We all know what happened with the latter fight and now the big event is the rematch between Tony Bellew and David Haye from their first bout in March 2017.
The injury suffered by Haye also put an asterisk by the win for Bellew but the latter is confident he can 'repeat' his success on a busy night from The O2 Arena in London.
Gennady Golovkin is also in action this Saturday but the scrapping of the bout with Canelo means there is far less general interest in the fight to come. However I love watching GGG and I think it could be a decent scrap later in the evening for those who want to continue watching the Boxing late into the early hours of Sunday morning.
Martin Joseph Ward vs James Tennyson
The opening bout of the evening for the television cameras looks like it could be a decent one as both Martin Joseph Ward and James Tennyson look to set themselves up for a potential World Title scrap either later in 2018 or early 2019.
The winner certainly has a chance to do that while the losing fighter will head back down to domestic level and have to rebuild. Both are certainly young enough to do that, but I expect both Joseph Ward and Tennyson see this fight as a kind of marker for what they can do in this sport going forward.
It is Joseph Ward who puts his unbeaten record on the line with Tennyson suffering two stoppage losses in his career. One of those stoppages was a real stunner against an opponent who had lost 64/71 fights when Tennyson faced him, while the other against Ryan Walsh is a more respectable loss.
However I do think Tennyson has found his ceiling and I expect Joseph Ward to surpass that.
This is a step up for Joseph Ward but I think the boxing ability will see him able to keep Tennyson in awkward spots and away from landing the heavy shots he is known for. Joseph Ward is able to hurt people himself, but he will accept he is the boxer in this bout and I expect the game plan to be to frustrate Tennyson and put the Rounds in the bank.
Tennyson being stopped in both career defeats is a concern when it comes to making the pick for this opening fight at The O2 Arena, but I think Joseph Ward has an impressive Unanimous Decision to put into the books and keep the career moving onwards and upwards.
Lenroy Thomas vs Joe Joyce
In just his fourth fight as a professional, Joe Joyce has been set up to face the Commonwealth Champion Lenroy Thomas who is well known in the United Kingdom having faced popular David Allen twice.
The second clash was a couple of months ago but was cut short after a clash of heads in the First Round, while Thomas was able to win a Split Decision against Allen prior to that.
However most consider Joe Joyce a much bigger prospect than the likes of Allen and he is being fast-tracked to the top of the Heavyweight Division. That was made clear with a debut against the tough Ian Lewison and his promoter, one David Haye, was keen to set up a meeting with Dereck Chisora rather than Thomas at this point.
Chisora is a bigger test than Thomas in my opinion and I fully expect Joyce to put in a dominant display against an awkward opponent.
Thomas has been beaten four times in his career and three of those have come by stoppage and all of those stoppages have been in the Third or Fourth Round. Dominic Breazeale is one of those who have managed to stop Thomas in his sixth professional fight, and it is the American who is the biggest name on the Thomas record.
I just haven't been that impressed with Thomas' resume and I think he will always be found out when he steps up a level and I do believe Joyce is a step up for him. Joyce has stopped all three opponents he has faced and I expect him to record another here, although he may need a few more Rounds than his last two fights which have both ended in the First Round.
It feels like Joyce will showcase a little more of his skill in this one as he gets to grip with the southpaw stance Thomas operates in. But once he does I expect the Joyce power to come through and become the latest man to stop Thomas so a small interest in the British fighter to come through somewhere between the Fourth and Sixth Round looks worth taking on.
Paul Butler vs Emmanuel Rodriguez
This was originally supposed to be the chief support to the main event at The O2 Arena with the vacant IBF Bantamweight World Title on the line which has been dropped by Ryan Burnett.
Paul Butler unfortunately missed the weight on Friday and made the decision that he would not try and shed his pounds which means the title is only on the line for Emmanuel Rodriguez who is a major prospect.
You can't always tell how fighters will step up and this definitely a step up for Rodriguez especially as he goes on the road to try and take the World Title.
However Rodriguez has all the look of a fighter that not only will reach the very top, but one who could become a real star in this Division.
Butler has a strong record and he won't make it easy for Rodriguez, but I think missing weight is always a concern. This also looks to be the toughest fight Butler has had since being stopped by the impressive Zolani Tete and I do think Rodriguez has all the makings of a fighter that could be involved in some huge Unification fights in the Bantamweight Division.
There has been talk from the Butler camp that they've seen inexperienced mistakes made by Rodriguez, but I think the latter will show he is ready to take the step to be considered one of the elite fighters in this Division. At some stage I expect the body work from Rodriguez to take their toll and I will back the Puerto Rican to find the stoppage and make a name for himself at the top of his Division.
John Ryder vs Jamie Cox
So instead of Paul Butler vs Emmanuel Rodriguez a real fifty-fifty bout from the Super-Middleweight Division offers the chief support to the main event in London on Saturday evening.
For both John Ryder and Jamie Cox this fight may also represent a fork in the road with the winner having chances to fight for World Titles and the loser perhaps contemplating where their career can go.
To be honest I thought it would be Cox favoured by the layers, but it is in fact Ryder who is edging favouritism.
'The Gorilla' does have four career losses on his record but rejuvenated his career with a win over Patrick Nielson in his last bout seven months ago. That is a strong win for Ryder, but losses to Billy Joe Saunders, Nick Blackwell, Jack Arnfield and Rocky Fielding suggests the win over Nielson was against the odds.
Jamie Cox will certainly feel he is operating on the same kind of plane of some of those boxers who have wins over Ryder. He wasn't boxing badly before being hit with a huge punch by George Groves in his sole professional loss and Cox may feel Ryder doesn't bring the same kind of power to the party as one of the best in the Division.
However it can be hard to read into Cox with the fight against Groves the sole real step up in his career, but he has won European and Commonwealth Titles and I think that puts him above the levels that Ryder has reached.
It is a close fight though and I think it could be difficult to score at times with two southpaw boxers not always gelling together the best. I do think Cox may be the better fighter in the contest though and I have to back him as the 'underdog' to come out with a win and get back into a position to fight for major Titles at the Super-Middleweight level.
Tony Bellew vs David Haye 2
That picture is about as friendly as things are going to be between Tony Bellew and David Haye who are set to meet for a second time fourteen months after their first bout.
A torn Achilles ended any real hope for Haye to win a fight he had been leading 4-1 on the scoreboards before the injury in the Sixth Round. The former Unified Cruiserweight World Champion was on one leg for the next six Rounds before seeing the towel thrown in, but that has always meant questions about the validity of Bellew's win.
That obviously grates on Bellew, which is fair considering he called the fight to go almost exactly as it did, and there is a confidence in his camp that they can 'repeat'.
Personally I do think we will see 'revenge'.
David Haye did not box well in the first fight between these two, but I think much had to do with his mindset and the belief he was going to walk through Bellew without too much fuss. Instead it was a much tougher night and the Haye timing was significantly off.
I don't think he is anything like as poor again and I think Haye coming in lighter works very well for him in this rematch.
Tony Bellew has to be respected for what he has achieved in the sport, but I can't help think he doesn't really have the power to hurt Haye as much as he thinks. Beating on a one-legged opponent and barely getting him out of there suggests it is unlikely Bellew can power past Haye and instead he has to hope the latter is really a shadow of himself.
I just think Haye is going to be a much cleverer and more calculated fighter in this rematch and I also believe his power is going to be the difference. It may not come early, as Haye has been suggesting this week with his personal prediction a mid to late stoppage.
But I do think it will come.
I expect better timing and rhythm from Haye and I will back him to find the stoppage in this rematch. I won't look for a time, but I will look for timing from Haye and perhaps a chance to vault himself into the suddenly fruitful Heavyweight Division.
Gennady Golovkin vs Vanes Martirosyan
Some of the top Boxing writers have really been crapping on this Middleweight bout between Gennady Golovkin and Vanes Martirosyan but I think they should reserve their dislike for Canelo Alvarez whose tainted blood sample is the reason we are not getting a rematch all the fans want to see.
You can understand the disappointment, but it is not Golovkin's fault and he has picked an opponent who will give this a real go.
Of course you can't ignore the fact that Martirosyan has not been in the ring since losing a Unanimous Decision to Erislandy Lara almost two years ago and in the weight Division below this one.
That inactivity does raise doubts for someone on short notice, but Martirosyan has been in the ring with some of the biggest names in the Light-Middleweight Division even if he has come up short each time. He has not been stopped in any of those which shows toughness, but the step up to Middleweight is another big question to answer.
I expect he will give Golovkin some early issues with the speed on his side, much like Kell Brook did when he faced the Kazakhstan superstar in London. However, like Brook, eventually the power of Golovkin should prove too much and he should begin to wear down Martirosyan around the mid-Rounds.
Golovkin can then begin to get ready for what is likely to be a September showdown with Canelo and I will back him to finish this one impressively anywhere between the Fifth and Eighth Round.
MY PICKS: Martin Joseph Ward By Decision/Technical Decision @ 2.37 Sporting Bet (2 Units)
Joe Joyce Win Between 4-6 @ 3.25 Ladbrokes (1 Unit)
Emmanuel Rodriguez Win by KO/TKO or Disqualification @ 2.50 William Hill (2 Units)
Jamie Cox @ 2.25 Bet Fred (2 Units)
David Haye by KO/TKO or Disqualification @ 1.91 Betfair Sportsbook (2 Units)
Gennady Golovkin Win Between 5-8 @ 2.62 Ladbrokes (2 Units)
Boxing Update 2018: 13-20, + 13.13 Units (48 Units Staked, + 27.35% Yield)
Boxing Update 2018: 13-20, + 13.13 Units (48 Units Staked, + 27.35% Yield)
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