“Under the Lights”: Cooper vs. Ursu
British & Commonwealth Title Showdown
Booked For Derby On February 28th, Live On DAZN!
By Queensberry Promotions
(January 17th) The vacant British welterweight championship will be on the line alongside the Commonwealth strap when Owen Cooper goes up against Constantin Ursu in ‘Under the Lights’ at Valliant Live, Derby on Saturday February 28, live on DAZN.
The ‘Under the Lights’ card will also feature 10-round action at super lightweight, with Olympian Luke McCormack taking on Kane Gardner, plus at middleweight, with Ben Fail facing Mason Cartwright.
Tickets for ‘Under the Lights’ - Cooper vs Ursu - at Valliant Live, Derby on Saturday, 28 February can be purchased from ticketmaster.co.uk. The Venue and Queensberry Presales begin at 12pm on Monday, 19 January. The General sale starts at 12pm on Tuesday, 20 January. Don’t miss it!
The prize attached to the headline fight also includes the Commonwealth title won by Ursu (14-0, 6 KOs) when he scored a knockout victory over Eithan James in March of last year. The 25-year-old Moldovan, who resides in Plymouth, has since made a successful defence and won the WBO European title with victory over Ryan Amos in November.
Worcester’s Cooper (11-1, 4 KOs) impressively returned to the win column with victory over Chris Kongo last May in Nottingham, having lost out in a thrilling WBO European title against Ekow Essuman in 2024. He won the WBO belt, along with the English title, with his success over Eithan James earlier in the year.
McCormack (4-0, 3 KOs), from Sunderland, is taking a significant step up in class by going in with Gardner in just his fifth professional fight, with having previously only taken part in one eight round fight.
Gardner (18-5, 7 KOs) is a known tough customer who in 2023 went the distance with Pierce O’Leary in a WBC International title fight and only lost out by a round in a late 2024 Central Area title encounter with Reece MacMillan, a decision that cost him a multi-title fight against Jack Rafferty.
Northampton man Fail (10-0, 5 KOs) will also have his credentials severely tested against Cartwright (23-4, 9 KOs), a two-time British title challenger from Ellesmere Port. Cartwright’s challenges for the Lonsdale belt came against Troy Williamson and Samuel Antwi and the only losses on his record have come in title contention.
Cartwright, known as ‘Nutty’, is currently enjoying a four-fight winning streak.
“This is a cracking little show and a showcase for our up-and-coming talents,” said promoter Frank Warren. “This is where prospects get to prove themselves as potential contenders and show us all that they belong on the major events moving forward.
“The British title fight between Owen Cooper and Constantin Ursu should be a real banger and it is one I am looking forward to greatly because these fights nearly always deliver the goods and Owen’s fights always do anyway.
“We expect big things from Luke McCormack and Ben Fail and they will both be tested in a big way on February 28.”
A full Championship Undercard full of up-and-coming Queensberry stars will be announced in the coming weeks.
About DAZN Group
DAZN Group is one of the fastest growing sports media companies in the world. Headquartered in the UK and with employees in over 25 countries, our businesses touch every aspect of the way fans engage with sports; from production, through to content distribution and commercialization. DAZN Group is home to DAZN, the leading global sport destination, as well as the popular sport portal, DAZN News. DAZN is leading the charge to give sports fans around the world access to sport anytime, anywhere. DAZN guarantees affordable access on most connected devices including smart TVs, set-top boxes, streaming sticks, smartphones, tablets, PCs and game consoles. DAZN is now live in more than 200 countries and territories after first launching in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Japan in 2016.
DAZN is a leading digital sports platform in Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Japan, Canada, US and the UK. Its wide range of exclusive content includes top-flight football from the world’s most popular competitions – Bundesliga, English Premier League, J.League, LaLiga, Serie A, and the UEFA Champions League, in addition to the biggest sports from around the world - Formula 1, NFL, NBA, MotoGP and the UFC.
DAZN is the NFL’s global partner and, from the 2023 season, will be the only place for fans around the world to watch every NFL match. DAZN is a global home for boxing and combat sports through its partnerships with Matchroom Boxing the Professional Fighters League. With the most authentic voice in the sport, DAZN is the only brand that can reach across all markets and audiences cohesively in boxing, unlike any other broadcaster. DAZN is also a global home for Women’s Football with UEFA Women’s Champions League and Finetwork Liga F. DAZN is adding more and more sport to its platform to create a destination for sports fans.
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DAZN is a global, privately-owned company with employees in over 25 countries.
DAZN is available on most connected devices including smart TVs, set-top boxes, streaming sticks, smartphones, tablets, PCs and game consoles, ensuring that fans have access to ground-breaking rights catalogue and slate of incredible content. In the UK and globally, DAZN can be accessed on Samsung, LG, Sony and Panasonic Smart TVs and on Games Consoles including Playstation and Xbox. Subscribers also have access to DAZN on their Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire TV Stick, Google Chromecast and Apple TV and find the app on their iPhone, iPad, android and mobile.
Queensberry, time and time again, delivers a debut to a champion journey for richly talented young fighters and provides an unrivalled platform for them to showcase their ability to the widest possible audience via a major broadcast collaboration and an exceptional digital portfolio.
Fight promotions are regularly staged, servicing the requirements of novice prospects, contenders, title challengers and champions. Boxers are given every opportunity to build a following and maximize their potential.
The wall facing the entrance to the Queensberry headquarters bears the words ‘This is where the magic happens’ because, for decades, it has been the location where the biggest fights have been hatched and matched, where the biggest shows have been plotted and where the best fighters arrive to sign promotional terms for Frank Warren to guide their careers.
It is always about the fighters - with the key being development - but also about the sport, the business of boxing and conjuring up magical nights for the fans and making the fights they want to see.
The experience of Queensberry and the tried and trusted model for creating champions is unparalleled in the sport of boxing. The expertise of International Hall of Fame Promoter Frank Warren has been employed for some 45 years in the professional ranks building some of the biggest stars and navigating them to world champion status.
Frank specializes in taking young fighters right from debut and implementing his knowhow to pick the right fights at the right time and therefore ensuring the boxer is given every opportunity to maximize his or her potential.
Queensberry is currently in the position of being the world’s premier promotional organization, having spent many years building talent and putting in the foundations to ensure prolonged success. The company currently boasts a number of world champions, multiple world title contenders, numerous title-holders and the finest crop of young future stars anywhere in the world.
Queensberry fighters have been given the opportunity to shine on the major global stage both at home and abroad, under the Queensberry banner.
About Frank Warren
In an era spanning over 35 years, Hall of Fame boxing Promoter and Manager Frank Warren has worked with some of the biggest fighters in boxing history. Hamed, Bruno, Tyson, Calzaghe, Benn, Collins, Eubank, Khan and Hatton are some of the iconic names he has promoted during his career.