmed quickly.
“It’s agreed and it’s on, I’m always getting asked on the street when is the rematch happening, I can’t give that information yet but we are back on and you’ll get the news very soon,” Clarke informed Sky Sports activities.
“I hope it goes like clockwork but this is heavyweight boxing and it’s me, my career is always up and down, it’s been crazy from the get go. We can hope for it to go swimmingly but it’s a heavyweight title fight and there’s always drama.”
The rivalry represents an enchanting conflict of backgrounds, Clarke having come via the Olympic ranks as Staff GB captain and Wardley having began his boxing profession on the white-collar scene.
A disagreement had ignited final yr when Wardley accused Clarke of ducking a potential combat between the pair after the Tokyo bronze medallist withdrew from preliminary purse bids, a call Clarke reiterated was out of his palms.
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Clarke and Wardley talk about the potential for a rematch after their earlier heavyweight conflict led to a cut up draw
With March’s consequence Clarke moved to 8-0-1 as an expert whereas Wardley additionally retained his undefeated standing at 17-0-1.
“I take a lot of confidence into it, I think I did a good job first time, there’s room for improvement but I’ve had more experience and I believe in myself a lot more.
“I am stepping into there to do one factor and that is to knock Fabio Wardley out, profitable will not be sufficient for me. I need to put a job on him, however will probably be a tricky activity identical to the primary one. Could one of the best man win, however I am backing myself.
“I grew respect for Fabio after that first fight so I have no trash talk, I think you see two competitors that just want to get the best out of each other and get their hands raised. Message to the fans is to tune in and enjoy it when it happens.”
Clarke: Neither man will fold below strain
Sky Sports activities Boxing’s Andy Clarke…
“It was 12 pulsating rounds and the fight toed and froed and that’s what you always want in a good fight. Neither one of them had been 12 rounds, let alone 12 rounds like that, but both showed they can dig deep. If they didn’t have that dog in them to do that one of them would have broken.
“It’ll come down actually to who could make these tactical changes as a result of they’ve had a extremely good take a look at one another now and each know the opposite one will not fold below strain, that will not occur. It is about who could make these little tweaks to use what they see as weaknesses.”
Watch Anthony Joshua vs Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium dwell on Sky Sports activities Field Workplace on September 21.
