LIMERICK’s Andy Lee will take on former European Champion and two time World Title Challenger Mamadou Thiam at the Yanjing Fight Night in the UL Arena on Saturday May 15 next.
At 38, many might consider the Senegalese born fighter past it but the fearsome big puncher will bring his 43 KO wins to Limerick with the aim of stretching that to 44 to derail Lee’s European and World title ambitions.
On the world stage, Kelly Pavlik lost his title after he was badly cut twice by Argentine, Sergio Gabriel Martinez in a thumping battle that now possible pushes the likes of Lee, Duddy and Macklin further down the contenders list. However, Lee will be aiming to take a step closer to a European title bout with Darren Barker should he overcome the ageing Senegalese bruiser. However, with 207 rounds of boxing under his belt and having hit the canvass hard as a result of seven knockouts, Thiam knows a thing or two about hitting and being hit making him a very decent test for Lee in his title aspirations.
Promoter Brian Peters believes that Thiam could prove to be the final hurdle saying; “If Andy can get past Thiam, then I believe that his next fight should be for the European title and I’d be very confident of bringing that fight to Limerick,” revealed Peters.
“Thiam cannot be overlooked though, he has a 94% KO ratio which is phenomenal and he also has all that top level experience so he is a real dangerman,” said Peters. “He is one of those guys who throws every punch with bad intentions. His record speaks for itself, he’s a veteran of 54 fights and 50 of those have ended inside the distance so it’s safe to say that this is a guy who rarely relies on the judges.
The undercard for the Yanjing Fight Night has also been strengthened with the news that World and European Champion Katie Taylor will also feature in an international amateur contest at the University sports Arena as both the professional and amateur codes work hand in hand on a pro-am event.
Tickets for the Yanjing Fight Night priced €30, €40, €50, €60, €75 and €100 are available from Ticketmaster (phone 0818 719 300 or visit ticketmaster.ie) and all usual outlets.
