Boxing: Hare looks for route to Sinclair

It is not uncommon in boxing for journeyman fighters to take a job each month but it is less common for champions like James Hare to fight on such a regular basis.

Tomorrow night at the Everton Park Sports Centre, Hare will defend his Commonwealth welterweight title for the second time in seven weeks when he meets Jamaica's Earl Foskin in a late replacement main event.

The main event was meant to be Liverpool's David Burke making a difficult but intriguing Commonwealth lightweight defence against Ghana's James Armah. However, Armah missed the plane and therefore would have arrived in Britain too late to satisfy the British Boxing Board of Control's stringent rules on overseas fighters.

The Hare and Foskin fight should prove just as interesting as little is known about the Jamaican and Hare often lets himself become involved in the type of brawls that give trainers nightmares.

If Hare can extend his unbeaten record to 25 fights then it will surely be time for him to challenge Belfast's Neil Sinclair for the British title in what would be the type of fight that could lure back boxing's vanishing fans. If Hare can stay calm, then probably he will know too much for Foskin.

It will be a busy weekend for boxing in Liverpool. Tonight Peter Culshaw will attempt to make a bit of history by winning the vacant World Boxing Federation super-flyweight title when he meets South Africa's Ncedo Cecane at the Olympia.

Culshaw previously held the World Boxing Union flyweight title and he would become the first boxer from Liverpool to win world championships at two different weights if he beat Cecane. The fight with Cecane was hastily organised at the new weight for Culshaw when it was obvious that Damaen Kelly, from Belfast, was not interested in a showdown at flyweight.

* The world flyweight champion, Ricardo Lopez, has announced his retirement. The 35-year-old Mexican – undefeated in 52 professional fights and world champion for 12 years – has given up his International Boxing Federation belt. He now joins Rocky Marciano as the only two world champions in history to retire undefeated.