BOXING: ‘Massive night’ as St Ives fighter Karl Wheeler bids to clinch title shot

St Ives Boxing Academy supremo Steve Whitwell is backing Karl Wheeler to earn the biggest fight of his career tomorrow night.

Cruiserweight Wheeler faces Ryan Crawford at the York Hall, London, in the final of the Fight Cup – a competition which carries a Southern Area title shot for the winner.

And that is the long-standing goal for the 34-year-old from Peterborough, who won British and International Challenge titles earlier this year before beating Ossie Jervier on points in his Fight Cup semi-final a month ago.

Whitwell said: “Karl is vastly more experienced than Crawford and I expect him to put that to good use on Saturday night.

“Don’t get me wrong, it will be a tough fight and Karl will have to be at his best, but I expect either a stoppage or a wide points decision.

“It is a massive night for Karl as he has got back into a similar position to where he was two years ago before he suffered a knee injury.

“He has had to work his way back into title contention the hard way and hopefully everything will go to plan as he really deserves a big championship fight next year.”

London-based Crawford has won two of his four professional outings while Wheeler boasts a record of 13 successes from 20 outings in a career which featured a nine-year break between 2005 and 2014.

The Southern Area strap is currently held by Isaac Chamberlain.