Tuesday 8 March 2016 10:17, UK
Shawn Porter will box in an exhibition bout following the postponement of his clash with world champion Keith Thurman.
Porter (26-1-1-KO16) was due to take on Thurman (26-0-KO22) on March 12 only for the WBA world welterweight champion to withdraw due to minor injuries sustained in a car accident.
Instead, Porter will face Lanardo Tyner (30-10-2-KO19) in an exhibition fight at his Las Vegas gym on the same night.
He said: "When I found out about March 12 not happening because of what happened to Keith, I tried to move forward to fight someone else. But given the level of that fight with Keith, there wasn't anything for me really. So my dad and I decided to do this exhibition.
We were getting off a plane in Big Bear for training camp when we heard that Keith had been injured and couldn't fight on March 12.
"I'm not getting paid. This is 100 percent for anybody out there who loves to see me compete and perform. Lanardo Tyner is a veteran who has fought almost everybody and he'll provide good excitement. We won't be going through the motions. This is real."
Porter's father and trainer, Ken Porter, added: "We're doing the exhibition because Shawn was so focused on fighting Keith Thurman that we wanted to keep him focused until we can determine when they'll be boxing again.
"We were getting off a plane in Big Bear for training camp when we heard that Keith had been injured and couldn't fight on March 12. We continued to spar and train. We figured the only way we could keep that focus was to have someone push Shawn for 12 rounds or however long it lasts."
Porter and Tyner will wear headgear and use 16-oz gloves.
