Hall order for Matthew

Manchester’s Matthew Hall will contest the vacant EU light-middleweight crown against Cedric Vitu at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London on September 24. Tony Bellew’s Commonwealth light-heavyweight defence against Bob Ajisafe headlines this Frank Warren charity show to raise money for DebRA.

Hall, 23-2 (16), is looking to get his career back on track following his eighth round stoppage loss to Anthony Small which saw him relieved of his Commonwealth title a year ago. The 26-year-old subsequently ended his long association with trainer Brian Hughes in preference for joining ex-pro Anthony Farnell’s emerging stable. In the pair’s first outing together, Hall impressed when ending journeyman Tony Randell’s five-fight winning streak in three rounds in May.

Reigning French light-middleweight champion Vitu has only lost once in 29 fights, a 12-round majority points defeat to Hamlet Petrosyan when challenging for the IBF Inter-Continental championship in May 2008. Vitu has since strung together a ten-fight winning streak and has recorded 13 stoppages from his 28 wins.

The winner of Hall-Vitu could be in line to challenge reigning European 11st king, Ryan Rhodes.