Haye vs Bellew: Frank Buglioni on O2 card after signing for Matchroom
Tuesday 21 February 2017 14:33, UK
Frank Buglioni has joined Matchroom and will be defending his British light-heavyweight title on the undercard of David Haye vs Tony Bellew.
The 'Wise Guy' will take on Ricky Summers before the bitter heavyweight battle on Saturday, March 4, live on Sky Sports Box Office.
Buglioni (19-2-1-KO15) ripped the British title from Hosea Burton in Manchester in December on the night Anthony Joshua blew Eric Molina away, and is delighted to join Eddie Hearn's growing stable.
"I wanted to get the British title and prove to myself and the fans that I was championship material and could put on a performance," he said.
"I was very impressed with the whole set-up for the Burton fight with Sky Sports, the build-up was great and as soon as the offer came from Eddie I jumped at it as Matchroom and Sky Sports are putting on great shows all year round, this is the platform to be on.
I was very impressed with the whole set up for the Burton fight with Sky Sports, the build-up was great and as soon as the offer came from Eddie I jumped at it as Matchroom and Sky Sports are putting on great shows all year round, this is the platform to be on
"I've worked hard to get the British title and I want to win it outright, I don't think that it's been done for over 25 years in my division, so I really want to achieve that. I'm looking to get this one out of the way and look for two more defences to make that happen.
"There's no such thing as an easy British title defence as anyone that fights for the title is going to give it everything they've got. It's one of the best belts out there and it means so much to win it - Hosea and I proved back in December just how much fighters give in order to land it."
Buglioni has spent most of his career at super-middleweight and challenged WBA regular world champion Fedor Chudinov in September 2015.
The Enfield man moved straight up to light-heavyweight on his return and the O2 fight with unbeaten Summers (12-0-KO5) will be his third at the weight and he has one eye on another crack at winning a world title.
"The immediate aim is to get the belt for keeps but of course, if European or world title shots present themselves, that's something the team will consider and look at the options," he said.
"I'm thrilled to be on the card, the main event is one that I'm really looking forward to. I rate Tony Bellew a lot, he's improved massively throughout his career, he was told he wasn't British, European or world level and he's proved all the doubters wrong.
"David's got the experience and he's a massive puncher, so it's going to be explosive."
Buglioni's defence against Summers has been added to a busy bill before the Haye vs Bellew brawl, with Ohara Davies defending his WBC Silver super-lightweight title against Merseyside favourite Derry Mathews and Sam Eggington facing the biggest night of his career against former two-weight world champion Paulie Malignaggi.
The sensational Katie Taylor will be making her debut at The O2 in her third fight since turning professional, with more names added to the bumper bill.
