TOP quality boxing is set to return to York in September with home favourite Jamie Warters set to headline the bill, the Evening Press can reveal.

The promoter of York cruiserweight Warter, Colin Cain, has provisional booked the Barbican for Saturday, September 6 and is planning an electric night of action to celebrate the homecoming of the Jorvik Warrior.

Cain told the Press: "The plan was always to have Jamie fighting at the Barbican, but its uncertain future has meant that we have had to bring those plans forward.

"We are now looking forward to a big fight night in the city."

Since returning to the ring last November after a two-year absence, Warters has fought three times at different venues in Hull.

However, on each occasion Warters has been backed by a voracious vocal support, prompting Cain to step up his bid to hold a card of boxing in the boxing-mad city.

Warters trainer/manager Steve Pollard is likely to co-promote the event and organise a full card of top ring-craft predominately involving fighters from the county. However, holiday commitments have meant Pollard is currently away and unable to give the green light to the booking.

Birmingham veteran Michael Pinnock and Featherstone's Paul Bonson are both potential opponents for British title-chasing Warters, although a real ticket-seller would see the Warrior matched up with Leeds-based Denzil Browne.

A former member of Henry Wharton's Hard N' Fast stable, Browne, the current Central Area title-holder, still has a strong following in the city and has stoked up the fires between him and Warters with a bitter war of words.

As soon as an agreement can be reached on the card, then between 1,600 and 1,800 tickets will be available at around £20.

The last time the Barbican was used as a boxing venue was on September 26, 1998, when Scarborough two-time featherweight world champion Paul Ingle headlined the bill with his European, Commonwealth and International Boxing Federation Inter-Continental clash with Sunderland's Billy Hardy.

York's favourite son Wharton was among the supporting cast in front of a packed crowd that night, as was Warters, who suffered his first-ever defeat, by way of cuts to Tim Brown.

Two of the stars who fought as part of the build-up to the Lennox Lewis-Vitali Klitschko heavyweight championship bout at the weekend Belfast's Eamon Magee, now the IBO super-middleweight champion, and impressive South African Philip Ndou, who has knocked out 30 of 32 opponents, also fought that night.

Updated: 11:15 Friday, June 27, 2003