VIP Boxing - BOLTON TITLE TILT FOR BLACKPOOL’S JACK

Blackpool’s British champion Brian Rose may be the UK’s top light-middleweight, but another Fylde Coast fighter is hot on his heels.

Jack Arnfield gets his first shot at title glory, on a huge bill of North West boxing, when he clashes with Surrey’s Gary Boulden for the British Masters crown at Bolton’s Reebok Stadium on March 9.

Boulden, with just five defeats in 14 bouts, won’t be an easy night’s work for Arnfield, but the 23-year-old is convinced that this will be the start of a great 2013.

“I’ve seen a couple of videos and he [Boulden) is always fit and strong,” assessed Jack, who is undefeated in 15 with four KOs.

“He’s been 10 rounds with [British middleweight champion] Billy Joe Saunders so he’s tough and isn’t just going to fall over, but I’m confident I’ll outbox him and if the stoppage comes I’ll go for it.

“I’m massively excited and can’t wait. It’s my first time at the top of the bill; my first title fight and it’s in a good venue so it’s a great platform to get a good win.

“Anyone who’s put in front of me I’m confident I’ll beat at the moment. It’s all going good and hopefully this’ll be a big year for me.”

Jack, a former junior ABA winner and England international, has huge respect for ‘The Lion’, Rose.

The pair train together under the tutelage of renowned coach Bobby Rimmer and Arnfield has been delighted at his stable-mate’s rise to the top.

Now, with Brian potentially moving on to bigger things after winning the Lonsdale Belt outright, Jack is eyeing up pole position and wants to be the next‘Seasider’ with the British belt around his waist.

“I’d take the English [title shot] tomorrow if it was offered to me, I’d snap it up straight away. There are a lot of fighters at the top who are eye-catching, and I’d be willing to fight any of them.

“Obviously Brian’s the number one in Britain, he’s proved himself and everyone that’s been put in front of him he’s out-boxed and beaten well.

“I’ve trained with Brian since we were amateurs, we’ve come through the pro ranks together and he’s done really well, and I’d love to follow in his footsteps and get that British title.”

“This show is a huge card and is going to be a great day of professional boxing for fans in the North West," stated promoter Steve Wood.

"At the moment we've got 15 fights on with guys from right across the region and they are all talented prospects.

“Most of the lads sell really well too which means the venue will be packed and a great atmosphere is guaranteed, and I would advise fans to get their tickets early so as not to miss out.

"We really do think Jack Arnfield can emulate his gym mate Brian Rose and go on and win a British title, but he's in for one of his toughest tests to date against Gary Boulden who we know is a really tough kid. It's going to be a real scrap but hopefully Jack will come through and we can push him onto a bigger title challenge immediately."

VIP Promotions’ ‘Road to Glory’, at Bolton’s Reebok Stadium on March 9, will be headlined by Jack Arnfield versus Gary Boulden for the British Masters light-middleweight title.

The stacked, quality undercard will feature fighters from every corner of the North West, including Middleton’s ****** Tansey; Liverpool’s Ryan Farrag; Preston’s Dean Halsall and Jack Catterall; Blackburn’s Kurt Grieve and Shaheed Ali; Denton’s Lyndon‘Lights Out’ Newman and Callum Cooke; Bolton’s Daniel ‘The Phantom’ Watsonand Paul Drago; Merseyside’s Wayne Adeniyi; Cumbria’s Rick Skelton; Darwen’s Stevie Taylor, and Lancaster’s Tomi Tatham.

Tickets, priced at £30 (General) and £50 (Ringside) are available from all boxers or at www.vipbe.co.uk

Keep updated on VIP Promotions’ news by visiting www.vipboxing.com or follow on Twitter @vipboxing. Currently, you can also watch free fights at www.vipboxing.tv and on the VIP YouTube channel.