ELLIS ZORRO VIEWS his forthcoming fight with Dec Spelman as the perfect measure of his cruiserweight credentials at a higher level.

Boxxer tournament winner Zorro makes his Queensberry debut against Spelman at York Hall on September 16.

Even though Spelman has recently come up from light heavyweight, the Scunthorpe man possesses a strong pedigree and his will be seeking to further his own career at cruiser on the night, rather than provide a stepping stone for a championship hopeful.

For his part, Zorro does believe Spelman is his next step and that the quality of opponent vindicates his move to team up with Frank Warren following his competition success in Manchester that took him to 14-0 as a professional.

“This is the direction I want to go in,” said the 29-year-old. “I was pleased that Martin (trainer and manager, Bowers) and Frank have decided to put me in with such an opponent, rather than kind of give me an easy welcoming fight.

“After this one I will look to push on to titles asap, that is where I am going.

“You could have a tough international opponent and not get any credit for winning, but with this one I will get the credit. We know who he has fought, we know what he has done, how he has conducted himself in those fights, so I think it will be a test for me and a good fight.”

Zorro is not reading too much into Spelman’s jump in weight class, particularly since he has not fought at 175lbs since his Commonwealth title encounter with Lyndon Arthur in July 2020. Spelman subsequently took on Anthony Yarde weighing 180lbs before two fights nudging 200lbs.

“I did see an interview with him after the Arthur fight where he said he was drained at the weight. He is not going to be drained now, but it is a big jump up, although I am not a massive cruiserweight. I don’t know how tall he is, maybe 5ft 10″, while I am 6ft 1”.

“This will be his second or third fight at the weight now, so we will see. Other than his style, being a pressure fighter coming forward, I am not going to take too much from his fights at light heavyweight.

“He has fought (Shakan) Pitters and had the thing with Yarde and Arthur. He is a good fighter and I think he will come and try and push me back, put pressure on me, but I am ready for it.

“I am looking forward to it and stylistically it will be a good fight. Dec will try and drag me into ‘deep waters’ and he will know he has not got much of a chance if he tries to stand on the outside and box with me.

“So I think he will push the pace, try and stay on my chest, so the fans will be in for a good fight – which is what I need, with being on TV and on a Frank Warren show. I need to be in an engaging fight.”

Tickets for Bentley vs Morrison at York Hall on Friday, 16 September are on sale now, available exclusively from ticketmaster.co.uk.

Now that all the participants are weighed-in, and confirmed covid-free, Hall-of-Fame Promoter Frank Warren’s incredible run of shows can continue live, tomorrow night on BT Sport 1 from 7.30pm.

In the main event of the evening, ‘The Beast from the East’ Anthony Yarde will meet one of Britain’s hardest men Dec Spelman, before hopefully moving on to a domestic dust-up with Commonwealth Champion Lyndon Arthur later in the year.

Elsewhere on the card, Mark Heffron and Denzel Bentley will do battle in a British eliminator for the Middleweight crown currently worn by Welshman Liam Williams.

The vacant IBF European title will also be on the line at welterweight when Cedrick Peynaud meets English champion Ekow Essuman. Lightweight Bilal Ali, featherweight Amin Jahanzeb and debut making super-welterweight Josh Frankham round out the card.

Official photos from todays weigh-in can be found here

Official weights below:

Anthony Yarde 12st 11lb 12oz
Dec Spelman 12st 12lb

Mark Heffron 11st 5lb 9oz
Denzel Bentley 11st 5lb 4oz

Ekow Essuman 10st 6lb 11oz
Cedrick Peynaud 10st 6lb 5oz

Mohammed Bilal Ali 9st 8lb 4oz
Ed Harrison 9st 5lb 9oz

Josh Frankham 11st 8oz
Kev McAuley 11st 2lb

Anthony Yarde vs Dec Spelman, Nathan Gorman vs Richard Lartey, Mark Heffron vs Denzel Bentley and Ekow Essuman vs Cedrick Peynaud have today all been announced for a bumper Queensberry Promotions card on September 12.

Anthony Yarde will take on Dec Spelman, in what will prove an ideal chance to directly compare himself against potential future foe Lyndon Arthur – who last month edged Spelman on points behind-closed-doors.

Yarde challenged for a World Title against Sergey Kovalev in 2019 and has been absent since his Russian mission – where he came within seconds of toppling the legendary champion.

The light heavyweight Beast from the East is now back in business against an opponent who extended Manchester’s Arthur to 12 rounds of work in July. Commenting on the fight on behalf of BT Sport on the night, Yarde complained over a lack of entertainment from the pair and that he needed paying to stay awake.

Yarde will be looking to provide more entertainment on September 12.

Also featuring on what will be a huge night of action is the heavyweight return of Nathan Gorman, 16-1, who will fight Richard Lartey from Ghana (subject to visa approval) in an eliminator for the Commonwealth title. Both have a shared experience of taking on Daniel Dubois, with the 14-2 Lartey engaging in an explosive shootout with the young Londoner before being stopped in four rounds at Wembley Arena in April of last year.

Gorman, just 24, will be seeking to put the domestic heavyweight division on notice that he is back in the fold and in the bidding for major titles once again.

The vacant IBF European welterweight championship will be on the line for English champion Ekow Essuman when he goes in with the Frenchman Cedrick Peynaud. The Paris-based Peynaud took part in two epic struggles against Connor Benn across 2017-18 where both men were put to the canvas and it represents an ideal test for Essuman, who is in the British title mix along with Benn and the champion Chris Jenkins.

In what is a huge fight for the middleweight division in this country, a battle of the big punchers is confirmed between Battersea’s Denzel Bentley (13-0) and Oldham’s Mark Heffron (25-1).

For a fight that surely cannot fail to deliver fireworks, the IBF European title is the prize for the winner between two men who have not been shy in calling each other out across social media. 

Promoter Frank Warren – who will also showcase the talents of lightweight Mohammad Bilal Ali on the night, along with new signings Amin Jahanzeb (7-0, featherweight) and Joshua Frankham (debut, super welterweight) – said: 

“This is a card with the potential to deliver for the fans watching on BT Sport in a big way.

“Boxing is a game of ego’s and Anthony is keen to show the world that he can go one better than Lyndon and blast Spelman out early.

“Spelman is not an easy fight for anyone, but if Anthony comes through we’ll be on course for Yarde vs Arthur later this year hopefully.”

“I am delighted to be bringing Anthony back because he needs a competitive fight before his big domestic showdown against Lyndon Arthur and he will be determined to do a better job on Dec Spelman than his rival. He has put the onus on himself to find an explosive performance after complaining about Lyndon’s fight with Dec being boring!

“I still firmly believe Anthony is a world-level elite operator and he will prove as much given time but, for now, he needs to keep busy and remind the public of what he is all about.”

Anthony Yarde said:

“The people want explosive action and knockouts so I will not be hiding behind my jab and sending everyone to sleep,” stated the 19-1 man from Ilford. 

“This will be all about me reminding people that I am the force of the division and I am heading right back to the top where I intend to dominate and reign for a long time to come.

“I respect Dec Spelman as a fighter but this is the chance for me to show everyone what they can expect when I get to share a ring with Lyndon Arthur.”

Dec Spelman said:

“If Yarde comes to fight then so much the better for me. Lyndon made our fight a technical affair that I was disappointed I couldn’t really get to grips with, so if Yarde wants some action then bring it on.

“I will actually be his first test at domestic level so we will see how he looks on the night.”

FULL DETAILS FOR FURTHER SHOWS ON SEPT 26 (Headlined by Josh Taylor vs Apinun Khongsong) and OCT 10 COMING VERY SOON

Lyndon Arthur won a 12-round unanimous decision over Dec Spelman at the BT Studios in London.

Arthur dominated the action and won by scores of 116-112, 116-113, 119-109.

Arthur, 174 1/2 lbs is 17-0. Spelman, 174 lbs is 16-4.

Nick Ball won a decision over Jerome Campbell in a battle of undefeated super featherweights

In round seven, Ball dropped Cambell with a right hand.

Ball, 129 3/4 lbs lbs won by a 79-72 score and is now 13-0. Campbell, 128 1/2 lbs is 6-1.

Caoimhin Agyarko stopped Jez Smith in round nine of their scheduled 10-round middleweight bout.

Agyarko scored knockdowns in rounds seven and eight, and then dropped Smith again with a body shot in round nine and the fight was stopped at

Agyarko, 159.5 lbs is 7-0 with four knockouts. Smith, 159.5 lbs is 11-2-1.

Brad Strand won a decision over Brett Fidoe in a super bantamweight bout.

Strand, 133 3/4 lbs won by a 40-36 score and is now 4-0. Fidoe, 133 1/4 lbs is 13-63-5.

Lyndon Arthur returns to action tomorrow night in a blockbuster Commonwealth Title clash against a tough challenger in Scunthorpe’s Dec Spelman.

Many have predicted that Spelman will give Arthur the toughest fight of his career, but Lyndon is confident of dispatching his opponent in just four rounds.

The prize? The winner will move forward to a future battle with Light Heavyweight superstar Anthony Yarde.

Rounding out the card will be Belfast banger Caoimhin Agyarko who takes on a step-up fight against Jez Smith, and Liverpool trio Brad Strand, Andrew Cain and Nick Ball will all make their Queensberry promotional debut.

Don’t miss any of the action live tomorrow night on BT Sport 1 at 7pm.

Please find all weigh-in photos here

All weights below:

ANDREW CAIN 9st 4.25lb
ED HARRISON 9st 2.5lb

BRAD STRAND 8st 11.75lb
BRETT FIDOE 8st 11.25lb

CAOIMHIN AGYARKO 11st 5.5lb
JEZ SMITH 11st 5.5lb

NICK BALL 9st 3.75lb
JEROME CAMPBELL 9st 2.5lb

LYNDON ARTHUR 12st 6.5lb
DEC SPELMAN 12st 6.5lb
———-

Arthur vs Spelman is live on BT Sport 1 at 7pm, tomorrow night.

(July 29, 2020) — Lyndon “King” Arthur will make the first defense of Commonwealth light heavyweight crown Friday, July 31, against Dec “Kid Nytro” Spelman at BT Sport Studio in London. The scheduled 12-round battle will headline a closed-door card beginning at 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT live on ESPN+.
 
Arthur (16-0, 12 KOs) won the vacant Commonwealth title live on ESPN+ last October in a barnburner against Emmanuel Anim, knocking down Anim in the fourth round before prevailing via unanimous decision. He was scheduled to fight former world title challenger Anthony Yarde in April, but the COVID-19 pandemic interfered. With an eye on a Yarde fight later this year, Arthur must first get past Spelman (16-3, 8 KOs), a six-year professional looking to rebound from last September’s decision loss to Shakan Pitters. Spelman, a scaffolder by day, is a former English light heavyweight champion.
 
In undercard action on the ESPN+ stream:

• In an eight-round junior lightweight bout featuring a pair of unbeatens, Liverpool native Nick Ball (12-0, 6 KOs) will face Jerome “Stay Ready” Campbell (6-0, 1 KO). Ball, who recently signed with Queensberry Promotions, won a Junior ABA title as an amateur.
   
• Middleweight prospect Caoimhin “Black Thunder” Agyarko (6-0, 3 KOs) will fight Jez Smith (11-1-1, 5 KOs) in a 10-round showdown. As an amateur, Agyarko won a 2018 Irish national championship before turning pro later that year.
   
• Junior featherweight prospect Brad Strand (3-0, 1 KO) will fight noted spoiler Brett Fidoe in a four-round bout. Fidoe has been knocked out only once in an 80-fight pro career that began in 2012.

With just two days until his BT Sport 1 main event against Dec Spelman, ‘King’ Lyndon Arthur has declared himself ready to conquer the United Kingdom’s Light Heavyweight landscape.

“Forget Yarde and Buatsi,” said Lyndon of his two most high-profile rivals. “By the end of the year, i’ll be the guy you’re all talking about.”

Prior to Lockdown, Arthur had been scheduled for a blockbuster bust-up with ‘The Beast’ Anthony Yarde but those plans were scuppered by the Lockdown and subsequent postponement of a planned April 11th card at the O2 Arena.

That fight remains part of Frank Warren’s plans for later this year, but first Lyndon must overcome a tricky defence of his Commonwealth Light Heavyweight title against a tough opponent in Dec Spelman.

Spelman is confident of victory himself and in his first interview since arriving in London for fight week, the Scunthorpe scrapper vowed to take Lyndon’s “head off”.

The ‘King’ isn’t worried about the threat to his crown… or his head.

“Friday it’ll be the same old story. I’ll beat him down and I’ll knock him out. Easy work.

“I keep hearing people say this is my hardest fight but I’m going to make it look like my easiest. Dec Spelman has never been hit as hard as he will be on Friday night.”

Spelman enters the ring boasting an impressive record of 16-3, but the undefeated Mancunian thinks he’ll be able to prove he’s a level above his opponent.

Lyndon is 16-0 with 12KO’s to his name and believes he’ll soon prove himself worthy of his royal nickname.

The ‘King’ said: “Dec’s a good fighter but he doesn’t belong in the ring with me.”

Arthur vs Spelman is live on BT Sport 1 at 7pm, this Friday night.

LIGHT-HEAVYWEIGHT CONTENDER Dec Spelman today arrived at the fighter hotel ahead of a headline clash against British and Commonwealth Champion ‘King’ Lyndon Arthur, vowing to dethrone his highly-favoured opponent.

The pair will clash on Friday night, live on BT Sport 1 at 7pm, and a confident Spelman is clear on what he intends to do: “I want to bash up Lyndon, I want his British and Commonwealth titles… and then I want to fight Anthony Yarde.”

Much has been made of Hall-Of-Fame promoter Frank Warren’s plans to manoeuvre Arthur into position to face Yarde later in the year, but Spelman believes he’s being overlooked and it’ll come back to bite Arthur come Friday night.

“All i’ve heard about since the fight was made is how Lyndon’s going to beat me and then get his big night against Anthony Yarde.

“I’m sick of people looking past me, I’m sick of Lyndon Arthur looking past me. It’s all fun and games for him until he gets in the ring on Friday and realises he should never have taken this fight.”

The Scunthorpe scrapper believes that he can take Arthur to levels he’s not yet seen and then go and give a good account for himself against ‘The Beast’ later in 2020.

“I’ve already beaten fighters that would beat Lyndon Arthur. The one time he stepped up he went to war with an unknown Ghanaian.

“Anthony Yarde has nothing that worries me. None of the light heavies do. That’s how good I feel.

“I feel great, I’ve just been grinding through lockdown and I’m ready to take Lyndon’s head off.”

The last time Dec Spelman fought on BT Sport he suffered a razor-thin, close decision loss to Shakan Pitters but Dec reckons viewers shouldn’t read too much into what he considers a sub-par performance.

“BT Sport viewers didn’t see the best of me last time out, but I know come Friday it’ll be the best version of Dec Spelman that knocks out Lyndon Arthur.”

Live coverage on BT Sport 1 begins at 7pm on Friday.

LYNDON ARTHUR is focused on knocking out Dec Spelman before getting to grips with Anthony Yarde.

The Mancunian makes the first defence of his Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight championship against Spelman (16-3, 8KOs) on Friday July 31 In the third instalment of Frank Warren’s summer series.

Scunthorpe’s Spelman is one of the toughest 12st 7lb men in Britain and it will be a big ask for Arthur (16-0, 12KOs) to end his challenge inside 12 rounds.

Arthur, 29, hasn’t boxed since last October when he claimed his title by outpointing Ghana’s Emmanuel Anim, who he floored in round four.

Lyndon said: “Dec might have lost a couple of fights, but he leaves it in there and is a tough, come forward fighter, can take a shot and could be in there for the long haul.

“He is rock solid, but he hasn’t been hit off me. He hasn’t been in with anyone who hits as hard as I do. I am looking to knock him out.

“The Anim fight ticked so many boxes for me. I know I am fit and can do 12 rounds without a problem.

“Anyone I had hit before that fight hadn’t got up, but him getting up and pushing me for 12 rounds was a good experience.

“It was nice to get in there with someone who can give me a good fight after being hurt. I adapted well to that situation.

“If I drop Dec and he gets up and pushes me 12 rounds there won’t be any shock on my part this time.

“Boxing behind closed doors will be like an intense spar with little gloves on, trying to knock each other out.”

Arthur had been due to face Yarde this month in a mouthwatering clash, but the coronavirus crisis has forced a delay.

“Not to fight Yarde in July was initially a blow.” said Arthur.

“I have not fought since October last year so it will be good to get out before the Yarde fight.”

Spelman, 28, won the English title last May when he defeated Kirk Garvey, but Shakan Pitters snatched the crown from him back in September.

He knows this a chance to wreck Arthur’s date with Yarde and book himself that fight later this year.

“The chance of fighting Yarde is driving me on massively,” roared Spelman who combines boxing with his day job as a scaffolder.

“Lyndon has the Yarde fight hanging over him, but if I win then I could get that fight and make life-changing money.

“Lyndon has power, but he is also elusive. I am not stupid enough to think I can outbox him.

“I have got to get in his face, rough him up, use my strength. I can whack a bit as well.

“He knows what I am going to do. I am going to meet him in the middle and we will see who comes on top. This fight is a potential banana skin for him.”

On the same bill at BT Sports studio Belfast’s Caoimhin Agyarko (6-0, 3KOs) will get the chance to show his talents as chief support in his first ten-rounder.

Liverpool trio Nick Ball (12-0, 6KOs), Andrew Cain (5-0, 5KOs) and Brad Strand (3-0, 1KO) are all in action, as Ball takes on Jerome Cambell (6-0, 1KO) in a Super-Featherweight clash and Strand tackles Brett Fidoe (13-62-5, 6KO’s) in super-bantam action. Andrew Cain’s opponent will be confirmed shortly.