Sam Eggington has predicted his British and Commonwealth welterweight clash with Glenn Foot will be an all-out war at the Manchester Arena on July 18, live on Sky Sports.
Eggington puts his Commonwealth strap on the line for the first time with the vacant British belt also up for grabs, and with the attacking styles of both fighters likely to gel – a classic is on the cards in Manchester.
The 21-year-old Stourbridge smasher has stopped his last five opponents, picking up the scalp of Denton Vassell and landing the WBC International silver title against Shayne Singleton and the Commonwealth belt against Joseph Lamptey in the process – along with a growing reputation for must-see fights.
Foot has been relatively inactive in comparison, with just a pair of six-rounders and a four-round contest in the last year, and although Eggington expects the 27-year-old to provide a stiff test, he believes his growing power will prove to be the difference.
“Glenn is strong, he comes forward and he likes a fight so it should be a real tear-up – I can’t wait,” said Eggington. “I’ve put all the work in so I can go 12 rounds – whether he’s chasing me and or I’m chasing him, it’s going to catch fire at some point.
“Something we’ve been working on in particular with this camp is to keep my power throughout the fight. Unlike most punchers – who go for the kill early, I’ve stopped my last few mid-to-late. Denton Vassell was round eight, Singleton was the fifth and Lamptey was in the seventh, so the proof is there.
“I’ve incorporated some swimming in this camp, wanted to mix it up with my training. As hard as swimming is – it’s really good for your stamina and conditioning, definitely noticed an improvement there in sparring. This camp has consisted mainly of that, running and my usual strength and conditioning.”
Jenkins’ clash with Nurse is part of a huge night of action in Manchester with two huge World title fights topping the bill as Scott Quigg defends his WBA World super-bantamweight title against Kiko Martinez and Anthony Crolla challenges Darleys Perez for the WBA World lightweight strap.
There’s another vacant British title on the line as stylish duo Chris Jenkins and Tyrone Nurse lock horns for the light-welterweight strap.
St. Helens’ Martin Murray boxes at super-middleweight for the second time in quick succession as he targets some huge domestic battles at 168 lbs., and there’s a host of young talent on display in unbeaten Gallagher’s gym duo Hosea Burton and Marcus Morrison, while there are outings for Prizefighter lightweight champion Jono Carroll, former Team GB starlet Charlie Edwards, Sedgefield’s Jeff Saunders, Middleton’s Liam Taylor and Chapel-en-le-Firth’s Jack Massey.