Andy Lee, Irish Kronk middleweight fighter, currently ranked # 5 in the WBA and # 14 in the WBC rankings will now face Scotsman, Craig McEwan on March 12, in the chief supporting bout to Sergio Martinez - Sergei Dzinziruk WBC world middleweight clash at Foxwoods Resort Casino, Mashantucket, Connecticut, United States.

Lee (24w 18ko, 1l) had originally been scheduled to do battle with fellow Irishman, John Duddy. But following Duddy’s shock retirement announcement last week the unbeaten McEwan stepped in to fill the void.

The Ireland v Scotland ‘Celtic War’ between Lee and McEwan will be televised live by HBO and comes on the weekend before St Patrick’s Day. Lee expects a good turnout of Irish boxing fans at the Foxwoods Resort Casino arena to support him from across the East Coast of the US and from Ireland.

Craig McEwan, from Edinburgh, Scotland had a distinguished amateur career contesting in 376 amateur bouts and winning a host of international competitions including a bronze medal in the 2002 Commonwealth Games.

While on a holiday in 2006 to California, McEwan spent some time training at the famous Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles and his boxing attributes soon came to the attention of world renowned trainer, Freddie Roach. Shortly afterwards, the talented Scotsman signed with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotion company and made his pro debut in September 2006.

McEwan a tall southpaw aged 28 is presently ranked # 12 by the WBO and is unbeaten in 19 outings with 10 of his wins coming early by way of KO.

Lee a young and hungry fighter views the opportunity to box on HBO in a chief supporting bout to a world championship title contest as  the chance to showcase his talent on the big stage and as the gateway to bigger and better things.

Lee commented ‘This is a very important fight for me and something I will be totally focussed for. I know Craig’s style quite well, a tall technical boxer with a snappy right jab. He is someone with a good work rate in the ring in and he is an effective switch hitter. I beat him as an amateur in 2005 and I am determined to beat him again as a pro on March 12.’

‘I am prepared for a tough night of boxing, the Scottish are a proud people, but so are the Irish. I will be training and sparring at the Miguel Cotto training camp, it is the perfect environment to get ready for the fight.’

Emanuel Steward, legendary Kronk boxing icon firmly believes his fighter has the tools to beat McEwan ‘Andy is a strong fighter and carries a powerful punch in either hand; he is an intelligent boxer who can read a fight and can adapt his style with ease during a fight. He has plenty of heart and can dig deep in the trenches to win a fight. Andy will take care of business.’

Lee is on a 9 fight winning streak and moving in the direction of a world title challenge. He turns 27 in June and wants to make his mark in the boxing world scene this year, but for the Irish fighter it is one fight at a time and he is not looking past March 12.