Veteran Pickering handed latest title chance

Esham Pickering has been paired with Ireland’s Patrick Hyland for the vacant EU featherweight crown (sister title to the EBU). The European Boxing Union has set a deadline of 26 April for purse bids to be submitted to its Rome offices.

The 33-year-old Pickering hasn’t fought since being knocked out in the third round by Oleg Yefimovych in an unsuccessful challenge for the European featherweight title in March. The Newark stylist, 34-9 (13), previously held the British, Commonwealth and European crowns down at super-bantam during an impressive eight-fight winning spell between 2003 and 2005 but is now well past his prime having lost three of his last four.

The unbeaten Hyland, 19-0 (10), is relatively untested to date but registered a useful seventh round stoppage over London-based Mickey Coveney in defence of his Irish featherweight title in February.

The likelihood is that Pickering will have to travel to Dublin for his latest title assignment, the scene of his unanimous points defeat to the now retired Bernard Dunne in November 2006.