Bolton will now play host to MTK Fight Night featuring two title fights on March 12. Lewis Crocker defends his WBO European welterweight title against Deniz Ilbay, and Gary Cully meets Viktor Kotochigov for the vacant WBO European lightweight title.
The bouts were originally scheduled for McKenna vs Turarov undercard in Dubai on the same date.
The event take places at the University of Bolton Stadium in Bolton, also featuring featherweight contender Isaac Lowe, undefeated welterweight talent Sahir Iqbal, and amateur sensation Jordan Reynolds making his professional debut. Fans in the US can watch the live stream on ESPN+, while internationally the fight card is available on IFL TV.
Crocker (12-0, 7 KOs) is making the first defence of the belt that he superbly won by stopping Louis Greene last August. He now goes up against Ilbay (22-2, 10 KOs), who has never been stopped in 24 professional fights.
Cully (11-0, 5 KOs) is back after two impressive wins in 2020, looking to add another belt to his collection when he meets former WBC International champion Kotochigov (12-1, 5 KOs).
Lowe (20-0-3, 6 KOs) fights in the UK for the first time in two years after three straight wins in the USA, while fellow undefeated star Iqbal (8-0, 1 KO) gets the chance to fight in his hometown of Bolton.
MTK Global Promoter Lee Eaton said: “These two title fights are both very intriguing match-ups, and will show us just what Lewis Crocker and Gary Cully are capable of by facing very dangerous opponents.
“On the undercard we have Isaac Lowe and Sahir Iqbal both returning, and highly-rated Jordan Reynolds makes his debut. We’ll be announcing even more for the card soon and it’s going to be another must-see event.
“We’re really proud of our current schedule of UK shows, as they’re full of 50-50 fights up and down all of the cards, so we’re delighted to be giving boxing fans the fights they want to see.”
Crocker vs Ilbay fight card
Lewis Crocker vs Deniz Ilbay, welterweight – Crocker’s WBO European welterweight title
Gary Cully vs Viktor Kotochigov, lightweight – for vacant WBO European lightweight title
Isaac Lowe vs TBA, featherweight
Sahir Iqbal vs TBA, welterweight
Jordan Reynolds vs TBA
