RICKY Burns said last night that he is relishing the prospect of a unification bout against unbeaten Namibian fighter Julius Indongo in Glasgow this spring. While there had been talk of him taking Filipino superstar Manny Pacquaio instead, Burns will put his WBA Super Lightweight belt on the line against the 33-year-old Namibian at the SSE Hydro on April 15 and said it was a contest he had been anticipating ever since the Namibian shocked Russia's Eduard Troyanovsky with a 40-second knockout to claim the IBF version in Moscow in March.
Burns became Scotland's first-ever three-weight world champion when he won the WBA strap with an eighth-round stoppage of Michele di Rocco in his hometown last May, then successfully defended his belt with a unanimous points victory over Kiryl Relikh in October. The other two titles in the weight class currently belong to the formidable Terence Crawford, who defeated Burns in Glasgow back in 2014.
“When Julius Indongo knocked out Eduard Troyanovsky he was immediately an opponent I was interested in,” said Burns. “Indongo can clearly punch and that’s an impressive way to win a world title, especially in Russia. It was some shot he hit Troyanovsky with.
“It’s a huge fight in the division and the kind of fights I need to be involved in at this stage of my career," he added. "There were other names talked about but I wanted the toughest, most dangerous fight out there. Indongo with his two belts was that man. He is a big, tall, rangy, southpaw but bring it on - I have no fear of anyone and it is only the massive fights for me now.
“Fighting in Glasgow is special for me, the crowd at the SSE Hydro has been electric the last two occasions and I expect it to be no different this time round. Their support means the world to me, the crowd has always behind me and I want to put in a big performance for them again. The last card was really good with some top local talent and I’m excited to see who else is on this one.”
"It's an absolute honour for me to fight Ricky, who I regard as an accomplished champion," said Indongo. "I respect what he has achieved so far but I'm going to Scotland to rob him of his belt."
*Tickets for April 15 go on Matchroom Fight Pass Pre-Sale at midday on Monday, January 23, priced £40, £60, £100 and £200 VIP. Tickets go on general sale at midday on Tuesday, January 24 with tickets priced £40, £60, £100 available at www.thessehydro.com and £200 VIP exclusively at www.matchroomboxing.com.
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