Scott Harrison and Liam Walsh to fight for title

Former world champion Scott Harrison has been handed the title comeback chance he has been chasing after being named as the next challenger to WBO European lightweight champion Liam Walsh.

The 35-year-old Scot, who has only fought twice since 2005, will take on Walsh at Wembley Arena on 20 April on the undercard of Nathan Cleverly’s world title defence.

Harrison returned to the ring last year with two comfortable warm-up victories after spending two-and-a-half years in a Spanish jail following an assault conviction.

He relinquished his WBO featherweight title after his well-publicised personal problems and difficulties making the weight kept him out of the ring.

Harrison vowed to appeal against another Spanish assault conviction late last year and has been given the chance to return to the big-time fights he craves.

In a statement released by promoter Frank Warren, Harrison said: “Walsh is a good young fighter, he’s fast and he’s ambitious and this is the fight that will show all the doubters that I’m back and I mean business.

“I’ve had two wins since making my comeback and this is the first high-profile fight against a young hungry fighter which will test me and show me how far I’m off challenging for a world title.

“A win will give me an important ranking in the top 10 of the WBO so this is a must-win fight for me.”

Harrison added: “I’m on my way back to the world title, it’s going to be a hard road with everything I’ve gone through, but it will be an incredible story when I’ve achieved it.”

Unbeaten Walsh also holds the Commonwealth super-featherweight belt following a bloody battle with another Scot, Paul Appleby, and was due to challenge world champion Ricky Burns in December before being injured in a road accident.

The 26-year-old Norfolk-based fighter said: “I’ve got a lot of respect for Scott. I remember watching his fights years ago against Manuel Medina, shouting at the TV and cheering him on. So it seems a little surreal that I’m now going to be fighting him.

“On the other hand, that was years ago and this is a crucial fight for me to win on the way to a world title.

“I don’t believe he is the same fighter he once was. I’m certainly not overawed by him.”