Promoter Ben Shalom admits that Portman Road could be an option to host a potential rematch of Fabio Wardley's thrilling heavyweight title fight with Frazer Clarke.

The unbeaten big men went toe-to-toe in a modern-day British title classic at the O2 Arena on Sunday night, with the fight ending in a split draw.

Wardley, now 17-0-1 (16KO) retained his British and Commonwealth belts as a result, with fans, pundits and both camps suggesting a rematch could be next on the cards.

Shalom, whose BOXXER team promoted Sunday night's bumper event, was asked after the fight if the second meeting could be held at Portman Road.

East Anglian Daily Times: Fabio Wardley dropped Frazer Clarke in the fifth round of their classic title fight Fabio Wardley dropped Frazer Clarke in the fifth round of their classic title fight (Image: Ross Halls)
The duo were originally mandated to fight last year, in a clash that was initially talked about as a potential candidate for Portman Road, home of Wardley's beloved Blues.

Shalom, who promotes Clarke (now 8-0-1, 6KO), said:  "We’d definitely consider that. I speak for Frazer because I know him, he was willing to fight at Portman Road two fights ago.

“He doesn’t care, he’s a fighting man and he wants the biggest fights. But let’s see.


“It’s an absolute monster – did I think the Wardley/Clarke saga would go on? It’s been going on for 12 months now and it still continues as one of the best stories in British boxing.

“An absolute modern-day classic and I’m sure we’ll see it again. It will be down to the teams to decide where and when, but it’s an absolute monster.”

East Anglian Daily Times: Ben Shalom said he and Clarke would definitely consider a rematch at Portman RoadBen Shalom said he and Clarke would definitely consider a rematch at Portman Road (Image: Ross Halls)
He added: “It’s the biggest fight for both of them, and usually that means it happens.

“I think Fabio will need more time than Frazer, otherwise we’d be looking at running it back very soon.

“I believe it happens. Fabio’s a warrior – he wants the biggest fights, the biggest nights, just like Frazer does, and there’s no bigger fight now.

“I believe we’ll see it again.”

East Anglian Daily Times: Wardley wants to bring a fight to Portman Road - and the Clarke rematch would certainly be big enoughWardley wants to bring a fight to Portman Road - and the Clarke rematch would certainly be big enough (Image: Ross Halls)
Wardley, who suffered a badly-cut nose in the blood and guts war, said of a potential second clash: “It’s an option. The fans are probably going to ask for that. I’m never going to count a draw as a win, but I’ve still get my belts and there’s still a lot of options on the table for me to look around.

“Whether it be the rematch or something else, we’ll take some time – I need five minutes or so – and we’ll reassess it.”

Of Portman Road, he added: "Look, Mark (Ashton) and everyone at the club, they’ve been huge supporters of me for a long time now.

“They came to the fight and they’ve always backed me and supported me.

“Bringing a fight to Portman Road is on the cards, it’s something I’ve been talking about for a long time – whether it’s the rematch or something else, one way or another I’d like to tick that off before the end of my career.”

East Anglian Daily Times: Fabio Wardley heads to the ring at the O2, with Dillian Whyte carrying a Town flagFabio Wardley heads to the ring at the O2, with Dillian Whyte carrying a Town flag (Image: Ross Halls)
Town CEO Ashton, who was ringside on Sunday, has previously said he hopes to bring a Wardley fight to the Blues' famous stadium.

With the O2 packed and an army of Wardley fans making the trip to London, the prospect of the rematch at Portman Road is a mouth-watering one.

It remains to be seen if Wardley and his team want that next and, in the case of Clarke, whether he'd be willing to concede home advantage to the Ipswich slugger.

But if and when it does happen - maybe even further down the line with a world title at stake - Wardley/Clarke 2 will be one of the biggest and most-anticipated fights in British boxing.

Indeed, figures released today reveal the scrap was watched by a peak audience of 746,000 on TV, with a total reach of 1.7m, making it the fifth most-watched boxing event on Sky Sports in the last 10 years, behind only Eubank-Williams, Shields-Marshall, Khan-Vargas and Taylor-Catterall.