Vladimir Shishkin versus Oscar Riojas breakdown

Shishkin is one of the better prospects in the Super Middleweight division and will be looking to get his ring rust off here as this is a tune up bout. Oscar Riojas is a journeyman who normally gives people rounds and has fought a lot of the top up and comers in the Super Middleweight division.

Shishkin is very powerful and clearly wants to hurt his opponents at all times. He also has good technical skills and is capable of winning a fight by decision if he can’t get the knockout. He’s a decent sized S-Middle though not one of the absolute monsters of the division like David Benavidez or Callum Smith. I think he’ll likely settle into being a top 15 guy but I would be shocked if he ever won a world title.

Oscar Riojas is a tough journeyman who normally goes the distance with top prospects. He has some name value just due to the people he has fought but only Hardcore fans will know him and thus compare Shishkin’s performance to other fighters that have fought Riojas. He really doesn’t do anything on Shishkin’s level and beyond being tough isn’t a great fighter at this point in his career.

I expect Shishkin to stop him as this is 10 rounds and his power should start to break cracks in Riojas by the 5th or 6th round. Shishkin does everything better than Riojas and this is nothing but a tune up bout. I hope to see Shishkin in with an opponent who’s ranked in the top 15 next as there’s no point in him fighting people everyone knows hes going to beat.

David Benavidez versus Roamer Alexis Angulo breakdown.

This is a more interesting fight because Benavidez missed weight and Angulo looks very prepared.

Benavidez looks to be one of the top talents in the sport but needs to be more dedicated. He is massive for the weight, has a good jab and is really powerful. His defence is a high guard while he walks his opponents down.

Angulo isn’t the most technical fighter and isn’t the hardest to hit. He does possess good power and seems very up for this fight.

I think Benavidez wins a decision as long as hes not weight drained or gets caught by a massive shot. I think in the end his jab and superior size will be enough for him to win.

Michael Conlan versus Sofiane Takoucht breakdown.

On paper this should be a step up opponent for Conlan because Takoucht just fought for a world title but the reality is that Takoucht just isn’t very good. Josh Warrington who isn’t a massive puncher destroyed him in two rounds which is saying something.

Conlan has very good technical skills and a very good amateur background. He’s not the most exciting fighter to watch but he gets the job done in his fights comfortably and hasn’t really done anything wrong in his pro career yet. I think he lacks power but an accumulation of punches or an accurate body shot could can get him the knockout against opponents.

Sofiane Takoucht has lost pretty much every major step up fight and lacks power himself. I don’t think he has great foot work or a particularly solid chin and his defence isn’t great either. He obviously has some skills but he’s going to be so much slower than Conlan I don’t see him being able to do all that much.

I think Conlan wins this fight comfortably and likely by stoppage in the 7th or 8th round after breaking Takoucht down.

Carl Frampton versus Darren Traynor breakdown

This is a tune up fight for Frampton before he goes on to fight Jamel Herring later this year. There’s not a huge amount to break down in this fight as Frampton is the better fighter in almost every aspect.

Carl Frampton is a two weight world champion who has recently been struggling with injuries. He seems to be fully recovered however so this shouldn’t be a problem. I think he goes to the body well and he showed this in his last fight where he dropped his opponent twice with body shots.

Darren Traynor is a solid domestic fighter but has barely proved himself beyond area level and the two times hes stepped up to British level he’s been stopped. He’s also only had one fight in the last two years and may be past his prime at this point. The only thing he has on Frampton is he’s a bit bigger but I don’t think it’s a huge difference.

I think Frampton should be able to win this by stoppage as Traynor has been stopped by fighters that aren’t anywhere near as good as Frampton is. Hopefully we see the Jamel Herring fight after this.

Archie Sharp versus Jeff Ofori breakdown.

This is a very interesting fight because Archie Sharp is a natural Super Featherweight while Jeff Ofori has competed at a good level all the way up at Super Lightweight. Archie Sharp is a big Super Featherweight however and will actually be the taller man in the ring. Both men came in over the 130 pound limit with Sharp weighing a little more than Ofori and so I presume this was agreed as a catch weight fight beforehand.

Jeff Ofori has a good chin and always gives it his all whether he’s the home or away fighter. He fights in bursts where he’ll be aggressive and land 3 or 4 punches and keep up this aggression for half a round or even a round but will then taper off. When he’s not being aggressive he moves around the ring or sometimes stands just out of range of his opponent and you can tell he’s taking time off so he doesn’t punch himself out. This does lead to his opponents being able to steal rounds away from him however especially ones where he does well early but does nothing in the second half of the round which is the part judges remember the most. I thought he performed well up at 140 pounds but did show he isn’t hard to hit and I don’t think his foot work is Great either. I think he punches a bit harder than his record suggests as he keeps people from rushing him but I don’t think he has much chance of KO’ing the top domestic guys whatever division he fights in. He is mostly a combination puncher who takes one to give one though I think this is due to his lacklustre defence rather than by design.

Archie Sharp is a very technically skilled fighter who normally uses his height advantage to full effect. I think he has a good jab and accurate body shots Which have put fighters like Jordan McCorry down. I think he has better foot work than Ofori but I don’t think his defence is levels and levels above Ofori’s though without a crowd it will be interesting too see if he boxes a bit more smartly. He can be drawn into a bit of a brawl and I don’t think this suits him as he’s more of a boxer puncher. He does have a decent amount of power and if he connects cleanly has a good chance of either knocking down or knocking out his opponents. He’s not that far off a world title fight so should be very focused in this fight as one slip up will put him back a few years.

I think Archie Sharp will win this fight by knockout in the 9th or 10th round due to him being more accurate and powerful than Ofori who I think will also struggle with the speed of Sharp. Ofori also lacks a solid defence and while he did go Toe to toe with Ohara Davies this didn’t end well for him as Davies power eventually shone through.

Troy Williamson versus Harry Scarff breakdown.

Troy Williamson is one of the most underrated Super Welterweights in the UK right now. This is a good step up opponent for him as Scarff has boxed Anthony Fowler and went the distance with him.

Harry Scarff tried to box off the back foot in the Fowler fight and had very limited success. He tried to time Fowler with a few shots but honestly after a bit I felt he knew he was losing and just tried to survive by circling the ring. Fowler did eventually drop him in the 9th but apart from that Scarff showed a good chin. He does seem to have decent foot work as he was able to avoid Fowler for most of the fight.

Troy Williamson is a come forward fighter that really goes for the knockout. I’ve been live at one of his fights before and you can see he has a lot of physical strength and power. His shots seem very clubbing and while they might not go down off the first shot they’ll eventually get broken down because of the weight behind the punches. He’s not a defensive wizard but you have to work to hit him and he doesn’t leave his chin in the air. He goes to the body well and this seems to sap the energy out of his opponents and has led to him stopping journeymen that almost never get stopped.

I expect Troy Williamson to win this fight by late stoppage as Scarff is a late replacement who may struggle with stamina in the latter part of the fight. I think stylistically Williamson will be able to stalk Scarff down and slow him with body shots until he gets a stoppage in the 7th or 8th round when Scarff is exhausted and folds under the pressure.

What’s next for Felix Cash, Jason Welborn plus card?

I enjoyed this card overall and the majority of the fights were evenly matched which I was very happy too see.

John Docherty really impressed me by stopping Anthony Fox as Fox is a very good fighter and you have to be some talent to beat him inside the distance. I think Docherty should fight in an eliminator for the British title or even pick up some sort of ranking belt with one of the sanctioning bodies. Anthony Fox should just keep doing what’s hes been doing and taking fights on the road. I think if he sticks to it he can probably win an English or even Commonwealth title.

Kieron Conway looked improved versus Navid Mansouri and picked up his first belt. I’d like too see him versus any of the big domestic names next and if not one of them then perhaps a European fighter as he defends his new WBA ranking belt. Navid Mansouri was competing well before he got hurt and went on his bike for the last five rounds and I think a fight versus Sam Eggington would be a good fight where both are coming off losses.

Rachel Ball dug deep and won the fight for me by winning the 8th and final round. I thought it was a very competitive fight but I did think Ball won no matter what the biased commentary said. I’m really happy for her and hopefully she can get some sort of title shot next. Shannon Courtenay didn’t box badly and will have learn’t a lot from that fight. A fight versus a veteran in the division would be good for her.

Zelfa Barrett scored one of the knockouts of the year after being out boxed for much of the fight. I think a defence or two of his new IBF ranking belt would be a good idea as I don’t think any of the domestic fighters will fight him at this point. I’d like too see Eric Donovan move down to Featherweight and fight someone like Reece Bellotti. I was very impressed by Donovan and would love too see him fight again.

Felix Cash looked like he could become a problem at middleweight as he dispatched Jason Welborn after 5 punishing rounds. I was impressed by his dedication to the body and like I said in my preview he has the will power to dig deep when it gets hard and he’d already shown that. Welborn as suspected no longer has the capability to dig deep and keep going in a hard fight. I think after a long career and being 34 he should retire now, hes just had another child and theres no point in him taking further punishment in his career as he won’t get past English level again.

I’m excited for next weeks fight camp though I do feel the card is lacking depth considering it’s going to be a PPV. Supposedly a few more fights will be announced for it in the coming days so thats a good sign.

David Benavidez misses weight, Loses WBC 168 pound title on the scales.

David Benavidez failed to make weight for his first defence of his 168 pound WBC world title today. He came in more than two pounds overweight and claimed he wouldn’t be able to get the weight off and even if he had wanted to the commission said they wouldn’t let him as it would be a health risk.

Benavidez has claimed he couldn’t get the last couple pounds off as he didn’t have proper access to a sauna or big enough bath tub to sweat the extra weight off. This is likely true but unfortunately its not really an excuse when his opponent Angulo made the weight perfectly.

This is the second time Benavidez has lost his title out of the ring and I’d be surprised if he got the chance to fight for this belt again after screwing up twice. I think he should have to fight an eliminator before getting a shot again but knowing how the WBC can be I imagine he’ll get a vacant title shot if he wins this fight and the title remains vacant.

I hope Roamer Alexis Angulo wins this fight as hes made the weight limit and it would be nice to see the title not be vacant. He’s also 36 and unlikely to get another shot so if he can become a world champion that would be a great story.

Kieron Conway versus Navid Mansouri breakdown.

This should be a very competitive fight as neither are beyond domestic level and look to be very evenly matched.

Kieron Conway is a boxer who doesn’t have a lot of power and from what I’ve watched boxes best when he’s fighting off the back foot. I think the Ted Cheeseman fight flattered him as Cheeseman was just charging forwards and Conway easily picked him off for most of the rounds. I think he has a decent chin and can be good defensively however when he’s on the front foot he’s not hard to tag.

Navid Mansouri is a veteran who has decent skills but is a bit of a domestic gatekeeper. He doesn’t have much power either and has shown he can be out boxed. He has a decent chin but has been dropped before though I don’t think that will play into this fight.

I think Kieron Conway will just manage to win this fight though the scorecards may be a bit controversial. Conway is the house fighter so if it’s close I imagine he’ll get the decision as they’ll want him to be in big domestic fights with Cheeseman and Fowler etc.

Zelfa Barrett versus Eric Donovan breakdown

This is a nice fight for Zelfa Barrett as Donovan should test him but isn’t a natural super featherweight.

Zelfa Barrett has good skills and I like how much he goes to the body. He’s not terrible defensively but hes also not great. Barrett has very quick hands and is also very good technically. He’s the natural Super Featherweight while Eric Donovan is a natural featherweight who is coming to the end of his boxing career. I think Barrett has improved massively since his only loss and I see him getting to world level especially because hes trained by Pat Barrett who I think is one of the best trainers in the country.

Eric Donovan also has good skills but hasn’t been tested in the pro’s yet and while he had a stellar amateur career he hasn’t shown that same skill level in the pro’s yet. I don’t think he has as much power as Barrett and is a natural featherweight so will be dealing with a size and power disadvantage.

I think Zelfa Barrett will win due to being more proven in the pro’s and also having the size and power advantage. I think Eric Donovan can perform better at Featherweight but I still expect him to make this fight competitive.