The main one is going to be focusing on Anthony Joshua's rematch with Oleksandr Usyk that is set for July 23rd, although it looks like being another event heading to the oil rich money of the Middle East.
We have all been waiting for some time to hear about the official announcement of the rumoured date, but that looks to be coming and there also is a suggestion that Dereck Chisora has lined up a big fight despite the calls for retirement.
I honestly just hope it is not Deontay Wilder for his sake if nothing else.
Retirements have been high in the news cycle this week with both Kell Brook and Amir Khan calling it a day within forty-eight hours of one another. It is the best path for both who were involved in the grudge fight back in February, especially when there isn't anything left to prove and with young, hungry fighters looking to call them out to pad their own records on their march up the World Rankings.
The two fighters can both be proud of careers that saw them become World Champions, and I do think the links both have made will mean they can enjoy media work in the years ahead.
Another big weekend of Championship Boxing is in front of us, but I don't think any result will be able to match the headlines of last weekend when Canelo Alvarez was beaten for only the second time.
Let's get this out of the way first- the cards were horrible and Dmitry Bivol did well to avoid some of the things I have criticised him for and that would be to coast when feeling he had built a big lead.
For my eyes he was way in front going into the Championship Rounds, but a coasting Bivol would have been robbed of the victory and the feeling remains that you have to win HUGE to earn a narrow nod on the cards against Canelo.
I am not going to downplay the career Canelo has been putting together like some feel they should after the loss, but I do think he has seen that 175 is too high and that may mean going back to 168 where Bivol is happy to accept a rematch or, more likely, complete the trilogy with Gennady Golovkin.
Regardless of the result, Canelo is still the big ticket seller and he can choose his own path going forward, while Dmitry Bivol should be in line for some big fights even if the rematch doesn't materialise. Unifying the Light Heavyweight Division has to be high on the agenda considering we have a part Unification coming up next month and I think both Canelo and Bivol will come out of that May fight with plenty of money to be made.
There are cards galore this week from Europe through to North America and the action starts on Friday.
The main focus has to be the big Undisputed fight coming up at Light Middleweight when Jermell Charlo and Brian Castano meet for a second time and that is a card that also includes future pound for pound star Jaron Ennis.
Rankings will be moved around by the end of the weekend in the Heavyweight Division at World level, while a big British Middleweight Title clash is leading the way on Friday.
My Picks did not have the best weekend- I never really thought Canelo would lose a Decision in Las Vegas and he almost got away with it too.
One out of the four Picks returned a winner, but I am expecting better this weekend.
The vacant British Middleweight Title is on the line as Denzel Bentley tries to regain the strap he dropped to Felix Cash in a Three Round blowout in April 2021.
He has only been out once since then, but will fight for the vacant belt when taking on undefeated Linus Udofia.
The crowd are likely to be behind Londoner Bentley, but the heavy loss to Felix Cash does weigh on the mind. He did return with a big win of his own, but I have to feel that Linus Udofia is going to believe he can hurt his man, especially having stopped the last two opponents he has faced.
You have to accept that Denzel Bentley has been operating in the higher company, but Linus Udofia may be a progressive fighter and that makes this absolutely a 50/50 fight. The fact they have both only been Ten Rounds once each also throws in something to consider with the British Title fought out at Twelve Rounds.
Out of the two, Linus Udofia has at least shown his power carries into the later Rounds with Denzel Bentley only beating one opponent by stoppage after the Fifth Round. Of course you have to consider how dangerous Bentley has been with thirteen of his fifteen wins ending early, but the Felix Cash defeat shows that the Londoner can also be found out in the early part of any fight.
It certainly makes things intriguing- I would say that Denzel Bentley is the one that is likely going to want this to become a tear up from the off, but Linus Udofia has shown a good Boxing ability and may feel he can weather the early storm before putting it on his man. This is a big step up for Udofia, and it really could come down to whether he has the stamina to last in a contest that is scheduled for longer than either fighter has been in before.
I would be surprised if this is not a really fun Title fight and I think it would be a surprise if we see it go the distance.
The feeling is that it may spark pretty quickly, and much is going to depend on the conditioning and whiskers of Linus Udofia who will have to eat some big shots early. If he can handle that, I expect he may begin to use his Boxing skills to break down Denzel Bentley and start to tag him pretty good as we get into the second half of the fight.
That is where the Udofia late stoppages against Darren Codona and John Harding Jr may give him the belief to push on against the former British Middleweight Champion and it could give him the edge to earn the victory inside the distance.
I expect Linus Udofia to get plenty of supporters in from Luton for this one and it should be a strong atmosphere inside the Indigo part of the O2 Arena.
Fireworks could be from the off, but I think Linus Udofia may be able to edge past the former Champion with a strong second half display to force the end of the contest.
On the undercard, Josh Kelly makes his return after being beaten convincingly by David Avanesyan in February 2021.
He is just 1-1-1 in his last three fights and Kelly has lost the advantage he seemed to have over Conor Benn when both were up and coming prospects. Josh Kelly has to be given credit for going in with Avanesyan, a fighter Conor Benn's promotional team seem reluctant to face, but he is now going up to 154 and is looking to make a statement on his return.
I expect he will be able to do that against Xhuljo Vrenozi who has been stopped three times in his career and all of those inside the first Three Rounds. One of those was a defeat to the aforementioned Linus Udofia in Three Rounds and I expect Josh Kelly to just shake off a bit of ring rust early before getting this done way before halfway.
An undefeated Harlem Eubank is also set for another step up in his career when taking on veteran Sean Dodd.
Masher has been out of the ring for several months now and at 37 years old I am not sure there is a lot left in the tank.
Harlem Eubank may not have the profile of Chris Eubank Jr, but he is backed by his cousin and I do think he is progressing nicely in his career. At 28 years old, you do want to start seeing him step up the level of competition and facing someone like Sean Dodd is a good step, but the feeling is that Eubank will box well early and then start grinding down this opponent late.
Three of the last four wins have come by early route, but Harlem Eubank has needed at least Five Rounds each time and I think he may have to wait a little longer against Sean Dodd. The veteran should be able to negotiate any early troubles, but you do have to wonder how much is left in the tank and I can just see the younger, fresher man to wear him down and secure the shots to end this one late in the second Ten Rounder Harlem Eubank has been scheduled to take on.
Jermell Charlo vs Brian Castano
The Undisputed Light Middleweight Title is going to have a second go at providing a winner as Jermell Charlo and Brian Castano meet ten months after a controversial Draw in Texas.
The main feeling back then was that Brian Castano had done enough to win the fight, but fans of Jermell Charlo will feel their man came back into late and maybe even did enough considering the trouble he had Castano in during the Tenth Round.
Controversy has perhaps been attached to the outcome mainly down to the 117/111 card that was thrown in favouring Charlo- there was no way to really believe a wide outcome for any of the two fighters was deserved- and I think that has contributed to those who feel it was a robbery. In reality there was only a single point between the fighters on the other two cards and this is going to come down to which of the two has been able to learn the most from the first fight and who can make the best adjustments on the night.
Jermell Charlo has shown that ability in rematches before and I do think he will be hugely encouraged by how much he was hurting Brian Castano once he got into the rhythm of the opponent. I expect similar from Castano in this one with his come forward, pressure style looking to give Charlo plenty to think about.
I do think he will have success with that approach, but a part of that will be Jermell Charlo just warming to the task early as he tends to do.
However, the difference this time will be that Jermell Charlo should be a little more prepared for the style and I think he will begin to get to Brian Castano much earlier than he did when they met last July. And Charlo proved he had the power to really cause Castano plenty of problems, much as he did to Tony Harrison when they met in their rematch.
The feeling is that this will be competitive and fun, but I think the superior hitting power of Jermell Charlo will be telling much earlier than it was when they first fought. And knowing Rounds could be close, I think Charlo will be a little more focused on finding the finish when he does have Brian Castano in trouble.
A stoppage could be coming and I think Jermell Charlo won't allow Brian Castano to escape the kind of trouble he faced in the Tenth Round last time. I expect he may be hurting the Argentinian a bit earlier than he did the first time around and so I do think Charlo will have the time to find the finish that eluded him in July to become the Undisputed Champion in the Division.
The chief support on the night comes from Jaron Ennis and there is no doubt that this is a fighter who will be headlining big events of his own in the years ahead.
A loaded 147 Division holds no fears for Boots and there have been very few that look like they will be able to handle Jaron Ennis when he is signed off on a World Title bout. That may be a few months away with Terence Crawford and Errol Spence Jr likely to face each other for the Undisputed mantle, but Ennis is positioning himself perfectly.
Even when he has stepped up he has been dominating opponents and I think Jaron Ennis has far too much for Custio Clayton.
The Canadian is unbeaten, but his last fight was against an opponent with a losing record and the sole blotch on his record is the draw with Sergey Lipinets- the same fighter that was beaten up and stopped in Six Rounds by Jaron Ennis.
Of course the triangle theory does not work very well in Boxing with styles making fights, but Jaron Ennis hits hard and I am not sure Custio Clayton is prepared for what he is going to be facing.
I expect another relatively early night for what looks to be the future King of the 147 Division before Jaron Ennis likely moves up the weights.
As I have mentioned before in this post, there are so many cards on the same night and some of the other selections are from the various events being held.
Gilberto Ramirez is operating up at Light Heavyweight these days and he has been calling out the Champions in the Division- Dmitry Bivol's win last week has only upped the feeling Ramirez has to fight for a World Title and become a two weight Champion.
He should be too good for Dominic Boesel, but Gilberto Ramirez is looking for style points and I think he will become the third fighter to stop the German. Backing the former 168 World Champion to get the job in the middle of the fight looks the call with half of his four fights at Light Heavyweight being won in the Fourth Round.
On the same card William Zepeda is building his reputation in each fight and he should have too much for Rene Alvarado who came up short in trying to win a World Title in recent bouts with Roger Gutierrez at 130. Now he has to come up a weight to fight someone with considerable power and I think the Mexican southpaw will impress with another relatively early night in the office.
Rene Alvarado has shown toughness, but keeping William Zepeda completely at bay may be too much with the extra power at this weight helping break down the veteran. Everyone associated with William Zepeda wants to see him given some Rounds and I think Alvarado will last longer than most before succumbing.
Sergey Kovalev is back this weekend for the first time since his crushing loss to Canelo Alvarez, but he is now operating at Cruiserweight and takes on Tervel Pulev.
The latter hasn't been much more active, but he is the naturally bigger man and I am not sure Sergey Kovalev has much left in the tank. Backing Kubrat's brother to find the big shots to end this one inside the distance looks overpriced considering I don't think Kovalev has a lot left these days and I think that can be backed.
However, I am not convinced it will be a perfect night for the Pulev brothers and I think Jerry Forrest might upset Kubrat Pulev on the cards. The latter has not really looked like his heart is fully invested in trying to return to the top of the Heavyweight Division and he is back for the first time since losing to Anthony Joshua, one bareknuckle fight with Frank Mir aside, while Jerry Forrest has been working hard.
The American has been hard done by on the cards in a number of recent bouts with the feeling he did enough to beat Zhilei Zhang and Michael Hunter, but settling for Draws both times. Jerry Forrest also lost a very close one to unbeaten Jermaine Franklin and to Carlos Takam and he might be more ready to dig that much deeper than Kubrat Pulev to sneak this one on the cards.
There is Heavyweight action in the United States, but one in France looks like it could set up the next big challenger to those holding the World Titles.
Tony Yoka and Martin Bakole have been waiting for some time to meet one another and will feel they are clearing some hurdles by winning this fight and really putting their names amongst the best of the rest in the Division.
The Frenchman is the favourite and Tony Yoka is a solid Boxer who should be looking to move his career along. He is unbeaten, although this is a step up from previous opponents.
Martin Bakole has bounced back from his sole loss, but there are still going to be questions about his condition and whether he can keep Tony Yoka at bay.
I am not sure and I think Yoka has shown a strong style which breaks down opponents and his power has been maintained through bouts with three stoppages after the Sixth Round. He may have enough to tire out Martin Bakole with his skills and then land significant shots late in the contest to secure a tenth stoppage on his record.
MY PICKS: Linus Udofia to Win Between 7-12 @ 6.50 Bet365 (2 Units)
Josh Kelly to Win Between 3-4 @ 3.30 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Harlem Eubank to Win Between 6-10 @ 3.00 Sky Bet (2 Units)
Jermell Charlo to Win Between 7-12 @ 6.00 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Jaron Ennis to Win Between 1-6 @ 1.91 Sky Bet (2 Units)
Gilberto Ramirez to Win Between 4-6 @ 2.75 Sky Bet (2 Units)
William Zepeda to Win Between 6-10 @ 2.75 Sky Bet (2 Units)
Tervel Pulev to Win by KO/TKO/Disqualification @ 3.25 Sky Bet (2 Units)
Jerry Forrest to Win by Decision @ 6.00 Paddy Power (1 Unit)
Tony Yoka to Win Between 6-10 @ 3.75 Sky Bet (2 Units)
Boxing 2022: 11-16, + 11.84 Units (50 Units Staked, + 23.68% Yield)
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