IF James McGivern was required to make a statement, he did just that when scoring a KO-of-the-Year contender Rashid Omar at the SSE Arena in June and has been rewarded with a promotional deal with Queensberry.

The Market man turned heads with his stunning knockout of the previously undefeated Welshman to retain his BUI Celtic lightweight title and has revealed before the fight that victory would see him snapped up by Frank Warren's organisation.

McGivern kept his end of the bargain and on Friday is was confirmed the 26-year-old has put pen to paper on a deal that can see his career fully take off.

Other lightweights on the Queensberry books include British and European champion Sam Noakes, WBC Silver champion Mark Chamberlain, Irish talent Steven Cairns and WBO world champion Denys Berinchyk, so the opportunity to push on and climb the ladder for the South Belfast man whose record sits at 9-0.

“Signing with Frank Warren and Queensberry is a dream come true really,” said the 2018 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist. 

“When I was young as a boxer, Frank was one of the biggest and still is the biggest promoter that was ever around. He has had some of the greatest fighters with him, both in the UK and the world.

“To be in a stable like this is only going to stand me in a good stead and it is exactly what I need now in my career going forward. I need good promotion now because I have served my time and done my apprenticeship as a professional boxer. Now I can kick on and start making some real headway.

“I don’t think my last fight could have gone any better. It was like having a trial for a football team, almost. It felt like I scored a hat-trick with one of them being an overhead kick.

“It was the perfect time to pull a performance like that out of the bag. Everyone in boxing circles in Ireland knows what I can do and that is the sort of standard I fight.”

Promoter, Frank Warren was suitably impressed with what he saw from McGivern in that emphatic win against Omar.

With a number of other Belfast fighters on his books including Anthony Cacace, Conor Quinn and Kristina O'Hara, Warren is delighted to add another from the city to his team. 

“Our Irish contingent is getting stronger and stronger and James is clearly a young man with a big future,” said Warren.

“His credentials are exceptional and I was so impressed with what I saw from him on our recent promotion in Belfast. His stoppage was nothing short of spectacular.

“We are very strong on the lightweight front and I anticipate James being part of big title fights in the very near future. I am looking forward to working with him his team to push his career forward.”