The Saint has confirmed he will box unbeaten Scot Kenny Anderson on November 13th. Taking place at the M.E.N. Arena in Manchester, the fight will be chief support to David Haye's clash with Audley Harrison and screened live on Sky Box Office in 3D.

"We've got him. Kenny Anderson has signed", said Groves.

"It's going to be a defence of my Commonwealth title which I'm happy about and also, more importantly, it's going to be a final eliminator for the British title as well.

"Everyone's heard me moaning and whining about not being in the mix for the British title but now we've well and truly wedged our way in. So, providing I deliver the goods against Anderson, I'll be fighting the winner of that British title fight at the end of the year [between Paul Smith and James DeGale]."

Hard-hitting Anderson has won 12 from 12 as professional and landed a Commonwealth Games light-heavyweight gold medal in 2006 as an amateur. He also sparred Groves back in July ahead of The Saint's American debut in Las Vegas, but Groves places little significance on that time in the gym.

"He's mentioned the sparring saying we took this fight off the back of that sparring but we were talking about the fight long before we even sparred.

"That sparring we did, I know Kenny wasn't fit for it, and I was only 2 weeks into my preparations. He looked like he was holding back and I was working on different techniques so I don't read too much into the sparring. He better expect a lot better George Groves by the time we fight."

Groves had been scheduled to headline his own sold out show in London on Oct 30th but after his opponent James Obede Toney failed a medical, the show was cancelled and the Hammersmith man has instead landed a slot on the biggest British bill of the year.

"I'm so lucky to be boxing at the M.E.N. again, with it sold out. Last time when I got in the ring, there must have been a good 15,000 people in there and the reception was ecstatic.

"If I can get anything like that again, this is what you live for in Boxing, it's what you work hard for. I'm just chuffed."

The fight will be screened live on Sky Box Office from 8pm.

'Saint' George Groves will defend his Commonwealth Super-middleweight crown against James Obede Toney at London's historic York Hall in Bethnal Green on October 30th.

Headlining live on Sky Sports, the fight will be the fourth outing this year for the Saint and will mark a welcome return to London for the Hammersmith man and his fans following trips to Manchester and Las Vegas.

"It's really exciting, it's going to be a great show, and I'm really looking forward to getting back in action in London where everyone can come and see me box. They don't have to travel like for my last fight where a few people had to travel all the way to America to see me box", enthused Groves.

Toney was a known puncher at middleweight and has stopped 21 of his 24 victims early. He has only lost three times in 28 fights and 10 years as a pro.

Two of those came back-to-back; against current IBF world champion Lucien Bute in eight rounds in September 2006 and Roman Karmazin - who has just held IBF middleweight boss Sebastian Sylvester to a draw - four months later.

"Toney is the fight I wanted in the first place, the only reason we looked to get a UK-based fighter was for publicity reasons and also to force my way into this British title mix," Groves told skysports.com.

"Toney has an impressive record, he has been in with good company and only come unstuck when facing opponents of the highest level.

"He is the sort of opponent who will bring the best out of me, and serve me well in the long run. I'm looking forward to a tough challenge."

The show is now SOLD OUT, but you can watch live on Sky Sports 1 from 9pm.

'Saint' George Groves notched up his tenth straight win on his American debut in Las Vegas to round off a superb season that has also seen him crowned Commonwealth Super-middleweight champion.

Fighting on the undercard of the Juan Manuel Marquez v Juan Diaz rematch at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Groves continued his education in the pro ranks by stopping Mexican Alfredo Contreras in the sixth round of a one-sided contest.

After a close opening two rounds, in which the Saint had to take a good overhand right from Contreras, Groves began to take control from round three onwards. Dominating the Mexican with a sharp jab and some neat left-right combinations, Groves outclassed his opponent and looked ever more comfortable as the fight progressed.

An impressive fifth round saw the Hammersmith man in complete control, landing more and more hard shots on a tough Contreras. The sixth looked set to be more of the same, as Groves again timed his shots well and landed with good accuracy. However, it wasn't long before referee Russell Mora had seen enough, stepping in to halt the contest as Groves landed a sharp left-right combination.

The victory sees the Saint take his record to 10-0 (8KO) and round off an impressive first half of 2010 which has seen him record three stoppage victories in three fights, claim the Commonwealth title, and make a successful American debut. The 22 year-old has already set his sights on the British and European titles and is likely to return to action in October.

 

Commonwealth Super-middleweight champion George Groves will return to action on July 31^st on the undercard of Juan Manuel Marquez v Juan Diaz in Las Vegas.

The Saint will be hoping to make it third time lucky in completing his Vegas dream, having seen two previous stateside bouts fall through. Initially scheduled to fight on the undercard of Shane Mosley and Andre Berto’s cancelled welterweight clash in January, the 22 year-old also saw a place on the Mosley v Mayweather bill in May go up in smoke, or rather volcanic ash, as the dust cloud prevented him from flying.

“My previous frustrations for my delayed US debut have been hard to take but the right thing in hindsight”, said Groves.

“I want to put on a show, be my very best and win over fans stateside. I have 8 weeks to prepare for this fight so I will be in peak condition and ready to rock!

“The US have some very promising Super-middleweights starting to break through, it’s my job to show they won’t be having it all their own way in years to come on the biggest stage.

“GoldenBoy promotions have great faith in me, I plan to repay them with dazzling performances.”

Groves put in a superb performance last time out in April, becoming the first man to stop durable Ghanaian Charles Adamu with an impressive sixth round stoppage win that saw him claim the Commonwealth strap in just his ninth pro bout. However, his fight at the Mandalay Bay Resort will not be for that belt as he will instead take on Mexican Alfredo Contreras.

25 year-old Contreras has a winning record of 11-7-1 with 5 wins coming via knockout and has been in with a number of Stateside prospects such as Canadian champion David Lemieux and Anthony Dirrell. Though the fight will not be a defence of that belt, the Londoner insists he will still be treating it as such.

“We are taking this fight very seriously. American fights are the best in the world. No slip-ups can happen so I am in full training and treating this like a defence of my title.

"In your boxing career if you never face a battle-hardened, blood thirsty Mexican fighting for his family from a small ghetto in the homeland frankly you haven't lived!"

“An actual defence is most likely to happen in September. There are only whispers of hope that might be at the moment but as I said before I will take on all-comers!”

The Marquez v Diaz bill will be shown live on Sky Sports 1 from 2am.