| Ryan Walsh defends his British Featherweight title against Reece Bellotti at The O2 in London on December 22, live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and DAZN in the US.
The Cromer star won the Lord Lonsdale belt outright when he stopped Belfast’s Marco McCullough at the Copper Box Arena in May 2017 before drawing with Manchester’s Isaac Lowe in his next defence of the title on the George Groves vs. Chris Eubank Jr. undercard earlier this year.
Bellotti, a former Commonwealth and WBC International Silver Featherweight Champion, is hot on the comeback trail after his shock defeat to Ryan Doyle at York Hall in June and hopes a British title win will signal the beginning of a new chapter in his career.
“Bellotti is a young, fresh prospect and I rate him highly,” said Walsh. “He’s got a lot about him and he’s very dangerous, not just because he can punch but because he’s lost. He’ll want to prove himself to everyone.
“I was trying to get the Bellotti fight when he was the Commonwealth Champion. He was on the up and he was a Champion, ideally I would have got him then and won the Commonwealth but I’m glad we’re getting in on now.
“Bellotti will be another Commonwealth Champion that I’ve fought. Lowe was a Commonwealth Champion and so was McCullough. James Tennyson got a win over McCullough and went on to fight for a World title so you never know what will happen in this sport.”
“The British title has always been the title that I’ve wanted to get my hands on,” said Bellotti. “Every kid starting out in boxing wants to win it eventually. Obviously the main goal is to win a World title but the Lonsdale belt is a very prestigious title.
“I’ve got my chance now and I’m looking forward to it. This will be the toughest fight of my career by a million miles. I’ve watched Walsh for years, I was at the Copper Box Arena when he won the belt outright against McCullough.
“He’s a tough, well-rounded professional and I’m expecting a really good fight. I’ve learnt massive lessons from my loss against Ryan Doyle and hopefully winning this title will signal the start of a new chapter of my career.”
Walsh vs. Bellotti is part of a huge night of boxing in the capital.
Main event sees fierce Heavyweight rivals Dillian Whyte and Derek Chisora rematch after their Fight of the Year contender in December 2016.
Charlie Edwards gets a second shot at a World title when he challenges Cristofer Rosales for the WBC Flyweight World title, with further exciting fights to be announced soon.
Tickets for Whyte vs. Chisora are available to purchase from StubHub (www.stubhub.co.uk), The O2 (www.theo2.co.uk) and Matchroom Boxing
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