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Nick Ball will make the first defence of his WBA featherweight title against Ronny Rios on 5 October at the M&S Arena in Liverpool.<\/b><\/p>\n
Ball, 27, returns to his hometown as a world champion for the first time and has not fought in Liverpool for almost four years.<\/p>\n
The Briton won the WBA title in June<\/a> and is undefeated in 21 fights.<\/p>\n “It has been a dream year for me with two world title fights so far, so to cap it off by defending my belt at home is the icing on the cake and I am so excited,” Ball said.<\/p>\n Ball defeated Raymond Ford to strip him of his WBA title after suffering heartbreak against WBC champion Rey Vargas in March <\/b>due to a controversial draw.<\/a><\/p>\n Frank Warren, Ball’s promoter, believes his fighter is “unquestionably” the best featherweight in the world.<\/p>\n Alongside Rhiannon Dixon, Ball is the only undefeated British world champion, although the Liverpudlian has the draw on his record.<\/p>\n Challenger Rios has twice contested world titles at super-bantamweight and has four losses in 38 fights.<\/p>\n The American will be fighting outside of the United States for the first time as a professional.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n