A Very Long Boxing Blog For A VERY Good Boxing Card

Richard Pelham. Getty Images.

I say something similar at the top of any boxing blog I write, and I'll say it again… 

I am fully aware that there are a TON of intriguing sports on this weekend, BUT I think you should add one more option to your viewing schedule.

If you're not a boxing fan, here's a little cheesecake for your trouble, but kindly move along…

For the rest of you… My name is Large, and I'm a big boxing fan… Have been for almost half a century.

Over that time, I've watched thousands of fights but I've seen only a limited number of ultra-compelling 50/50 matchups that were certified "must-watch" events, and this weekend's bout to decide the undisputed light-heavyweight champ looks like one such matchup.

As boxing fans, we've already been privy to some great cards in 2024, but I think this one might trump them all.

There's an adage in boxing that "Styles make fights." And this matchup embodies that adage perfectly.

The participants have a combined 43-0 record, and the scouting report reads- "Beterbiev's devastating Russian power versus Bivol's Kyrgyzstani precision." 

My good friend Mike Coppinger, who sold his soul to ESPN a couple of years back, put it best when he said this fight "will crown not just the best light heavyweight in the world, but the top 175-pounder of a generation."

So let's break down the participants…

Simply put, Dmitry is the IBO champ who throws more jabs than a Friar's Club roast…

ETIENNE LAURENT. Shutterstock Images.

And Artur is the IBF, WBC, and WBO title holder who has a 100% KO rate with 20 knockouts in as many wins…

Plus, he has a crazy pushup routine…

This is a jump ball fight with no apparent favorite… DraftKings has it just about even with Bivol -130 and Beterbiev +110.

I'm gonna take BIvol… Although his chin has not been tested by the likes of Beterbiev, he does have youth on his side (Bivol is 33 while Artrur is 39), and Beterbiev is still nursing a knee injury that could make Bivol (who has excellent ring movement) even more elusive.

I give this Main Event matchup an A+ and predict it will be worth the price of admission alone, but I also like the undercard, so let's break that shit down as well…

If you look at the graphic I embedded above, something should jump out at you immediately… One of the male fighters (Mohammed Alakel) is wearing a shirt in his headshot.

That is usually a terrible sign, but Alakel has an excuse… He is making his pro debut, so his team probably didn't want to spend real money on headshots until they saw how he does on the big stage.

I don't know much about Mohammed except for the fact that he is a product of London's Gallagher Boxing Gym along with Jack Massey (22-2), who is a HEAVY underdog fighting for the IBF World Cruiserweight title in the co-main event against Jai Opetaia (25-0).

Betting-wise, I would not touch either of these two fights. Fan-wise, I want to watch both to see if Alakel deserved his shot to be on such a big card, and to see if Opetaia is the hard-punching elite talent most scouts think he is.

Also on the card is one of the few female fighters that I watch consistently… Aussie southpaw Skye Nicolson in her second defense of her WBC female featherweight title which, by the way, will be the first female title fight held in Saudi Arabia…

I first spoke to Skye before her pro debut, and that's when I learned about her family's tragic backstory… Her older brother Jamie was one of the greatest amateur boxers in Australian history, but both he and her other brother Gavin were killed in a car crash a year before she was born… If nothing else, out of tragedy, it would seem this young lady has a pedigree and something to fight for.

Since that first fight, she peeled off another 10 wins to bring her record up to 11-0 and is fighting a slightly bigger (and also undefeated) opponent in Raven Chapman (9-0). I'm going to continue to ride the Nicolson bandwagon because I think she's talented and disciplined and seems to be on a collision course with one of the GOATs, Amanda Serrano…

Skye is a favorite on DraftKings at -650, but I can get that down to -425 by grabbing Nicolson to win by decision… Raven's a tough girl, so perhaps she can weather the storm.

Ben Whittaker is also on the card making the first defense of his IBF International Light Heavyweight title against Liam Cameron (23-6).

Who the fuck is Ben Whittaker, you might ask?

First off, he's a 27-year-old UK silver medalist who is currently 8-0 as a pro.

Secondly, he's the showboat-y young fighter that does shit like this in the ring…

That type of preening works when you're 8-0, but as his competition gets better, the dancing will probably subside, and although I like Whittaker by decision, Cameron (who has never been knocked out) will be his toughest test to date.

I'm starting to lose consciousness, so I will tell you about one more fight on the card… Heavyweights Fabio Wardley (17-0-1) vs. Frazer Clarke (8-0-1).

Philip Sharkey. Shutterstock Images.

You'll notice both men have a DRAW on their unbeaten records, and that's because these British heavyweights fought to a DRAW earlier this year, and the rivalry began.

James Chance. Getty Images.

Now, we get to see these 2 bruisers square up in a rematch…Bruisers because Fabio's 17 wins include 16 KOs and Clarke has knocked out six of the eight opponents on his resume.  

Much like the Main Event, this one is a coin toss for matchmakers, and I am randomly taking the slight underdog with Frazier (+120), even though I was a huge fan of Fabio back in the day.

Since this card is being fought in Riyadh, the card will begin at noon on Saturday with the Main Event walking sometime around 6 PM EST. And you can catch all the action on DAZN…

Enjoy the fights and take a report.

-Large