Audley lags behind rival

Audley Harrison is set to be beaten into the professional ring by the boxer he beat on the way to winning a gold medal at the Sydney Olympics.

Italy's Paulo Vidoz, who won a bronze medal in Australia, will make his debut as a paid fighter at New York's Madison Square Garden on 27 January.

The burly two-times European amateur champion from Piove di Sacco near Venice will receive a purse of £14,000 from promoter Lou DiBella, the former boxing chief at the HBO television network.

DiBella did much to secure lucrative broadcasting deals for world heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis and former featherweight title-holder Naseem Hamed.

It is understood that DiBella may also have sought to forge a link with Harrison, a close friend of Lewis.

What is certain is that the Londoner will not make his professional debut on the undercard if Lewis goes ahead with a defence of his World Boxing Council and International Boxing Federation belts on 7 April.

Harrison said: "My debut will more than likely happen on its own.

"It's going be big wherever it is. More than likely it will be in England, not in the States."