Andy Lee confirms Thomond Park as venue for title defence

Andy Lee will defend his WBO middleweight title against England's Billy Joe Saunders in Thomond Park on September 19th.

Following reports in various media outlets on Friday that the title defence would take place in the Limerick venue, promoter Frank Warren issued a statement saying that nothing had yet been confirmed.

Lee though took to Twitter himself on Saturday morning to confirm the details for the September showdown.

“Following reports in the media this morning (Friday 19th June) that the Andy Lee v Billy Joe Saunders WBO World Middleweight title fight will take place on September 19th at Thomond Park in Ireland, promoter Frank Warren has confirmed that these reports are incorrect,” said Warren’s statement on Friday.

“The date and venue for the highly anticipated showdown have not been confirmed yet and are subject to ongoing negotiations. It can be confirmed that the fight will take place in September with venues in London and Ireland under consideration.

"Mr Warren and Adam Booth, Lee's manager, are in advanced discussions and will announce details in due course once finalised."

Lee (34-2-1, 24 KOs) last fought against Peter Quillan (31-0-1, 22 KOs) in Brooklyn, New York in April. The fight was supposed to have the Irishman's WBO middleweight title at stake, but Quillin came in over the weight limit at 161.4 pounds.

The American challenger attempted to makes the weight after being given two hours to melt it off, but he was unable to do so. The fight, which ended in a draw was a non-title bout.