Ben Whittaker makes his Matchroom debut this Saturday at the NEC in Birmingham, and he attempts to win the vacant WBC Silver light heavyweight title in a scheduled 10-rounder against Benjamin Gavazi.
Eddie Hearn promotes Whittaker vs Gavazi and DAZN televise the card live worldwide.
A silver medallist at the 2020 Olympics, the brash Whittaker (9-0-1, 6 KOs) turned over with BOXXER in 2022, and seven straight wins with several eye-catching knockouts marked him as one to watch, with his Prince Naseem Hamed-esque movement and flashiness dividing opinion.
’The Surgeon’ would then take the IBF International belt with a drab points win against Ezra Arenyeka in June last year that saw his stock drop slightly, and that fell further when he was fortunate to escape with a technical draw against Liam Cameron in Riyadh, with the 28-year-old unable to continue when injured falling out of the ring.
A rematch was a natural, and in Birmingham in April, Whittaker emphatically set the record straight, stopping Cameron in two rounds to restore his credibility.
Germany’s Gavazi (19-1, 13 KOs) looks a safe enough bet for a promotional debut, but the German has won 19 on the spin since losing on his debut back in 2018.
This will be the 30-year-old’s fourth scheduled 10-rounder, with all of them ending early.
He did go into the final round in his last contest, but scored a last-round stoppage against Branimir Malenica to win the WBC International title.
Prediction: Whittaker will want to put on a show for his new employers, and he can do just that, stopping the visitor before the halfway mark.
Vuong-Gwynne rematch
Cameron Vuong took a razor-thin points win last November against former British, Commonwealth and European lightweight champion Gavin Gwynne and the two meet again over ten rounds or less.
Since their original meeting, Vuong (9-0, 4 KOs) has stopped Jordan Flynn in seven to win the vacant WBO European lightweight title, and then won every round of eight against Reuquen Arce in September, while Gwynne (18-4-1, 5 KOs) warmed up for this with a six-round points win against Owen Durnan in August.
Prediction: This should be another cracker, but I think Vuong has more petrol in the tank, and he can win clearly this time on points.
Bowen battles Cowling
The vacant Midlands Area middleweight title is up for grabs, and Aaron Bowen (7-0, 5 KOs) should get a points win against Tom Cowling (14-1, 4 KOs), who challenged unsuccessfully for the same belt against Troy Coleman last September.
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Remaining Undercard
The Midlands crown is also on the line at super featherweight, where Ibraheem Sulaimaan (9-0, 4 KOs) can take the vacant belt on the cards against Nico Ogbeide (6-1-1).
In an eight-round clash, former world title challenger Zelfa Barrett (33-3, 18 KOs) should win his third fight on the spin by outpointing former British champion Liam Dillon (15-4-1, 3 KOs) at lightweight.
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Former UFC fighter, Molly McCann (1-0, 1 KO) has her second professional boxing outing, and she should take a points win over six at super bantamweight against Ebonie Cotton (1-0).
In the sole four-rounder, Alfie Middlemiss (4-0) can take his featherweight clash against Engel Gomez (9-53-3, 4 KOs) on points.
