County boxer Lloyd set for TV fight

Shropshire boxer Mark Lloyd has his big chance on the small screen next week.

And proving the Sky Sports hierarchy wrong will be one of the key motivations for the Shifnal plumber-by-trade to pull off a shock victory over Jason Cox.

Lloyd will take on the 2006 Commonwealth Games gold medalist at Wolverhampton's Civic Hall on Friday week in an official eliminator for the British welterweight title.

It is the biggest fight of Lloyd's professional career, with the winner being guaranteed a shot at current champion Kell Brook.

But it could have been even more of a landmark date for Shropshire's leading professional – as Lloyd was initially due to meet Brook on the same bill.

The fight was sanctioned by the British Boxing Board of Control, but fell through when Sky claimed it wasn't suitable for their live Friday Fight Night action.

Ironically, Lloyd's clash with Cox will be shown by Sky next week, and that has provided the Shifnal family man with all the incentive he needs to pull off what would be a surprise victory.

"Sky said they wouldn't televise me fighting Brook and it fell through so I wasn't happy with that at all," said the 33-year-old.

"It's a big motivation to me to show the people at Sky what I'm capable of and I definitely have a point to prove."

Lloyd knows he will be a major underdog when he takes on Cox, who has won all 10 of his fights and is carrying the tag of 'next great hope' of the Frank Warren stable.

But he will be roared on by 200 Shropshire fight fans and is confident that a rigorous training camp will have him in perfect shape to pull off a shock.

"It's probably make-or-break for me with regards getting a chance to win a British title," he added.

"And it's going to be tough because Cox has won all 10 – and won every round within those 10 fights.

"But everything is going well. I've been training for 10 weeks and it's been twice a day. I've had some really good sparring partners – the likes of Dean Harrison, Stuart Elwell and Marcus Portman who have all fought for British titles.

"It's the biggest fight of my life – but I wouldn't have taken it if I didn't think I could win."

By JAMES GARRISON