Butler Wants To Follow In Footsteps Of A Liverpool Great

Connor Butler is relishing the challenge of facing Jay Harris when the pair clash in a brilliant fight for British boxing on February 24th at the Liverpool Olympia.

The duo will go head-to-head for three of boxing's most prestigious titles, with Connor putting his European and Commonwealth Flyweight titles on the line, while Harris will also be defending his British crown. In a great coup for fight fans, all the action on this Fight Academy card will be also be completely FREE/LIVE to watch on Fightzone.

Liverpudlian Butler is one of the UK's best young fighters. Turning pro in 2018 after a decorated amateur career, the 25-year-old is now unbeaten in 12 fights and had an impressive 2023 that saw him handily beat seasoned pros Craig Derbyshire and Matt Windle to win the two belts he'll be defending on the 24th.

Harris won the Lonsdale Belt in his last fight in May 2023, stopping former champ Tommy Frank in 10 rounds. At 33, the Swansea man is in the swansong of a career that peaked in 2020 with a losing world title shot to Mexico’s Julio Cesar Martinez. Having previously held the European title in 2019, Jay will be hoping a win could open the door to another world title crack.

Ahead of the hugely-anticipated night, ‘Top Dog’ Butler reveals that Harris is a man he’s had in his sights for a while, and that he’s looking to follow in the footsteps of another great fighter from Liverpool.

This is a fight we've been chasing for a while.

There was talk of it after I won the European against Matt Windle and for whatever reason it got postponed, but I'm happy the fight has been made and for all the marbles!

Not many people can say they're fighting for the European, Commonwealth and British flyweight titles. I believe the last person to hold all three of them was from Liverpool too, that was Kevin Satchell, who was one of the greatest fighters to come out of the city, in my opinion. So, it would be nice to do the same thing and represent what Kevin did all those years ago.

It's probably the hardest fight of my career, everyone's saying that, but I believe if you want to be the best, you've got to beat the best. Jay's been at that level where he's fought everyone, he's been around for years. He's a great champion and has some incredible wins, but I don't really focus too much on the other fighter. I just prepare the best I can prepare, because I believe that the best Connor Butler, on the night ... no one beats him.

Manager, Stephen Vaughan, said:
“Liverpool has produced so many great fighters over the years, and I really believe that Connor will eventually go down in history as one of them,” “This is a great test for him, but he’s looking in great shape and I think he wins this in what will be a terrific fight to watch.”

Fightzone and Fight Academy’s Dennis Hobson, stated: “Connor’s such a skilful boxer and has great ringcraft. Jay’s been there and done it, and had a smashing career, but I just see Connor being fresher and having too much for him on another great night for Fightzone.”