Blackwell goes to Germany to spar King Arthur

Nick ‘Bang Bang’ Blackwell will go toe-to-toe with anyone, anywhere – and he’s set to prove it. The 20 year-old from Trowbridge will defend his English middleweight championship against Matt Hainy in front of his challenger’s home crowd at Derby Rugby Club on Saturday, May 28 in what promises to be a terrific clash between all-action scrappers.

Before that, Blackwell has headed off to Germany for world-class sparring with former IBF middleweight champion Arthur Abraham. Blackwell has had just seven professional fights – he won the vacant English belt by outpointing Harry Matthews in a thriller last November – and will be stepping into the ring with an outstanding fighter once rated among the top pound-for-pound punchers on he planet.

Abraham, a muscular, heavy-handed fighter based in Berlin, made eleven defences of his world championship and is currently preparing for his next fight as he rebuilds from his loss to Carl Froch in the ‘Super Six’ tournament.

Blackwell’s manager, PJ Rowson, said: “Nick is going to get the best sparring in the world in Germany. This is a terrific opportunity for him and he can learn so much from sparring a world-class fighter. He’s going to come back from Germany a more experienced, better boxer.” B

lackwell warms up for the first defence of his English belt in Chippenham on Saturday, April 30. Rowson says an international opponent will be brought in to face ‘Bang Bang’ in a six-round fight on the show.