Olympic champ Harrison heads for U.S

LONDON (AP) -- Lambasted at home for beating easy opponents, former Olympic superheavyweight champion Audley Harrison hopes to make a bigger impact fighting in the United States.

Harrison has failed to win over his critics during 10 fights as a pro and his last two-round victory over Matthew Ellis led to a brawl outside the ring.

Frank Bruno and Herbie Hide, who have both held world titles at various levels, were at ringside and fighting broke out among the fans. Bruno, who wants to fight Harrison and has applied for his license back at age 41, got into the ring for a photo with him and a shouting match started between Hide and Harrison.

That developed into a brawl among their fans and the trouble led to a reprimand for both Harrison and Hide from the British Boxing Board of Control.

With Harrison's career in danger of going nowhere, the 6-foot-5 (1.96 meter) Brit wants to get more meaningful fights in the United States.

"I have thought long and hard about this and have decided to transfer to the United States for a short while as I still have a lot to learn," he said.

"While I believe my contest against Matthew Ellis was my best performance so far in my career, I would like to accelerate the learning curve by working intensively with my trainer Thell Torrence in America.

"The move will provide me with a fresh outlook and some different and exciting opportunities and challenges."

 

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