Shinny’s title shot

SHINNY Bayaar pictured after losing his British title following an accidental clash of heads with Paul Edwards in Belfast 12 months ago.

BOXING:

SHINNY Bayaar returns from a year in the boxing wilderness on Saturday in a bid to take the British and Commonwealth flyweight titles from Chris Edwards at Peterlee Leisure Centre.

The bout, televised live on Sky, will be his first since losing the British belt to Paul Edwards in Belfast 12 months ago following an accidental clash of heads in the first round.

That defeat left a particularly nasty taste in the Tara boxer’s mouth because a rule change just three weeks later scored such incidents as a no-contest.

At the time the fight was halted on doctor’s advice and the British Boxing Board of Control guidelines stipulated that the belt had to change hands. Now the Mongolian (34) is raring to go after a year to forget. The showdown with Edwards is chief support to Ashley Theophane’s second defence of the British welterweight title against Ben Murphy.

Bayaar’s trainer Jack Doughty said: “Shinny feels fine, mainly because preparations for this fight have gone perfectly. My assistant Gary Ford and I have been working towards this bout with Shinny for a very long time and we are both happy with how he is shaping up.

“The sparring he did with flyweight Paul Butler at Anthony Farnell’s gym in Failsworth was particularly helpful because Paul is an up-and-comer with a lot of talent.”

Saturday’s opponent is no stranger to Bayaar, who emerged with the British title courtesy of a split decision when the pair fought in Bolton in 2009. Doughty conceded that the sort of match-changing cut Bayaar sustained last time out is a real possibility against Edwards, who is a year older.

He added: “Unfortunately, Shinny is prone to nasty cuts. It happens in virtually every fight now, probably because of his bone structure and prominent eyebrows. But if he manages to take Edwards the distance he is very confident of winning.

“Edwards feels he must get close to his opponent, so we will employ tactics to counteract that. He is a resilient lad, but Shinny feels he can come away with the titles.”