Vijender Singh to take on Hope for WBO Asia title

BySaketh RVK, SportsCafe Editor

06/06/2016

Indian boxer Vijender Singh will square off against former European champion Kerry Hope for the WBO Asia title on July 16 at Delhi. The bout will pit the undefeated Indian against the experienced Welsh-born middleweight champion, who has won 23 out of the 30 bouts he had in his career.

The Olympic bronze medalist, who turned pro last year, has been unbeaten in six bouts so far, winning all of them via knockouts. Hope though has the experience of 30 bouts, out of which he has won 23 with two of them being knockouts.

The Welsh-born Hope, who emigrated to Australia, was a WBC middleweight champion. He had moved a division to super middleweight to take on the Indian.

“He is a superstar in India but to me, he is just a boxer. He has been pro for a year, I have been pro for 12 years. I bring a lot of experience. I know the crowd will be behind him but I like being the underdog. The pressure is on him. He has to train harder,” Hope said, reported PTI.

Vijender though downplayed the hype, saying "Time will decide what happens on July 16. Just wait and watch”. The two then faced off for a brief while, at a press conference in New Delhi.

According to India-based IOS and UK-based Queensberry Promotions, the tickets for the bout would go on sale from tomorrow. Former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag was presented the first ticket for the bout.

"There will be two four-rounders, two six-rounders, and an eight-rounder before Vijender's title bout on that day. I think it is a tough fight for Vijender but at stake, apart from the title, is a place inside the top-15 of WBO rankings. That would pave the way for a world title bout for Vijender soon," Queensberry Promotions' Francis Warren said.

Vijender Singh has already invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi and cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar to the bout.

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