BRADLEY Pryce has been denied entry to the USA handing Joe Calzaghe a big blow ahead of his November 8 fight with Roy Jones Jr in New York.

Calzaghe's sparring partner, Bradley Pryce, was not allowed into the USA because he did not have a visa.

He had encountered problems in April when his visa arrived too late for him to travel to Las Vegas before Calzaghe's fight with Bernard Hopkins.

Pryce, who has a number of drink-related convictions on his record, said he had been under the impression he would not need a visa.

Pryce hopes his absence will not be to Calzaghe's detriment.

"Joe has probably done enough sparring," said Pryce. "There's another boy on the bill - Kerry Hope - so maybe he can help out a bit. He's southpaw though, not the style Joe wants to spar with.

"The sparring's been done, but it would have been nice to keep sharp and help out. That's why I was going over there."

Pryce has fought once this year, successfully defending his Commonwealth light-middleweight title by defeating Marcus Portman in June.