By Nathan Orr

Jul 26 at the Phones 4U Arena in Manchester is promising to be an action filled night. The highly anticipated rematch between Tyson Fury 22-0 (16 KOs) and Dereck Chisora 20-4 (13 KOs) may be the night’s headline act but it will be supported by a stacked undercard with 14 bouts scheduled at time of writing. And one of the many fighters featuring on the bill, is Sedgefield’s Bradley Saunders 10-0 (8 KOs).

The unbeaten 28 year old may be fairly new to the professional game but is rapidly stamping his authority on the domestic light-welterweight division.

The 2010 Commonwealth Games silver medallist has excelled in his pro career to date, claiming the WBO Inter-Continental belt in the process after a first round stoppage victory over Ville Piispanen last month. Such a victory did wonders in propelling Saunders up to 12th in the WBO rankings, however the emphatic win has also had negative consequences with plausible opponents refusing to sign on the dotted line.  A frustrated Saunders told BoxingScene.com that with less than six days before his scheduled bout he is still without an opponent.

“Unfortunately I still don’t have an opponent for the bill. There has been a lot of people who have been offered the fight, yet no one has taken it. I’m now at a turning point in my career, I don’t need to be fed cannon fodder and everyone knows that.

“I want someone who is going to test me and get people talking. I wouldn’t want to rob the fans by seeing me put in with anything less than a worthy opponent.”

Saunders is still only fresh to the professional game having featured in less than a dozen contests. With such a rapid rise to the higher echelons of the British light welterweight division, it has left Saunders in a position to possibly face his toughest domestic rivals at a very early stage in his career. 

A potentially fierce competitor for Saunders is English champion, Tyrone Nurse. Earlier in the year both boxers were mandated to face off in a British title eliminator but the bout never materialised. Saunders insists that he would have no qualms in facing the Huddersfield man in the future.

“I would happily fight Tyrone Nurse every morning before breakfast, he does not bother me in the slightest. He and his fans can say whatever they want, it’s all hearsay. I believe I am the best fighter in Britain at light welterweight.

“That fight didn’t happen because I have been pushed towards the WBO route. Now that I am ranked by the WBO, it means that I can fight for the European title sooner rather than later. Frank Warren knows what he’s doing with me and I have full faith that whatever he says is best for me.”

Bradley Saunders would like to thank all of his team at MGM Marbella, while also giving appreciation to the efforts of Frank and Francis Warren. Finally Saunders appreciates the continued support of ESRG taxation.