KENT'S WBU bantamweight champion Johnny Armour is to dedicate the first defence of his title to the memory of his best friend's daughter who has tragically died of meningitis.

Maizie Bunch, five-month-old daughter of his best friend Paul, and wife Maxine, died last Monday and the news has shocked Armour as he prepares for the biggest fight of his career against Francis Ampofo on Saturday, May 11.

He said: “My thoughts are with Paul and his family. Paul’s my best mate and I'm absolutely gutted for him. I'm dedicating the fight to Maizie and it’ll make me try even harder to win in style for her.

“It's been upsetting but I'm trying my best not to let it affect my training but it's been difficult.”

Armour has been so moved by the tragedy that he is considering taking part in some kind of sponsored event to raise money for meningitis charities.

But first his attention is focused on Ampofo. The Chatham fighter has been up in Liverpool for the past few weeks but is now scaling down his training ahead of the fight at the Goresbrook Leisure Centre in Dagenham.

He added: “I've done all the sparring now and now I'm just taking it easy until the fight but I'll still be watching my weight.

“I'm in the best shape of my career and I'm going to make sure no-one is in any doubt who is the champion."