Boxing Picks 2025- Dave Allen vs Arslanbek Makhmudov (Saturday 11th October)

The only place to start in any Boxing thread has to be about the really sad passing of legend Ricky Hatton.

That term- legend- is bandied about far too casually these days, but Ricky Hatton truly was a legend and he will go down as one of the top British Boxers of any Division. A bonafide World Champion and arguably a pound for pound top tenner at his very best, Ricky Hatton was the People's Champion and that drove huge crowds to want to see him fight.

He might have suffered losses to Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao that haunted him, as Hatton himself spoke about so honestly, but he was a huge part of some monster events and stories about the British drinking Las Vegas dry for the first of those fights will be spoken about for years to come.

The biggest appeal about Ricky Hatton wasn't just the great fighter he was, nor the fact that he was a hugely entertaining fighter, but he was someone that never lost touch with his roots and had time for everyone who wanted to spend some time in his company.

Not many people that reached his levels of fame and fortune keep their feet firmly on the ground, but that was a major reason as to why Ricky Hatton was so beloved.

All of the tributes and the huge amount of fans lining up for his funeral procession underlined Hatton's status and you can only hope that he is at peace and knows how much he meant to so many.

RIP Champ.

There are likely to be plenty of emotions on display in Sheffield on Saturday night when Dave Allen enters the ring- he was friends with Ricky Hatton having suffered through mental anguish of his own and Allen will want to prolong what has been an unexpected late surge in his career.

He has a tough fight as he looks to push onto the elite competition in the Heavyweight Division, while over in Philadelphia, Jaron Ennis begins his path in a new Division after moving up from Welterweight into the Light Middleweight ranks.

It has been almost a month since the big Canelo-Crawford fight out in Las Vegas, but the promoters are promising a fun end to the 2025 calendar year as we enter the final quarter.

There are some decent cards in place, although we have just lost the Sebastian Fundora vs Keith Thurman main event scheduled for the end of October- that has been postponed after Fundora suffered a hand injury, although the card will still run on Amazon Prime.

November has some big shows attached in the middle of the month, but in the coming days, the schedule should really be fattened up, which is only positive news for the fans.

Dave Allen vs Arslanbek Makhmudov

A controversial draw with up and coming Johnny Fisher was quickly put right by Dave Allen in a rematch in May and that has just given his career a late push in a positive direction.

The White Rhino has retired and returned once already and Dave Allen has admitted that he was not always the most focused fighter out there.

This led to some really disappointing performances and Allen looked completely done when failing to come out of the Seventh Round against Frazer Clarke in September 2023. He returned in April 2024 and won a couple of low profile bouts before being given the opportunity to take on Johnny Fisher and Allen's upsetting of the unbeaten fighter has given him a lift.

He looks focused and there is no denying that Dave Allen has gotten into very good shape ahead of this crossroads fight.

A win and Dave Allen may be in line to face someone like Deontay Wilder, but a defeat likely spells the end of any late resurgence and the fighter may be more likely to think about retirement or a potential third fight with Johnny Fisher next year.

Crossroads has to be the situation for Arslanbek Makhmudov who had a big reputation when joining a loaded Saudi card back in December 2023.

A big man with a big punching record saw his reputation collapse as he was Stopped in Four Rounds by Agit Kabayel and Makhmudov has suffered another Stoppage defeat to Guido Vianello since then. It means two losses in four fights and Arslanbek Makhmudov has fought a single Round since August 2024, which has to be a factor.

Dave Allen has been in with some of the top names of recent times in this Division so it is not a fight where he is going to be intimidated by the Boxer standing across the ring.

However, he is under no illusion as to how tough this contest is going to be, especially early when Arslanbek Makhmudov is fresh. Some of the criticism of Dave Allen is that he has little movement and standing in front of a big hitter like Makhmudov could be asking for a whole world of trouble.

In saying that, Dave Allen has to feel the edge is with him if this progresses past the first third of the scheduled Twelve Rounds.

We have seen Arslanbek Makhmudov run out of steam and the body shots clearly had a huge impact on him in his defeat to Agit Kabayel. This has to be something that Allen's team have noticed and it may pay to find a way through the early Rounds and sap some of the energy of the Russian before turning the screw.

The 'away' fighter will not be lacking for motivation with some reports suggesting that Makhmudov would be the leading name for Anthony Joshua's return bout if he is able to beat Dave Allen.

It should mean both are willing to put it all on the line, but the feeling since the fight was made is that Dave Allen is as focused as he has ever been and he will find the reserves to come through with a middle third Stoppage. He will have to weather an early storm, but doing so should see Allen show off a deeper stamina and that may see Arslanbek Makhmudov wilt once again.

There are a couple of decent fights on the undercard that may be worth an interest.

Junaid Boston looked to be rolling early in his career, but was very fortunate to earn a Draw when facing Bilal Fawaz back in January in London.

Even Promoter Eddie Hearn felt his fighter had been beaten, but this feels like a Ben Whittaker kind of situation where an impressive fighter with a huge amount of expectation just was not prepared as well as he should have been.

Ben Whittaker made sure he showed the levels he has when crushing Liam Cameron in the rematch of his own controversial Draw, and Junaid Boston may do the same here. He ran out of steam in the first fight, but a focused Boston can wear down a tough Bilal Fawaz and put a statement down with a late Stoppage.

After giving Shakur Stevenson some Rounds as a late replacement, there is little doubt that Josh Padley's stock has risen and he is now a full-time Boxer.

He had already upset Mark Chamberlain to move onto the Saudi radar and Padley has now aligned with Matchroom as his permanent Promoter.

He will have to prove himself when going in with Reece Bellotti who has found his ceiling, but who has regularly continued to upset the odds as a gatekeeper.

The latter was last out in July when being Stopped by Ryan Garner in the Twelfth Round as Bellotti dropped his British and Commonwealth Titles and the short turnaround is tough.

With a bit more time to prepare, Reece Bellotti may have looked a really appealing price, but the likelihood is that Josh Padley wins that one on the cards.

Over in Philadelphia, the hope of all Boxing fans is that Jaron Ennis can finally get on a run and PROVE that he is one of the best fighters out there.

His talent is undeniable, but three fights since July 2023 cannot be good enough for a 28 year old hitting his peak.

Back in April, Jaron Ennis had a crushing win over Eimantas Stanionis and that is an impressive victory... However, his resume is really not as good as it could be and the move into the Light Middleweight Division offers a chance to really become a household name in American Boxing.

This is a loaded Division with some really fun looking fights that could be made- most will think about finally seeing Ennis and Vergil Ortiz Jr go at it, but the likes of Sebastian Fundora, Bakhram Murtazaliev and Xander Zayas could all help Jaron Ennis turn into an elite pound for pound name.

Big names are all around the 154 pound Division, but Jaron Ennis will begin with Uisma Lima who has won four in a row since losing to Aaron McKenna.

None of those wins will concern Jaron Ennis and Uisma Lima will have to use the Southpaw stance to see if he can frustrate the home fighter.

Uisma Lima is Ranked in the top ten by three of the governing bodies, but Jaron Ennis needs to show where he is as a fighter and the expectation is that he will break down the 32 year old somewhere in the middle Rounds.

On the undercard, Guido Vianello is looking to get back on track having lost two of his last three fights, although the one victory was against Arslanbek Makhmudov who is headlining in Sheffield, England.

He is up against unbeaten Alexis Barriere, but this is a big step up for the Canadian Heavyweight.

The Italian has been in with fighters who are pushing towards the top of the Heavyweight Division and Vianello can use all of his experience to break down the Southpaw stepping multiple levels.

MY PICKS: Dave Allen to Win Between 5-8 @ 6.00 William Hill (1 Unit)

Junaid Boston to Win By KO/TKO @ 6.00 Sky Bet (1 Unit)

Jaron Ennis to Win Between 5-8 @ 2.75 Bet365 (1 Unit)

Guido Vianello to Win by KO/TKO @ 4.33 Bet Victor (1 Unit)

Boxing 2025: 21-59, - 33.67 Units (101 Units Staked, - 33.34% Yield)

Boxing Picks 2022- Jermell Charlo vs Brian Castano II (May 14th)

Things can become a little quiet in Boxing circles in terms of news outside of fight week, but there should be some big announcements in the next few days.

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)

Boxing Picks 2020- Canelo Alvarez vs Callum Smith (December 19th)

While no one is going to dispute that Sporting events are not the same without the crowds surging in anticipation for what they are about to see, the Boxing world has rightly decided they cannot allow 2020 to slip through the cracks.

It has been a difficult year for everyone and that is the same for Boxers who fight for their living and so had to take pay cuts to ensure they were able to bring home some bacon.

Credit has to be given to those who have decided to not only get back in the ring, but to take on the big bouts that would usually have filled big Stadiums and ensured a heftier pay cheque. Those will return and hopefully sooner than later, but for now we continue to see some top quality Boxing being put together.

There have already been some decent announcements for January and we will then be looking forward to some very good fights in the first half of 2021 when the crowds may begin to slowly return. That should pave the way for a very good second half of the year and I am looking forward to at least attending one, and possibly two, mega fights which are surely going to come together over the next twelve months.

Before we think about 2021 and the kind of fights we would all love to see, we do have a couple of solid cards to close 2020.

Unsurprisingly interest in a potential third bout between Gennady Golovkin and Canelo Alvarez is still very high and both of those big names are fighting on back to back nights. Don't be surprise that DAZN have decided to place GGG in that slot before Canelo Alvarez so the obvious call out can be made and that still looks like a big fight that will intrigue the masses.

I am expecting Golovkin to clear his mandatory, but Canelo is in a serious fight against Callum Smith, a fighter I have long rated pretty highly. The only disappointment I have in Smith is that he has not really built on his WBSS win in the manner I would have hoped as he has continued to wait for the big fights, but he remains King at 168 and this is a proper test for Canelo.

Saturday looks to have a couple of decent cards for us to enjoy, but the action begins on Friday and those who have signed up for DAZN should get plenty of value for money over the next couple of days.

John Ryder vs Mike Guy

The last time we saw John Ryder in the ring was when he was being harshly treated by the judges in a losing effort to Callum Smith.

Instead of perhaps fighting Canelo Alvarez for the 168 Titles, John Ryder returns to the ring the night before and is looking to 'shake off the rust' having been out of action for almost thirteen months.

There was a hope that Ryder may be able to earn a big fight to end 2020, but instead he will have to wait until 2021 as long as he can remain focused on Mike Guy. The American has a 1-2-5 record, but he has shown himself to be durable and hard to break down and that should mean John Ryder is able to put a few Rounds in the bank here.

'The Gorilla' from London had won four in a row since a Split Decision defeat to Rocky Fielding before being handed a Unanimous defeat by Callum Smith, but John Ryder, and many others, felt he had done enough to win that fight against the top fighter in the Super Middleweight Division. All four of his wins came by Stoppage and John Ryder was only pushed past the Fifth Round once so it is perhaps no surprise than many feel he is going to become the second man to stop Mike Guy.

However it should be noted that that sole stoppage came against Sergey Derevyanchenko in the Eighth Round and Mike Guy has gone the distance with heavy handed Kazakhstani Ali Akhmedov. Unbeaten Junior Younan is another who has been taken the distance by Mike Guy despite a strong Knock Out percentage.

You have to wonder how much Mike Guy has left in the tank at 39 years old, but he is a crafty veteran and he may just force John Ryder to have to get a few Rounds in here. There is a chance the additional two Rounds that this fight is scheduled for could see Ryder produce some late fireworks, but I would be a little surprised if he can win this one early at the same time.

If John Ryder is fully focused on the task at hand he may get Mike Guy out of there, but I do think the extended lay off could see him ease his way into the fight. The American has shown enough durability to believe he could get to the scorecards, but I can't rule out a late stoppage for the British fighter and the best approach may be looking for the fight to at least get into the second half of the scheduled Ten Rounds.

Ali Akhmedov vs Carlos Gongora

The aforementioned Ali Akhmedov is the chief support to compatriot and friend Gennady Golovkin on Friday evening and he will be looking to pick up a vacant IBO Super Middleweight Title.

He is up against another unbeaten fighter in Carlos Gongora, although you do have to wonder about the level of competition that the Ecuadorian has faced. There is no doubting that the punch power has been evident, but Gongora has largely been operating a pretty average level and this is a huge step up for him.

Ali Akhmedov has won eleven straight fights against opponents with a winning record and four of those have come against unbeaten opponents. No one will dispute the power of Akhmedov who has stopped twelve of his sixteen previous opponents and I do think this is the kind of showcase fight where most will expect his opponent to stand right in front of him and try and trade off.

That should give the favourite a chance to impress and I do think he is going to close the show on this latest fight pretty early.

I believe he will be the more skilful and his power is likely to be telling as Gongora tries to fight fire with fire.

Most are not offering much in terms of pricing for this one, but I do think there may be some value in looking for the fight to finish under the Total Rounds line set here as Ali Akhmedov looks to show his ability off to a wider audience on a card headlined by a popular fighter.

Gennadiy Golovkin vs Kamil Szeremeta

This is a mandatory Title defence that Gennadiy Golovkin was keen to get out of the way in 2020 and we would have likely seen it much earlier in the year if not for the pandemic that postponed so much of life for so many.

As soon as Canelo Alvarez made it clear that any trilogy fight with GGG would have to wait until 2021 at least, Gennadiy Golovkin was quick to arrange this bout and it goes on the night before Canelo Alvarez.

Make no mistake about it, Gennadiy Golovkin will be looking to make a statement and try and get people talking about his potential bout with Canelo Alvarez. He may have banned all talk about Canelo in the lead up to this fight, but it will be looming large in the mind and I do expect the Champion to really look to show there is plenty left in the tank.

Some have questioned that after a labouring win over Sergey Derevyanchenko, but the Ukrainian has given many fits and stylistically would have been a tough fight for Golovkin.

I simply don't think that will be the case on Friday as Number 1 contender Kamil Szeremeta looks to upset the odds. The Polish fighter is unbeaten in twenty-one, but there is very little that stands out on his resume and it does feel this may be a European level fighter.

When you go up against someone like GGG, you do want the power to at least give him something to think about, but Szeremeta has five stoppages in his wins. Everyone can pop, but I don't think he will make Golovkin take a backwards step and this may see the favourite run right through him.

Over the last three years we have seen Gennadiy Golovkin involved in some tough fights with Daniel Jacobs, Canelo (twice) and Derevyancheno, but all three of those opponents are levels above Kamil Szeremeta. During that time GGG has wiped out Vanes Martirosyan in Two Rounds and Steve Rolls in Four Rounds and he does look like he is in the shape to do the same to an opponent who won't really have enough to keep Golovkin at bay.

I would be extremely surprised if we get to the second half of this fight barring GGG really having lost a step- in fact I think Golovkin makes a big statement twenty-four hours before we next see Canelo Alvarez and he does that by clearing his mandatory at some point within the first Four Rounds.

Gilberto Ramirez vs Alfonso Lopez

It may not be on the card headed up by Gennadiy Golovkin, but Gilberto Ramirez is back on his own promotion for the first time in eighteen months.

There is a serious danger that the 40-0 Ramirez is going to be wasting his prime years as he continues to operate around a couple of tough Divisions, but has not really pushed on to take on the very elite.

His wins over Jesse Hart are decent, but both were very close and Ramirez has to look at 2021 as the year when he really looks to take on some of the best Light Heavyweights out there. He has already spoken about Dmitry Bivol being a potential opponent, but Ramirez has a bout here to shake off some of the ring rust that may have developed in his time out of the ring.

Gilberto Ramirez is taking on a veteran in Alfonso Lopez who may only have three defeats on his resume, but who has not really taken on anyone of note since fighting Kelly Pavlik back in 2011. Even that was against a faded Pavlik that had lost some of his early aura and ended up in a Majority Decision defeat for Lopez, but Gilberto Ramirez should be fresher and hit plenty hard enough to get through him without too many issues.

There is a NABF Light Heavyweight Title on the line that Alfonso Lopez won in his last fight in November 2019, but this is a big step up for him.

He has shown durability in the past, but Ramirez should be motivated to put on a show and can force the stoppage relatively early.

Jaron Ennis vs Chris van Heerden

It feels like Jaron Ennis has been around a lot longer than his 23 years of age would suggest, but the prospect is ready to take the next step in his development over the next twelve months.

He has called out some of the top names in the 147 Division, but Ennis is well respected within the community and that means most of those know he is high risk-low reward as far as the casual fans may go. Jaron Ennis has been building his name on the PBC cards over the last couple of years and any Boxer who has the Knock Out percentage that Boots carries is going to pick up a strong fan base.

This is another step up for him against a durable veteran Chris van Heerden, although it has been a long time since the South African has stepped into a fight of this magnitude. The defeat to Errol Spence Jr came five years ago and Chris van Heerden has not been very active since then and is also on short notice.

He showed courage before being beaten down by Spence Jr and I think it is going to be another fight where van Heerden has to show his durability if he is going to give Jaron Ennis some Rounds.

The Philadelphian has yet to move past the Sixth Round in his twenty-four professional fights, and I do think Ennis is going to be looking to make a statement and try and get this done quicker than Errol Spence Jr did. The prospect has not really made a big deal about that, but you can't ignore it being an additional motivation for Ennis and I think he is likely to close the show in the mid-Rounds.

the layers feel like it could end very early, but I think backing Ennis to win somewhere just before Errol Spence Jr managed to is the play here.

Canelo Alvarez vs Callum Smith

This is a legit fight for Canelo Alvarez who is finally returning to the ring after getting through a couple of legal disputes with former promoter Golden Boy and television network DAZN.

Ironically he is back on the same platform and he has decided to take on an opponent who many regard to be the very best at the Super Middleweight limit.

Four weeks notice has to be a concern for Smith fans and I do count myself one of those. He is a top fighter, although the fact he has not kicked on from winning the WBSS tournament is a concern.

So is the performance against John Ryder who has similar dimensions to Canelo Alvarez and that may have been the moment when the Mexican superstar decided he would take on this test.

Canelo is off a superb stoppage of Sergey Kovalev, but Callum Smith is expected to have a lot more left in the tank compared with the former Light Heavyweight king. We simply don't really know how good Smith is and I do worry that he won't take advantage of his obvious reach and size compared with Canelo.

It feels like the fight could go a similar way to the Kovalev one in being competitive early as counter punching Alvarez works his way through the gears. My concern for Callum Smith is that I think he will want to sit down on his punches and that means Canelo won't have to stalk him nearly as much as he did against Kovalev and eventually it could lead to some huge body damage.

No one can doubt how strong the Smith brothers are and they are willing to go through the fire to get to where they need to. Callum Smith should show the same, but he may not be able to last much longer than brother Liam who was stopped in the second half of the fight with Canelo a few years ago and in Texas too.

I do believe Callum Smith is the best of the brothers, but I've long felt he would have had to drain himself to make the 168 limit and this could leave him open to the body work especially with little time to really prepare. He has said he has always prepared for Canelo, but the whole fight has been dictated by the favourite and I think he is going to find the power late on to force an end.

There are other factors that also make the stoppage more likely (short notice means fighters prepare 'differently'), but it would be a big surprise if Canelo is able to blitz through a Boxer of the quality of Callum Smith. Instead it may be a wear down effect through the Twelve Rounds with the body work likely to be key as it was when Canelo stopped Rocky Fielding and Callum's brother Liam.

MY PICKS: John Ryder-Mike Guy Over 6.5 Total Rounds @ 1.83 Bet Victor (2 Units)

Ali Akhmedov-Carlos Gongora Under 6.5 Total Rounds @ 2.00 Bet Victor (2 Units)

Gennadiy Golovkin to Win Between 1-4 @ 2.50 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Gilberto Ramirez to Win Between 1-6 @ 2.00 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Jaron Ennis to Win Between 5-8 @ 2.62 Sky Bet (2 Units)

Canelo Alvarez to Win Between 7-12 @ 3.30 Paddy Power (2 Units)