Boxing
Archie Sharp begins comeback trail against Maxi Hughes
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Archie Sharp will fight Maxi Hughes tonight at the Keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster on the Terri Harper vs Natalie Zimmermann undercard.
Sharp, 25-1 (9), suffered his first defeat as a professional against Ryan Garner in July last year, losing via unanimous decision. He will come back at lightweight, having struggled with the super featherweight limit of 130lbs.
The London-based fighter was originally scheduled to fight Liam Dillon in January but he was forced to withdraw due to illness.
Now fighting Hughes, 28-7-2 (6), Sharp is taking a step up in terms of experience as his opponent has faced William Zepeda and George Kambosos Jr, proving he can share the ring with world title level fighters – something Sharp is yet to do.
Golden Boy / Cris Esqueda
Despite being up for the Dillon fight, Sharp believes fighting Hughes is actually more beneficial for his career coming back after a loss.
Sharp told the BoxHard Podcast: “I’ve got a different fight and a different style now. So, we will just have to adapt. This is a better fight for me in regard to progressing my career, Maxi Hughes is a former [IBO] world champion – I’m a big fan of Maxi Hughes. I believe this will bring the best Archie Sharp.”
With the WBC silver lightweight title on the line, whoever wins this fight will be in the conversation for a shot at whoever wins between William Zepeda and Shakur Stevenson in July.
Sharp has had eyes on Stevenson for some time, with the two circling each other in the super-featherweight division. He says he is ready to finally take that fight if he beats Hughes.
He told Seconds Out: “I overstayed at 130lbs. My name with Shakur Stevenson has been back-and-forth for a very long time at 130lbs, and then he came to 135lbs. Then all of a sudden, the WBC silver has been put on the line. Who’s the WBC champion? Shakur Stevenson, so here we go. I’ll go out and beat Maxi Hughes, and then we just pick up from where we left off with me and Shakur.”
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