STAR PREVIEW Sat: Hamzah Sheeraz v Francisco Torres

Middleweight prospect Hamzah Sheeraz will take the next step towards world honours this weekend as he takes on well-travelled Argentine, Francisco Torres. On the undercard we have an intriguing clash between Lennox Clarke and Mark Heffron for the British & Commonwealth titles and the much-anticipated return of exciting prospect Nick Ball.

Earlier this year, Hamzah Sheeraz was awarded the prestigious Boxing Writers Club Young Boxer of the Year, an award has been won by the likes of Joe Calzaghe, Ricky Hatton & Amir Khan in the past. This accolade is usually a good marker of a prospect who is heading to the top of the sport and Sheeraz will be looking to make significant inroads towards a world title in the next twelve months.

Fighting out of London, Sheeraz has done very little wrong so far in his career and he has built up at 15-0 (11KO) record since turning professional in 2017. Despite being 6ft 3’ the undefeated prospect has campaigned largely at 154lb but moved to 160lb in his last fight and blew Jez Smith away inside two rounds.

Francisco Torres has made the journey to the UK to try and upset the odds this weekend and the Argentine is no stranger to taking difficult fights away from home. At 32 and with twenty-one fights under his belt, Torres is a tough seasoned campaigner but he has just five knockouts in his seventeen victories and that lack of power could be his undoing against Sheeraz.

This feels like a perfect opportunity for Sheeraz to continue his surge towards world honours and with his power improving every fight, he looks sure to register another knockout victory. This is a ten round contest and price of (5/6) for the fight to have less than eight completed rounds seems fair.

The chief support is an intriguing contest between heavy punchers Lennox Clarke and Mark Heffron at super middleweight. Defending British champion Lennox Clarke won the belt in spectacular fashion last time out when he knocked out highly regarded Willy Hutchinson inside five rounds.

A couple of years ago, Mark Heffron was being touted as a future world champion but things haven’t quite worked out for the Manchester man and he now finds himself fighting for his career on Saturday night.

Heffron has always campaigned at middleweight but he now makes the move up to super middleweight and it looks like the correct move. He looked very healthy on the scales on Friday and he is a very good addition to an already competitive domestic 168lb scene.

Both men can finish a fight with one punch and bring defensive frailties to the ring which means this could be a nervous watch for both corner teams but looks sure to be an entertaining fight for the fans.

Lennox Clarke is the form fighter heading into this one and although he will need to overcome a period of inactivity, he should have enough to win this one. The defending British champion is (2/1) to win by KO/TKO and that represents value.

Also on the card, rising prospect Nick Ball makes his first appearance since destroying Isaac Lowe in six rounds on the Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte undercard. Ball has always been highly rated in his home city of Liverpool but he exploded onto the world scene back in April and now has his eyes set on world titles.

Standing in his way this weekend is Namibian Nathanael Kakololo who is a relative unknown but has arrived in the UK with confidence and has promised to knock Nick Ball out. This is a dangerous attitude against an aggressive fighter like Ball but if the travelling Namibian fights as good as he talks then we should be in for a great fight.

Talk is cheap in boxing and Nick Ball has refused to engage in the verbal’s with his opponent this weekend but he has looked laser focused during the fight week pleasantries. The Liverpudlian knows he needs to keep impressing as he rises the ranks and we can expect him to want to add another highlight reel knockout to his CV this weekend.

Nick Ball is the type of fighter who looks to end fights as quickly as possible and his relentless style is something that could catch Kakololo by surprise. (5/2) for Ball to win in rounds 4-6 is a bet worth consideration.

RECOMMENDED BETS

BACK Sheeraz vs Torres to have less than eight completed rounds 1pt at 5/6 (Latest Star Price ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Lennox Clarke to win by KO/TKO 1pt at 2/1 (Latest Star Price ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Nick Ball to win in rounds 4-6 1pt at 5/2 (Latest Star Price ? CLICK TO BET NOW)

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PROFIT/LOSS (JULY 2022): LOSS -4.30 points
(Excluding ante-post recommendations CLICK HERE)

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