EDDIE HEARN, who has taken over from Frank Warren as world lightweight champion Ricky Burns' promoter, feared that his first duty would be to go cap in hand to the boxer to explain why he was no longer the proud possessor of the World Boxing Organisation title.
However, Hearn was relieved to announce yesterday that he has successfully negotiated an agreement for Burns to make a mandatory defence against Puerto Rican Jose Gonzalez at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow on May 11.
Hearn was informed by Francisco Velcarcel, the WBO president, that he had just five days to negotiate a deal, otherwise the bout would become subject to purse bids, in which case Burns, from Coatbridge, would have been at the mercy of rival promoters.
WBO red tape also stipulates that no fight can take place within 45 days of a purse offer being accepted or later than 90 days from the date of the agree-ment and May 11 fell inside the minimum timescale.
Therefore, it was hardly sur-prising to hear Hearn say: "These have been the most diffi-cult few days of my career.
"We have a good relationship with the WBO, but when we gave them a list of fighters we were looking at – Vazquez, Beltran, Estrada and Gonzalez – we were told it was a case of either fight Gonzalez or be stripped of the title.
"To move in as Ricky's new promoter and ask him to give up his belt right away wasn't what I wanted. But the odds were stacked against us.
"In the event, there were only two-and-half hours left to Monday's midnight deadline when we finally agreed a deal and the contracts were signed."
But Hearn was virtually held to ransom after admitting: "We had to come up with a deal that was chunky, to say the least. He is being well overpaid, but we had no choice.
"If it had gone to purse bids, we would have, all of a sudden, been told by the WBO that Ricky had to fight Gonzalez in Puerto Rico.
"So, if I hadn't done the deal, I would probably have relinquished the title, because I could see what was conspiring against us. We were boxed into a corner.
"I am just delighted that we have managed to make this fight, because it paves the way for bigger defences in Scotland, in September and December.
"We are planning on seating for 10,000 and I've got to sell the venue out to make it work. But there are only three world champions in Britain and if they can't fight at home and sell out arenas, we might as well pack the sport in."
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