Injury chaos lifts Josh Padley into spotlight
Injury caused another pull-out from a big Sheffield show
Josh Padley is the surprise benefactor of an injury curse affecting what was a huge Sheffield Arena boxing show.
World champion Dalton Smith was scheduled to headline the Matchroom event, but picked up an issue and was first to drop out.
Now stand-in headliner Galal Yafai has sustained an injury during his training camp, so his WBC and WBA World Flyweight unification clash with Ricardo Sandoval has now been postponed.
The event on Saturday, June 6, will go ahead as scheduled, with Doncaster's Padley the new main event.
He will be defending his EBU European Super Featherweight Championship against Oldham's Aqib Fiaz.
Padley, 30, will be in his 20th professional contest.
In January, he beat Jaouad Belmehdi in Newcastle to win his Euro title.
He has boxed at the Arena previously; he beat Reece Bellotti there last October.
Now he has an unexpected chance to further raise his profile.
Elsewhere on the June undercard, Steel City gym lightweight Edward Hardy, also from Doncaster, remains available, his opponent is yet to be named.
Sheffield's Chris Mulunda is awaiting news of his opponent too.
York's undefeated teenage heavyweight sensation Leo Atang campaigns in his native Yorkshire, with fellow unbeaten rising stars Adam Maca and Connor Mitchell also in action.
Coventry Middleweight Aaron Bowen takes on Troy Coleman, meanwhile, plus Ibraheem Sulaimaan battles Ibrahim Nadim for the English Super Featherweight Championship.
The withdrawals continue a frustrating spell for South Yorkshire boxing cards after Doncaster's ex IBO world champion Maxi Hughes had to pull out of the bout with Hull's Lewis Sylvester at the E-Power Stadium tomorrow.