JAMES Mason believes Holme Wood boxing star Darren Tetley can become a poster boy for Bradford following his signature to the FIVE NINE agency.

Mason left his role as chief operating officer at Bradford City in the summer and set up his new sports agency, which has Bantams legends Jamie Lawrence, Peter Jackson and Gary Jones on the books.

Tetley is one of the latest sports stars to have penned a deal, linking up prior to his 17th professional win at the Bradford Hotel last month.

He won the WBO European welterweight belt in May after a titanic battle with Mason Cartwright, though revealed earlier this month he had been controversially stripped of the title for not informing the governing body about his first home-town fight - something he strongly denies.

Mason believes Tetley has all the right tools to represent the city and outlined plans to build his profile.

“Bradford’s a sporting city. Bradford City have had some wonderful success over the last ten years and before that the Bradford Bulls were world champions,” Mason told The Telegraph and Argus.

“Any sports person that can put Bradford on the map and give some civic pride to the city is something that we at FIVE NINE will always welcome.

“While the football club are having a tough time at the minute, hopefully Darren can be the poster boy for the city and this can be his time to shine.

“At the moment, Darren’s going around schools speaking and inspiring young kids to stay in school, to respect their parents and teachers. If he can give back to what’s been given to him, then everyone wins out of that scenario.

“In Darren, ultimately we want to raise sponsorship income for him, so that if he wants to become a full-time boxer, he can do that, without having to worry about separate work as well as looking after his family.

“Our purpose is to build his profile, try and get as much publicity for Darren’s story as possible, so that when we do get sponsorship, they get their money’s worth in return.”

Tetley explained how he was initially hesitant to sign with the agency.

“When I first discussed the idea with James, I didn’t really believe in agencies,” he admitted.

“But then he spoke how exactly he could help my boxing career. He’s mainly responsible for the PR side of my career and he really understands the business side of the sport.

“I’m really pleased to have signed with him and I think it’s a real positive move for me. From the meetings we had there were so many positive things discussed and, from his previous involvement at Bradford City, I’ve never heard a bad word said about him and that was a big thing for me.”

As a part-time school caretaker, sponsorship income is hugely significant for boxers such as Tetley and something Mason is aiding.

“I’ve just had Napoleon’s Casino on board now and there’s few others in the pipeline as well, and I’ve only been part of the agency for a few weeks,” added Tetley.

“I’m making appearances in primary schools - which I love to do, explaining how my life could have gone wrong and how I turned it around.

“I was at an evening with former Bradford City players recently. I’m doing some filming as well with some people from the football club so things are really starting to come together now.”

“These are things that I enjoy to do as well. Speaking in schools is something I enjoy and I’d love to get into after boxing.

“James is the man who can get me those appearances and to get my name out of there and he’s going a brilliant job of it.”