Warren on course for record takings

Promoter Frank Warren believes that Joe Calzaghe's super-fight against rival Mikkel Kessler on November 3rd at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium is on course to break the indoor attendance record for a boxing event. Warren announced last week that ticket sales had hit over 30,000 and the record, currently held by Muhammad Ali's 1978 rematch against Leon Spinks at the New Orleans Superdome, is seriously under threat by the massive WBO/WBC/WBA super-middleweight unification showdown to be broadcast live in the UK on Setanta Sports. The Calzaghe-Kessler titan-clash will go ahead at 1am on Sunday morning but Warren believes that the sheer magnitude of the fight will bring out the fans no matter what time the fight starts. In fact, ticket sales have increased. "I was very disappointed to read a negative article in the regional newspaper the Wales on Sunday that said ticket sales were going to be affected by the early morning start time of the fight." Said Warren. " Calzaghe v Kessler is the biggest fight to be held in the UK for years; it's the two best super-middleweights in the world, in their prime, facing each other at one of the worlds biggest and best stadiums." "The fact that over 30,000 tickets have already been sold - and have increased following the head-to-head press conference last week - speaks for itself and we are closing-in fast on the record held by Ali-Spinks II." "Joe's fight against Peter Manfredo in April drew 35,018 to the Millennium Stadium and we are not far off surpassing that figure," Warren added, "In the article the writer also said that American TV broadcaster HBO had 'demanded' that the fight be televised at 1am which is totally untrue. Originally, the fight was scheduled for a later start but we moved it earlier and HBO had nothing to do with this change. I am absolutely delighted that the fight will be televised live on primetime in the US at 9pm on HBO." "When Joe fought Jeff Lacy in Manchester last year the fight was at 2am and we had a near capacity crowd at the M.E.N Arena to watch him put in the best performance by a British fighter that I have ever seen," "Joe is a hero in Wales and the passionate Welsh fans who follow their national rugby and football teams will turn out and back their man in this monumental fight no matter what time." "I will be pressing ahead with all-guns blazing in this promotion to ensure that it is a phenomenal success and with two months to go we are on course to achieve this."