Bradley Skeete will risk his undefeated record when he faces Frankie Gavin for the British and Commonwealth welterweight titles at the Excel Arena tomorrow night.
The 12-round domestic dust-up is part of a stacked bill which includes the grudge match between Billy Joe Saunders and Chris Eubank Jr as well as heavyweights Tyson Fury and Dereck Chisora fighting in the main event.
Gavin poses Skeete’s biggest threat to date as the defending British champion and an experienced operator at professional and amateur level, winning gold at both the Commonwealth Games and the World Championships – the first Brit to ever do so.
Skeete will enter the ring off the back of two consecutive stoppage victories over the unheralded Steven Pearce and Leandro Mendes Pinto but concedes the edge in experience.
Gavin has beaten an undefeated domestic rival before in the form of Denton Vassell and will be looking to continue his comeback after dropping a split decision to Leonard Bundu in August.
Skeete, 27, will not be defending his WBA inter-continental title but victory over Gavin will propel him up the rankings of a division deep in talent, with British stars Kell Brook and Amir Khan operating at its top level.
To do that, however, Skeete must outwork an opponent who has fought a full 12 rounds six times while he himself has done it just once.
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