Gary Cornish's British title fight rescheduled for October
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GARY Cornish will have his chance at the British heavyweight title after his fight with Sam Sexton was rescheduled for October 6.
The original bout set for May was cancelled after Sexton complained of a back injury but promoters MTK Scotland have now secured the fight on their own Capital Collision show in Edinburgh.
It will form part of a bumper bill at the Meadowbank Arena, with Cornish’s stablemate and sparring partner Stephen Simmons also fighting for the British cruiserweight title against Matty Askin.
The purse bid for the May event had been won by Paul Graham and his Prospect Boxing promotion, being pencilled in for the Ravenscraig Regional Sports Centre.
However, Sexton’s withdrawal prompted Graham to scrap the entire card.
MTK promoter and Cornish’s manager Sam Kynoch was able to negotiate with Graham to get the fight on their bill, which could be a historic night for Scottish boxing.
Invernessian Cornish, who gave up his job as a joiner to go full-time at the end of last year, could become the first Scot to win the British title.
“Gary’s had an up and down time of it, with the Sexton fight getting cancelled and having his car accident, but I’ve said to him not to lose sight of the fact he’s still 36 minutes or less away from winning the Lonsdale belt,” said Kynoch. “I’m sure it’ll give him a real spring in his step when he gets back into the gym.”
Cornish’s summer has been an eventful one. A month after the original Sexton fight was due to take place, he and his wife Lauren were involved in a car accident on the A9, which both thankfully walked away from.
Kynoch said there are no ill effects from it and was the best thing for the Highlander to take some time off over the summer months.
“He was lucky injury-wise that there was nothing major or long-term,” added Kynoch. “I saw a picture of the car afterwards and he’s pretty lucky to escape as he did.
“It’s just one of those things – it’s not been a great time for him. He needed some time away to recharge his battereies and he can now focus everything on October 6.”
A press conference is expected to be scheduled early next week and Cornish is expected to come up to the Highland capital and drum up interest in the fight.
He fought against Pole Kamil Sokolowski in his MTK debut in February but after the Sexton fight was postponed, he took the summer off to get married and go on honeymoon.
The Merkinch heavyweight has a record of 24-1, with his one defeat coming against Anthony Joshua in 2015. Sexton is 23-3 and has fought for the British title before.
For more information or to enquire about tickets for the event, contact Gary via his Facebook page.
Meanwhile, fellow Inverness boxer Andrew Mackay has announced his rematch for the Scottish lightweight title against Marek Laskowski has been scheduled for September 21 at the Radisson Blu in Glasgow. The fight was ruled a draw when the pair last met in June.
“This fight promises fireworks after the 10-round war we had back in June, but I’ve been back working hard with my coach behind the scenes since the disappointment of the last fight to ensure I don’t leave the outcome in the hands of the judges,” said Mackay. “Come fight night, I will be fully prepared for whatever it takes but that new belt will finally be coming home with me.”
“As always, your support is second to none and I hope you can all make the journey once again as there is nothing I would like more than to share this special night with you all after all the controversy we have overcome to date.”
Tickets cost £100 and that includes a five-course meal with guest speakers to be announced.
For more information or to enquire about tickets for the event, contact Gary via his Facebook page.
