DURING the same week news broke that he'd signed a promotional deal with Queensberry and Frank Warren, Olympic bronze medallist Lewis Richardson has a confirmed fight date for his pro debut.

Ten months after narrowly falling short in his Olympic semi-final, the skilled southpaw will feature in a six-round middleweight contest on the Fabio Wardley vs. Justis Huni undercard at Portman Road, June 7.

Speaking on talkSPORT's Saturday night show, the Colchester-born talent acknowledged comments about exceeding expectations given a difficult Olympic draw compared to other British boxers last summer.

He was the only one, from a six-strong qualifying team, to medal for Great Britain and spoke of wanting revenge in the paid ranks against an opponent who made a quick pro debut in the Saudi capital this weekend.

"Yeah, the draw wasn't favourable for me - least favoured to medal - but we turned those odds around and showed what we were capable of, I've got good memories of Paris and am proud of bronze.

"Even though I wanted more, I'm still grateful of what I achieved and Verde makes his debut on the Canelo undercard... I would love to run that back one day, maybe an away day to Mexico City."

Eventual silver medallist Verde wasted no time in his maiden pro appearance on the Canelo Alvarez vs. William Scull undercard overnight, needing just 94 seconds to dismiss 12-fight pro Michel Galvan Polina.

Managed by Canelo's head trainer Eddy Reynoso, 23-year-old Verde is sticking to middleweight and Richardson - who has operated as high as light-heavy - exercised patience where many others would not.

Highly-regarded heavyweight Delicious Orie returns on this bill over four rounds, while Bradford-born Australian Olympic featherweight bronze medallist Charlie Senior debuts in Nottingham next weekend over six. All three are new signings.

Richardson admitted there was a "significant contrast in interest" compared with trying to make the transition pre-Olympics, where his natural weight - 75kg - was removed from the Games.

"I made a last-minute decision to drop to 71 [kilograms], the profile increase and achievement in Paris [saw] my stock rise so it made sense to naturally transition.

"Middleweight is the plan, you'll note it's taken a little while but I'm quite methodical around my approach to live in every aspect, took my time to get the right deal, with the right team and people around me - small and tight circle - I'm excited to get the journey cracking."

He'll be trained by Dennis Adams, father of 6-0 super-featherweight hopeful Billy Adams and sounded excited about getting to work with an "under-the-radar" head coach.

"I went through quite a few pro gyms, and have been waiting for people to ask me this question. I had a good relationship with Bill from Team GB - he has a similar style to me - liked the advice Dennis offered and the man he is. We all know what business we're entering, trust is a massive thing and I'm confident I've got the right people around me to excel."

A keen footballer during his youth, Richardson revealed boxing was his "real passion" and cited the accountability in a one-on-one environment as the thing which attracted him most to the discipline, rather than the collective nature of team-based sports.

He appeared pitchside at Colchester United's goalless draw with Barrow earlier in the day, their final League Two game of the campaign, to announce his news and spoke positively about the reception received from an 8,000-strong attendance, some he's hoping are convinced to make the short journey into Ipswich in a month's time.

"The stadium is 20 minutes from me so it is the perfect location, I'll be expecting a big turnout from Colchester to make the short trip."

Although he hasn't got an opponent scheduled yet, his team are in the process of matching him now and were given "a few names" to mull over this week.

He briefly embraced spectator mode to discuss the newly-announced main event, as WBO's No. 1-ranked contender Justis Huni (12-0, 7 KOs) steps up to replace an injured Jarrell Miller in the Australian's first fight after elbow surgery.

"Huni is an absolutely fantastic opponent, I remember watching him in the amateurs - very good fighter - might not have Miller's profile, but is smaller and a more explosive man, it's a fantastic fight. You've got to give Fabio credit for taking it, a tough task for him."

That was echoed by Hall of Fame promoter Frank Warren, who told Queensberry's official website yesterday of his delight at probably bringing in an "even tougher" opponent than Miller in Huni.

"This will be a great fight between two young heavyweights on the rise, with an eye on the big prize. Justis holds the No. 1 spot in the WBO rankings, so it says a lot about him that he is prepared to surrender his position to fight Fabio in a 50-50 on paper for the WBA interim world title. There is also the added dimension of Justis being a Matchroom fighter, we've got a lead to protect!"

Elsewhere in Ipswich, Commonwealth junior-middleweight champion Sam Gilley hopes he'll add vacant British honours to his collection when rematching Louis Greene over 12 rounds.

After four successful defences of WBC International honours at junior-welterweight, Ireland's Pierce O'Leary (16-0, 9 KOs) steps up to box for the EBU European title vacated by WBC's No. 1 contender Dalton Smith.

No opponent has been confirmed, though Spain's Jon Fernandez (26-3, 22 KOs) is the EBU's ordered challenger and would end a 15-month layoff if the Las Vegas resident steps into the breach next month.

Six other unbeaten prospects on the Queensberry roster will feature in Suffolk, including 4-0 featherweight Lillie Winch over six two-minute rounds and the aforementioned Billy Adams at super-feather.