By Terence Dooley

Southport’s Mike Stafford will challenge Jon Lewis Dickinson for the British cruiserweight title at Rainton Meadows Arena on April 19.  Stafford, 11-1 (2), will be taking a big step up in class as Dickinson, 13-2 (3), has been in great form since beating Matty Askin for the English title in April of last year; he has decisioned Shane McPhilbin and David Dolan, both British title wins, since that night and the 26-year-old champion will be confident of beating his 31-year-old challenger.

Stafford, though, will be buoyed by the success of his stablemate Shayne Singleton, who overcame a relative lack of experience to dethrone English light-welterweight titlist Curtis Woodhouse courtesy of a split decision at Manchester’s Bowlers Arena last night.  Karl Ince, who believes that one title begets another in this game, trains both men.

“I am really proud of Shayne for winning the English and we’ve now got Mike Stafford fighting for the British soon, so I’m really happy,” said Ince when speaking to BoxingScene about his stable’s latest title fight in the wake of Singleton’s win.

John Hannen of northeastfightscene.co.uk confirmed the date of the contest earlier today and announced that the fight will take place live on Loaded TV, Sky channel 200, which will give both men the chance to showcase their skills.  Indeed, Dickinson is now a Loaded regular, his compelling win over Dolan was shown live last month and the County Durham-based boxer’s local fans will add plenty of colour to the broadcast.

“This bill was already quality but I’m delighted to add Jon-Lewis Dickinson to it,” said North East-based promoter Phil Jeffries when speaking to www.northeastfightscene.co.uk.  “Jon’s contest against Dave Dolan in February was a real war; the undercard was full of exciting fights and Loaded were delighted with the show and wanted to come back to the North East.

“I’ve been shouting for ages about how much talent there is in this region and I’m really pleased that it’s finally being recognised.  Loaded TV and the fans that come to this show are in for a real treat.  This won’t be an easy fight for Jon; Mike Stafford is a good boxer and will see this as a real opportunity to cause an upset.  I think this will be a terrific battle.”

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