The first month of 2017 has been really good with some top fights already in the books, but it should be said that this weekend is not exactly a PPV quality card. The Eubanks always seem to do what they want anyway, but I am not convinced ITV will be impressed with the main event, which was originally the only fight that was going to be on the PPV portion of the card.
The decision makers quickly realised that Ronald Quinlan is not really a name that is going to help attract the numbers and so the undercard has now been moved to the PPV section too. All in all I am not sure this is going to make ITV too impressed regardless of which names the Eubanks call out from the worlds of boxing or MMA.
This is no longer the time to call out the big names, but sign the big contracts although I do think a lot will depend on whether ITV get the big numbers for a card that isn't even worth a lot of time if it was on a free to view channel.
David Price vs Christian Hammer
Arguably the best fight of the night comes from the Heavyweight division in what is effectively a World Title Eliminator.This should be David Price's last chance to get into a position to win a World Title although we have seen boxers like Audley Harrison just hang around the scene for long enough to talk themselves into a fight. A defeat for Price would remove him from the world scene, but he could always be looked as someone that could be rebuilt and fed to Anthony Joshua later down the line.
However, like I have said, this should be a final chance for a boxer who has underachieved in most people's eyes from where he should have been at this stage of his career. Price has been unfortunate that a couple of the defeats he has suffered have come against boxers who have later tested positively for drug use, but most will look at the Liverpudlian as someone who is perhaps a little fragile and not really a threat to the top names in the Division.
Price himself is obviously still full of belief and this is a good chance for him to see whether he is on the right path when he meets Christian Hammer. British fight fans should remember Hammer as the boxer who took on Tyson Fury in Fury's last fight before taking on Wladimir Klitschko for the World Heavyweight Title and the Romanian was retired in the eighth Round that day.
Hammer has rebuilt himself since that loss, which doesn't look so bad when you see where Fury went after that, and his Split Decision win over Erkan Teper is an interesting result. Teper beat Price in two brutal Rounds, although was later found to have failed a drugs test.
The oddsmakers do have Price as the favourite in this one, but he isn't an overwhelming one and Hammer has shown he can be tough and need to be worn down. I think Price has plenty of power, but Hammer managed to take what Teper was able to hand out and that will give him confidence in this one.
Hammer has usually found the world level beyond his capabilities but Price is yet to prove he is going to be able reach that level himself. I do think Price is likely to be the stronger fighter, but Hammer is durable enough to take this one into the second half of the fight as he showed against the likes of Teper and Fury.
A lot of Price's wins have come early in fights when is power is very evident, but I think he may have to bide his time. I do think Price can match the kind of win Fury had over Hammer and I will have a small interest on this fight being stopped in the second half.
Chris Eubank Jr vs Renold Quinlan
There will be some trying to indicate that this is a genuine contest between evenly matched opponents, but don't be fooled for a moment that Chris Eubank Jr isn't handpicking someone he should be taking out with some comfort.
As much as we want to point to Renold Quinlan's win over Daniel Geale as meaning something, the latter is a veteran on the slide and the Australian heading overseas for the first time with an 11-1 record is not going to get too many people backing him for the upset. Quinlan will talk a good game, but there is nothing on his resume to think he is anything more than a chance for Eubank to showcase his talent.
But anyone who thinks this is going to entice the biggest names to fight Eubank Jr is going to be disappointed until the Eubanks realise they are not the 'A' side of any of the fights they have called for. Instead they keep pushing for the lion share of things and that is not going to happen until Eubank Jr can beat someone of note.
That isn't Quinlan and I think this is going to be an easy day in the office for Eubank Jr.
Much will depend on what Eubank Jr wants to prove as to how long this fight is going to last, but I wouldn't at all be surprised if it is an early night for the British fighter. Backing Chris Eubank Jr to win this one inside the first three Rounds looks very possible in this one and is worth a small interest.
Chris Eubank Jr Win Between 1-3 @ 4.00 Bet365 (1 Unit)
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