Lerrone Richards vs Tommy Langford Commonwealth clash confirmed
Unbeaten southpaw Lerrone Richards (11-0, 3KOs) will face former British and Commonwealth middleweight champion Tommy Langford (21-3, 6KOs) for the vacant Commonwealth and WBO International super-middleweight titles on April 27 at the SSE Arena, Wembley, live on BT Sport.
‘Sniper The Boss’ has only fought three fighters with winning records during his five-year pro career, picking up his first title in his second to last bout against Rhys Pagan (14-4) in 2017 in the form of the WBO European super-middleweight strap.
Trained by Alan Smith at the iBox Gym in Bromley, the 26-year-old's last fight was in March 2018, meaning he would have been inactive for an entire year when he steps through the ropes to meet Langford, who has fought 30 rounds within that time.
'Baggies Bomber' Langford has spent the last decade of his punching career – spanning amateur and pro – at middleweight, but made the step up to 168lbs against Frenchman Baptiste Castegnaro (8-16) on March 9 at the Walsall Town Hall on a BCB Promotions event, titled 'Pride of Midlands'. Langford didn’t have it all his own way against the tough 28-year-old from southwest France with the six-round super-middleweight contest scored at 58-56 to the 29-year-old from Birmingham.
Back to back defeats to local rival Jason Welborn prompted the move up in weight for the former WBO #2, who revealed that he had been struggling to maintain his strength at 160lbs for much of his pro career.
Since stepping up to the division where his main sparring partner Callum Smith reigns supreme, he has been very vocal of his intentions to become a two-weight British and Commonwealth champion, and makes the first step forward towards realising that goal in his 25th contest against Richards.
New Malden resident Richards will appear in the home corner, having been signed to Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions since August 2016 when he was just 4-0 as a pro. Langford was previously signed to the same Hall of Fame promoter during 2014-2016, but is now with Errol Johnson of BCB Promotions.
The winner of this contest will likely face British super-middleweight champion Zach Parker (17-0, 11KOs) next.
Unbeaten heavyweight Daniel Dubois (10-0, 9KOs) headlines the packed event against WBO No.14 ranked Richard Lartey (14-1, 11KOs) which also features WBO #1 Jack Catterall (23-0, 12KOs) in a 10-round contest before he goes on to face world champion Maurice Hooker later this year as mandatory challenger; WBO European super-flyweight champion Sunny Edwards (10-0, 3KOs); exciting Fulham super-middleweight Zak Chelli (6-0, 3KOs) in his first title fight against Jimmy Smith (7-1) for the Southern Area championship; WBO European super-featherweight champion Archie Sharp (14-0, 7KOs), 23 from Welling; exciting unbeaten super-lightweight prospect Alfie Price (4-0) from Hoddesdon; rangy super-welterweight talent Hamzah Sheeraz (7-0, 3KOs); hard-hitting middleweight and Peacock Gym product Denzel Bentley (9-0, 8KOs); Belfast amateur middleweight star Caoimhin Agyarko (2-0); Ilford super-middleweight star Umar Sadiq (4-1) looking to rebuild after his first career loss to the aforementioned Chelli; Tunde Ajayi-trained London lightweight Bilal Ali (1-0); with Queensberry Promotions debuts for unbeaten Bermondsey welterweight Chris Kongo (10-0, 6KOs) and Sheffield middleweight Shakiel Thompson (2-0) – with Thompson being tipped by sparring partner Billy Joe Saunders as a star for the future.
Tickets priced at £40, £50, £75, £100 and £150 on sale now at tommylangford.com
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Tommy Langford would like to thank his sponsors Broadway Casino & Shaftesbury Casino; UK Display Stands; JS Wright & Co Ltd; HÖRFA; Strategy Plus; CNP Professional; Atlas Pain Relief; Ringside UK and Agent Tim Rickson