Suffolk's British heavyweight champion Fabio Wardley was pictured with his promoter Eddie Hearn at Portman Road earlier today - so could he be about to fight at Ipswich Town's famous stadium?
Wardley and Hearn were pictured on the hallowed turf with Ipswich Town CEO Mark Ashton, sending social media into a frenzy about the potential for the history-making Suffolk star to realise a dream and fight at Portman Road.
It's something British and WBA Continental champion Wardley (16-0, 15KO) has long spoken about wanting to do.
He told us back in 2019: "I would love to fight at Portman Road one day.
"It's something that me and my family and coaches have spoken about, and it's something that I'd love to do.
"It's not a million miles off either - you see fighters boxing in football stadiums quite a lot these days."
Ashton, too, has been open about the possibility.
Big fights = big ideas! 🧠 https://t.co/qkQMZD6qLu
— Fabio Wardley (@Fabio_Wardley) April 17, 2023
He told the recent fan forum: "Fabio and I have discussed this several times. We’ve said that we’re going to try to line up a conversation with myself and Eddie Hearn to discuss that.
“It’s certainly a desire of Fabio’s and I think if he’s going to fight in Ipswich, there’s only one place for him and that’s here, which he very much sees as home.
“We’re very proud of him, he also is on an upward trajectory, we’re delighted to sponsor him along with other local businesses and we’re very proud of what he’s doing in the heavyweight division, and we’d love to have him here at Portman Road.
“He’s a great guy and a great ambassador for this football club and someone who I think we should as a football club embrace and be very, very proud of.”
So, could a fight at Portman Road be close?
Well, we understand that today's meeting was the first step in exploring the possibility - but there are a lot of hurdles to be cleared before it happens.
Wardley, a big Town fan and former Academy player, has been ordered to defend his British title against Olympic bronze medalist Frazer Clarke by the British Boxing Board of Control.
That fight is going to purse bids - where promoters make their offers for the right to stage the fight - on May 10.
That's the first hurdle to be cleared - will Hearn win that bid?
The other big issue is logistics. Town are installing a new, state-of-the-art pitch this summer, spending a lot of money on what will be a significant upgrade and major project at Portman Road.
It seems very unlikely that they'd then contemplate covering it and putting a boxing ring on the new surface, plus invite thousands of fans to sit/walk on it too.
So a summer fight seems a long shot, but an autumn date could be a possibility - depending on how the new pitch is bedding in.
Aside from those concerns, there are also questions to be answered around potential ticket sales - what is demand likely to be? - and weather problems. You rarely see stadium fights in the UK outside of the summer months unless there is a roof which can be closed.
But there is certainly a desire to make Wardley's dream come true, and the Clarke fight could be when it happens.
Imagine the scenes. Ipswich Town in the Championship. Wardley walking to the ring wearing the Town badge, in front of thousands of fans singing his name, with Portman Road a sea of blue and white.
What a night it would be. Watch this space.
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