Joe Ward aiming for World Series of Boxing hat-trick

Joe Ward will hope to make it a hat-trick of World Series of Boxing wins in Wales tomorrow night.

Following two dominant wins in the past two months, the triple European champion fights again over the five-round format in Newport.

The Moate light heavyweight the British Lionhearts as they take on the French Fighting Roosters in a top of the table Group B clash at the Newport Centre.

Following wins this season over Damir Plantic and Blagoy Naydenov, Ward will hope to extend his unbeaten start to the eighth edition of the tournament with victory over Bakary Diabira

The Frenchman has Irish previous having twice beat Michael Frayne during the International Round Robin in Dublin last year. The three-time French champion was also beaten by Darren O’Neill in the quarter-finals of the 2014 EU Championships.

The Roosters have brought a strong to the valleys, with Daniel Asenov taking on Will Cawley at flyweight, Sofiane Oumiha facing Dmitry Asanau, Kevin Bertogal boxing Carl Fail, and Joshua-defeater Mihai Nistor up against Solomon Dacres.

Both teams are already assured of their spots in the play-offs but a win for the Lionhearts could see them leapfrog their visitors in the table and secure a more favourable fixture in the knockout stages.

Belfast middleweight Caoimhin Agyarko Hynes, who represents the Italia Thunder, scored a win over the French Fighting Roosters last week while Ward’s Lionhearts team-mate Sean Duffy is yet to feature this season.