Ebanie Bridges returns after her war with Shannon Courtenay against the tough Bec Connolly. Bridges is 5-1 while Connolly is 3-9 but is better than her record suggests.
I actually think this fight will be more competitive than people expect as Connolly has had a full camp and Bridges isn’t a hard stylistic match up for her. Both of these fighters will be coming forward throughout the fight in my opinion which will lead to it being an outright war.
Bec Connolly
I think Bridges will likely outwork Connolly over eight rounds as her punches are a bit crisper and she showed she has an incredible engine in the Courtenay fight. It would be great if Connolly could put on the performance of her career but she’ll have to go through hell to win most likely.
I think this match up is a lot closer than the bookies have it and as an English heavyweight title fight it’s great. Fabio Wardley is 11-0 with 10 knockouts and has progressed quickly as a pro while looking good for the most part. Nick Webb is 17-2 with 13 knockouts and while he’s had bumps in the road hes on a good run of form recently.
I think Fabio Wardley is fairly open defensively and keeps his hands much to low. He also moves a lot in and out but still gets caught a lot when his opponents show any sort of class. While this may be his style I just don’t think its especially effective in a division full of heavy handed fighters unless you are completely perfect and Wardley isn’t. He has good attributes such as his power and speed but his performance in his last fight made me think that any puncher with confidence has a chance versus him.
Nick Webb is a big heavyweight and punches like one. He can box but his main asset is his power. While hes been stopped twice you have to look at how he’s bounced back and the current form hes on. I don’t think the Nick Webb that got stopped by Sokolowski and Dave Allen is the same one stepping into the ring on Saturday. I think Webb’s recent successes have made him confident and a confident fighter with power is a scary one. He’s also been able to prepare better for his recent fights and that is clearly showing in my opinion.
Fabio Wardley
I think this fight could go either way but I have a feeling the underdog Webb will land something big on Wardley in an exchange or when Wardley is hopping about with his hands low and that will lead to Webb winning by stoppage. Wardley could also stop Webb as he’s clearly a decent fighter but I think he’s liable to getting caught and Webb is the man to do it.
This is an excellent fight for the IBF featherweight world title over twelve rounds. Kid Galahad is 27-1 with 16 knockouts, his lone loss was a split decision to then IBF Champion Josh Warrington in a fight he arguably could have won. James Dickens has gone on a good run of fights since losing back to back fights four years ago. Both fighters have progressed massively since their first fight and I don’t think it will play out the same way at all.
Kid Galahad is a defensively good fighter who can either put pressure on or fight on the back foot depending on what he needs to do. He’s technically very good, stays in shape and has shown grit in fights. I imagine he’ll box on the back foot for this fight and clinch after landing a few punches on Dickens who will be trying to get into a rhythm the whole fight. Galahad will try to prevent that for twelve rounds and beyond their various skill, that is the thing that matters most and will determine who wins. Dickens is a good fighter when he gets into a rhythm of fighting but is slightly less dynamic than Galahad, who can adapt to who hes fighting.
James Dickens
I feel this fight will be close but I think Galahad will disrupt Dickens game plan enough to win seven rounds and take a decision. Galahad should be able to hurt Dickens but I don’t think Dickens can do the same to Galahad, this will mean Galahad has more room to execute his game plan while Dickens may be thrown off his at various parts in the fight.
Alen “The Savage” Babic will take on Mark “Bad News” Bennett over eight rounds in the second week of Matchroom’s annual fight camp series. Alen Babic (7-0, seven knockouts) has gone on a rampage over the last two years in true “savage” style and seemingly has no plans on stopping anytime soon. His latest challenger standing in the way of his bloody crusade is Mark Bennett, who at 6,5 and 260 pounds is the largest heavyweight Babic has faced. Mark Bennett boasts a proud record of 7-1 with only one stoppage to his name however he clearly has more power than his record suggests.
Alen Babic has a simple style of unrelenting violence until either he or his opponent is stopped with little regard given in terms of defence. He comes forward and throws every punch with power behind it until his opponents crumble under his pressure, succumbing to overhand rights, clubbing punches to the body and hooks that turn their body’s completely around like they are part of a violent ballet.
Mark Bennett doesn’t have the ferociousness or power of Babic but makes up for it in size and determination. Bennett will trudge forward like a cart horse, strong, tough and no stranger to hard work which in the case of Bennett means wild overhand rights and the occasional solid jab as he goes to work in the ring. Similarly to Babic, Mark Bennett isn’t an avid fan of head movement and embodies the mindset of mano a mano.
Mark Bennett (right) in his fight with Nick Webb
In what should be a three round all out brawl, Alen Babic will emerge victorious due to his high work rate and Bennett’s lack of head movement which will lead to Babic landing thunderous overhand rights, again and again. Babic’s one man raiding party against the domestic heavyweights of Britain may be doomed to end woefully but it’ll be a fun ride of beautiful, simple violence until that day comes.
This is a good fight between fringe contenders in the Welterweight and Super Welterweight divisions. Ivan Golub has gone on a solid run since losing a controversial decision to Jamontay Clark in 2017 while Walker recently put in a good but losing performance versus Uzbek prospect Israil Madrimov.
Both are tough fighters who have been on the fringes of contention for years now but haven’t been able to break through. Golub is better technically and should probably be on TV cards regularly with his talent level. Walker had a very tough fight in his last fight where he took huge amounts of damage to the point I was seriously worried about his health. Madrimov essentially knocked him out but the referee said that Walker was pushed meaning Walker was given time to recover from being knocked out, only to stagger through the last four rounds while taking huge amounts of punishment. I think this could still effect him in this fight and with him moving down in weight he may be slightly drained as well.
Ivan Golub
I think Ivan Golub should be able to use his technical skills to outbox Walker who may still be struggling under the effects of his last fight.
I’m a little disappointed in Michael Hunter as he was on a good run at heavyweight but since drawing with Povetkin on the Anthony Joshua versus Andy Ruiz 2 card hes only had one fight versus a vastly inferior opponent and is doing the same here eight months later. Mike Wilson hasn’t fought since 2019 and is a career Cruiser weight who has never been regarded as being world class. He’s also 38 and I imagine if he loses this fight will retire from professional boxing for good.
Hunter had the option of fighting Filip Hrgovic in a final eliminator for the IBF which if Hunter had won would guarantee him a world title shot. He turned the fight down and instead took a deal with Triller which will see him make money but in my opinion get him no closer to a world title shot which is what he’s said his objective is. I don’t mind fighters going for the money but I do find it annoying when it stops good fights from happening. From Hunter this was especially annoying considering hes said he would fight Whyte for free before which while being an exaggeration, showed his mindset towards fighting or at least what he wanted people to think his mindset was.
Mike Wilson
In regards to this fight I think Michael Hunter will simply be too quick for Wilson who will get stopped within five or six rounds. Hunter has shown good hand speed and combinations which will be effective against an inactive fighter in my opinion.
I’m a little surprised this fight is taking place as Hanamori doesn’t have a lot of experience and probably needs a few more fights before stepping up for a Japanese title fight at super bantamweight. Furuhashi the current champion has a wealth of experience and he used that to win the title in January. He’s been a pro since 2007 but it wasn’t until early 2021 that he managed to get his hands on a deserved professional title after a long grueling career.
Furuhashi isn’t a slick fighter and his defence consists of putting his gloves up and moving backwards in a straight line which leaves him fairly open defensively. Many fighters catch him with multiple punches in combinations which slip through his guard. He uses the left hook to the body regularly and is quite creative with his left hand considering hes an orthodox fighter. He has some power but his biggest attribute is his toughness and ability to out grit his opponents.
Seigo Hanamori is the taller fighter but is actually moving up in weight for this fight after mixed results at bantamweight. He hasn’t lost since 2018 but also hasn’t faced anybody of real note since that loss. He’s better than his 7-3 record suggests and will give Furuhashi some problems early in the fight.
Seigo Hanamori
I think Furuhashi will come on strong late in the fight and due to his experience and grit will win by knockout in the 7th or 8th round.
Petro Ivanov is a dark horse in the super middleweight division and if he keeps progressing could be in some fringe world level fights. Ortiz is a domestic fighter in Mexico who’s had mixed results and is a fairly average fighter in my opinion.
I think Petro Ivanov will have too much power for Ortiz and will stop him within five or six rounds.
This should be a good fight for Coffie to get rounds in but not much else. Coffie has gone from being a heavyweight no one knew to being a fringe world level contender who was supposed to take on a good name in Gerald Washington this weekend. Washington had to pull out of the fight due to something with Covid and so in stepped journeyman Jonathan Rice.
Rice is a tough fighter and is a good size for a heavyweight but has a fairly basic skill set and doesn’t seem all that bothered about if he wins or loses. Coffie has power and decent timing. He also has an underrated skill set technically.
I think Michael Polite Coffie will win this fight by decision after ten rounds due to having more notice and having more will to win than Rice.
Sandy Ryan is making her pro debut after an accomplished amateur career. Bavington is a good opponent for her debut and clearly shows they want to move her quickly towards a title shot.
Sandy Ryan is very technically good and may find her style fits the pro’s better than the amateurs. Bavington isn’t a bad fighter but simply isn’t as technically good as Ryan who benefits from her long amateur career.
I think Sandy Ryan will win a decision after either four or six rounds due to being technically superior.
Boxing Fulcrum 