As the Matchroom-Queensberry card approaches, newfound boxing catalyst Turki Al-Alshikh has revealed plans to stage yet another ‘five versus five’ before the end of the year, pitting five fighters from the United States against five from the United Kingdom. Here, we at Boxing Social predict which bouts could be on the horizon.
Conor Benn vs. Jaron Ennis – IBF Welterweight Title
The main-event of the card is sure to be a cracker but any fans hoping to see Anthony Joshua take on Deontay Wilder will likely be left disappointed.
‘AJ’ is expected to face either Filip Hrgovic or Daniel Dubois three months prior, as well as the fact that Joshua-Wilder is sellable enough on it’s own without the added angle of the U.S.A versus U.K. bill.
Instead, we think that this narrative could distract fans from the obvious concerns surrounding Conor Benn’s return to major fights and that is could also act as a plan to rebuild Benn’s relationship with the British fans.
He and Ennis have been embroiled in talks before and Ennis’ signing with Matchroom Boxing has led to further speculation that the pair could meet, yet the contest will likely hinge on whether the card is being planned to take place on British shores, across the pond or in Saudi Arabia, as well as Ennis’ upcoming title defence against Cody Crowley.
Chris Eubank Jr vs. Jermell Charlo – Middleweight
In terms of being able to sell a card, there are few better than Chris Eubank Jr. – who has played the pantomime villain for the vast majority of his career, but yet again his relationship with British fans could be improved upon for that very reason.
Meanwhile, Jermell Charlo finds himself in a similar position with American fans following his underwhelming performance against Canelo Alvarez back in September.
After flirting with a return to super-welterweight, we expect that Charlo will instead opt to campaign at 160lbs and Eubank could prove to be an ideal dance partner for him to prove his worth as a pay-per-view superstar to his fans back home.
Eubank appears to seek a big name for his résumé rather than a world title shot – with a move into free agency signalling his intent to make the biggest fights possible.
Fabio Wardley vs. Andy Ruiz Jr/Jarrell Miller – Heavyweight
We know that the Saudi’s love the heavyweight division and Fabio Wardley has proven his quality to Turki Al-Alshikh before, in a dominant win over David Adeleye back in October.
One more defence of his British title will see Wardley win the Lonsdale Belt outright and then he is sure to seek opportunities to make the jump up to world level, whether that third defence be a rematch with Frazer Clarke or against an alternate opponent.
In terms of his opponent, we think that the upcoming return of the inactive Andy Ruiz Jr against Jarrell ‘Big Baby’ Miller would be a big step but a well-timed one.
The former unified champion has fought just twice since 2019 and gone the distance both times, whilst Miller is yet another fighter who can sell a fight. All three men have fought in Saudi previously, but it would admittedly be a lose-lose affair for the American involved – who would likely be favoured to win against Wardley, who is unproven at world level.
Josh Taylor vs. Alexis Rocha – Welterweight
Josh Taylor’s move to welterweight appears imminent but he has decided to stick around at 140lbs to rematch Jack Catterall later this month. Following that bout, we expect that he will move up to welterweight and he could have the chance to represent Scotland on a high-profile card on his 147lbs debut.
Rather than jump in with a Jaron Ennis, we like Alexis Rocha as a well-rounded and well-ranked contender at 147lbs who has a point to prove after his knockout defeat to Giovani Santillan in October. ‘The Tartan Tornado’ is already ranked at fourth with the WBC, whilst Rocha finds himself between 11th and 14th with the WBC, IBF and WBO, with victory for either man opening up a plethora of options.
Mark Chamberlain vs. Raymond Muratalla – Lightweight
Finally, when a Turki Al-Alshikh card is confirmed you can bet your house that Mark Chamberlain’s ears are pricked following the personal request of His Excellency to bring the British lightweight onto the Joshua-Ngannou card in February.
To match him with a high-octane American, look no further than the highly-rated Raymond Muratalla, who has stopped 16 of his 20 opponents to date and looks poised to challenge for world honours in the near-future.
This contest would be a monumental test for Chamberlain but Al-Alshikh is unlikely to maintain his faith in the Brit unless he makes the step up in levels and this encounter is surely one that would end inside the distance.
However, whether Frank Warren would allow Chamberlain to take on Muratalla at such a young age is questionable, considering possible showdowns with the likes of Sam Noakes in the future, who could also be considered to be appear on the bill.
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