Hosting champ Sandy’s next bout would be a KO
COUNCIL bosses have said it would welcome talks to host a Sandy Ryan boxing fight at Derby Arena should the opportunity become available.
This week WBO welterweight world champion Ryan was officially given the Freedom of Derby at a special council ceremony.
The boxing star became the first woman in history to receive the civic honour and it came just days after she successfully retained her world title by beating Terri Harper in Sheffield.
During the ceremony Ryan told the Local Democracy Reporting Service it was her “goal” to have a fight in Derby in front of her fans at some stage in the future.
Ryan said: “I want to collect more belts and I want to be undisputed (champion). I’d like to fight at both Derby Arena and Pride Park Stadium. It would mean the world to me to do that because coming from Derby and getting the support here is amazing.”
And her well-known boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has also been talking up a potential fight in Derby at either Pride Park Stadium or Derby Arena. At a press conference following Ryan’s victory last weekend, Hearn said: “I mean the big one is the football club – Pride Park Stadium – which is difficult to fill. But there’s also the velodrome (Derby Arena)
– there’s been a show there before I remember a long time ago. “But I think she will do really well in Derby. I think when you go back somewhere where there hasn’t been boxing for a long time, I think people get excited about it in the city – because you’ve (speaking to Ryan) already got the Freedom of Derby, haven’t you?” Derby Arena is owned by Derby City Council and opened for the first time in 2015. It has fixed seating of 1,500 but has the flexibility to have a maximum capacity of 5,000 people inside – according to the Derby Live website.
The council was asked if it would be happy for its velodrome to play host to a potential fight night starring Ryan should the opportunity come knocking.
A city council spokesperson said: “It was great to welcome Sandy to the Council House on Monday to award her the Freedom of the City in recognition of her fantastic achievements
over recent years. She is a real role model for so many young people in Derby.
“We would love to see Sandy fight in the city and would be open to any discussions with her team to try and make this happen. Derby Arena hosts boxing events, with the next being the England Boxing Amateur Nations Rising Stars event in April. This will see the winners become national champions, so hosting an event with a world champion would be a real inspiration for up-andcoming athletes.”
I’d like to fight at both Derby Arena and Pride Park Stadium. It would mean the world to me Sandy Ryan