WBO World Title showdown rescheduled following positive COVID-19 test

Savannah Marshall and Hannah Rankin will contest the vacant WBO Middleweight World Title on the undercard of Oleksandr Usyk vs. Derek Chisora on Saturday October 31, live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK and DAZN in the US.

The pair were scheduled to meet on the Lewis Ritson vs. Miguel Vazquez show in Peterborough on Saturday October 17 but Marshall’s trainer Peter Fury returned a positive COVID-19 test, resulting in the fight being postponed in line with the British Boxing Board of Control rules.

“Honestly it has been a dream to have this fight rescheduled so quickly,” said Marshall. “After the past week I’ve just been overjoyed with the news. I couldn’t have asked for a better or bigger platform than on the Usyk vs. Chisora bill.

“It was frustrating that the fight fell through, but it’s one of those things. There was nothing I could have done about it. Peter is okay which is the main thing.

“My training won’t change and will just be like any other training routine 10 days out from a fight. Nothing will change. It hasn’t got more personal for me, as me and Rankin are just two girls that can’t wait for a dust up with each other.”

“It is great that the fight has been rescheduled so soon, thank you to Eddie Hearn and Matchroom for sorting it all out,” said Rankin. “Nothing changes for me. I will be crowned WBO Middleweight World Champion on October 31.”

Adam Smith, Head of Boxing Development at Sky Sports, said: “It’s fantastic news that Savannah Marshall’s World Title fight with Hannah Rankin has been swiftly rescheduled for the Usyk-Chisora bill, which is fast becoming an unmissable night of action.

“Women’s boxing has never been stronger, with Ellie Scotney showcasing her talent last weekend, and now we can look forward to an all-British battle between Marshall and Rankin, with the WBO Middleweight belt at stake. Savannah, a former Sky Scholar, has those polished amateur skills but Rankin has greater professional experience – it’s an enthralling encounter.

“Lee Selby is also targeting another World Title shot on a stacked undercard, which also features Tommy McCarthy’s European Title fight, before Usyk and Chisora take centre stage, in what promises to be a Heavyweight classic!”

Marshall vs. Rankin is part of a huge night of boxing as pound-for-pound star Oleksandr Usyk (17-0, 13 KOs) faces his first real Heavyweight test in Derek Chisora (32-9, 23 KOs), Lee Selby (28-2, 9 KOs) and George Kambosos Jr (18-0, 10 KOs) square off in a Final Eliminator for the IBF Lightweight World Title, Heavyweight fan favourite Dave Allen (18-5-2, 15 KOs) returns to action, Belfast’s Tommy McCarthy (16-2, 8 KOs) meets Belgium’s Bilal Laggoune (25-1-2, 14 KOs) for the vacant European Cruiserweight Title and Amy Timlin (4-0) faces off with Carly Skelly (3-0) for the vacant Commonwealth Super-Bantamweight Title.

Glaswegian motivated for England vs. Scotland clash

Hannah Rankin has warned Savannah Marshall that she is in for a rude awakening if she is overlooking their WBO Middleweight World Title clash with one eye on a future showdown with her old amateur foe Claressa Shields.

Hartlepool’s Marshall (8-0, 6 KOs) remains the only fighter to have inflicted a ring defeat on three-division World Champion Shields. ‘The Silent Assassin’ outpointed America’s ‘T-Rex’ in China en route to cementing herself as Britain’s first ever female amateur World Champion in 2012.

Talk of a ‘rematch’ between the rivals has been building ever since Marshall signed promotional terms with Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing in August last year, but Rankin – who lost to Shields in 2018 – is planning on ripping up the script by taking the WBO crown back to Glasgow with her.

“All we ever hear about is that fight,” said Rankin. “The amateur circuit is nothing like the professional ranks. Claressa has gone on to do amazing things. She’s one of the best female fighters we are going to see in this generation. To just talk about an amateur win over her is nothing as far as I’m concerned.

“If she’s concentrating on that fight and she’s looking past me then she’s in for a huge shock. She’s not getting past me on October 17th. That World Title is coming home with me and I don’t know where she’s going to go from there.”

Rankin (9-4, 2 KOs), a former IBO Super-Welterweight World Champion, has the edge in experience over Marshall in the pro ranks, and the 30-year-old believes her World Championship pedigree will be the difference when they clash in Peterborough this Saturday.

“I’m not going to try something new,” added Rankin. “I’ve been there before and I know how my body is going to feel. I know how I react at championship distance as a Middleweight fighter. It’s going to be a bit of a disadvantage for her. She’s never made Middleweight, so she’s got to come down to make that weight first of all on the scales.

“I’m sure she will, her and Peter Fury are very professional. It’s how she’s going to feel when she makes that weight, we’re in the ring and we’re heading into the later rounds. How is her body going to hold up to that championship distance?

“She’s not had much experience fighting anyone of a high level really. She hasn’t fought anyone actually at her weight. A lot of the girls have stepped up to fight her at her weight. This is going to be the first time she’s faced someone who’s had a full camp. I’m coming to win and I’m going home with that belt. It’s going to be a brand-new experience for her.”

Marshall vs. Rankin is part of a huge night of boxing at the East of England Arena in Peterborough, Geordie favourite Lewis Ritson (20-1, 12 KOs) takes on former long-reigning World Champion Miguel Vazquez (42-9, 16 KOs), 2016 Rio Olympian Qais Ashfaq (8-0, 3 KOs) meets Salford’s Marc Leach (14-1-1, 3 KOs) in a Final Eliminator for the British Super-Bantamweight Title, Joe ‘Benwell Bomber’ Laws (9-0, 5 KOs) takes on Norwich’s Rylan Charlton (5-0-1, 2 KOs) over six rounds at Super-Lightweight, West Rainton’s Thomas Patrick Ward (29-0, 4 KOs) fights Thomas Essomba (10-6, 4 KOs) over ten rounds at Super-Bantamweight and Catford’s Ellie Scotney makes her professional debut against Bec Connolly (3-7) at Featherweight.

On Saturday October 17, Hartlepool’s Savannah Marshall meets Glasgow’s former World Champion Hannah Rankin for the vacant WBO Middleweight World Title at Newcastle Arena, Tyne and Wear, United Kingdom.

“I’m so happy that I have a fight date set in stone,” said Marshall. “It’s been a while, but I’m excited to be back in the ring. Hannah Rankin is a former IBO World Champion, so I’m expecting a tough hard fight against her, but it’s one that I’m looking forward to it.

“It’s been a long road for me, so it would be incredible to become World Champion. It’s crazy to think I was meant to be fighting for a World Title in April at Light-Heavyweight, and this is now at Middleweight, but that’s female boxing, and you have to take these opportunities when they come.”

“This fight has been in the back of my mind since it was first talked about in February,” said Rankin. “I have proven time and time again; I’m willing to fight anyone, anywhere, anytime. That’s the foundation my career has been built on.

“For this fight, I’ll be stepping up to Middleweight, and I’m relishing the chance to become a two-time two-weight World Champion having already held the IBO Super-Welterweight Title.

“With regards to Savannah, I’m excited for my chance to end the hype; as a professional, she’s yet to be tested. On October 17, I will be crowned WBO World Middleweight Champion, and I’ll be bringing that title back to Scotland. Scotland vs. England is always a fun clash in any sport!