EXCLUSIVE by Luke Cawdell

Boxing promoter Frank Maloney is hoping Sky Sports give the green light for live boxing to be screened from Medway Park.

Last Friday professional boxing returned to the Gillingham leisure centre for the first time since 1997, when Maloney last brought his own roadshow into Kent.

Maloney (pictured), whose headquarters are in Chislehurst, has lined up British light middleweight champion Sam Webb to fight in Medway, alongside home hero Tom Dallas but must first get approval from the television broadcaster.

“The venue has lots of potential for the right fight and a place for Tom Dallas to grow at,” said Maloney.

“It would be a great place for Tom to fight for a British or European title.

“It is a good venue and it would stage what I would call a good small-hall show. If we can introduce better quality fighters, that would attract bigger audiences.”

Maloney, who has nurtured some of Britain’s top boxers over the last three decades, regularly stages live boxing, in conjunction with Sky TV, from venues in Essex and London but believes that Kent and the Medway Towns are a potential hot-bed for the sport.

“It would be nice to get a Kent-based promotional company a venue in Kent,” he said.

“Our company has produced champions from the Midlands and the North East but not since we had Johnny Armour have we had one from Kent.

“I would love to do something in Kent, especially being a Kent boy myself.

“Gillingham is a sleeping giant for sport. The football team is hit-and-miss but in Tom Dallas the boxer they have someone who could become a national hero on their doorstep.”

Maloney, who was in the audience to see last week’s boxing show, hopes to stage a Sky Sports show there on May 13 when Sam Webb, also from Chislehurst, will defend his British light middleweight crown.

“If we could get that show on then it would be one of the biggest shows to hit Kent for some time,” he said.

“We are all behind (Medway Park) and we’ll be working with Mark Roe (Dallas’ manager and last week’s show organiser).

“We have a promotional contract with Tom Dallas as well as young Lewis Pettitt (Crayford) and between those two, they’ve got half of the venue sold.

“Sam Webb was bring a lot of fans and there would be a 1,500 plus attendance for that one.

“If Sky give the thumbs up, then we’ll have a press conference and launch it.”

Would you like to see televised boxing back at Medway Park? Have your say below.