Old man Wilder will ‘find’ Parker, eventually

Eventually, boxing always returns to the big men. Heavyweights transcend the traditional boundaries of boxing in ways Middleweights and Welters never can. Enthralling the masses; from trailblazer Jack Johnson, to Jack Dempsey, from Joe Louis to Mike Tyson and of course the greatest of them all, Muhammad Ali too.

On Saturday, the boxing circus will pitch tents in the sand and insanity of Saudi Arabia as the nation continues its sponsorship of sporting events to distract from the sadism and impossible affluence of its ruling class.

All eyes will be on a pair of heavyweight attractions sitting proudly on top of the deep and intriguing Day of Reckoning bill. American Deontay Wilder faces New Zealand’s Joseph Parker in a battle of former belt holders that functions as a qualifier to box the winner of Anthony Joshua and Otto Wallin.

There is much at stake here.

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December 22, 2023 0

Joshua can continue knockout form

Article first appeared at gambling.com

Joshua to WIN 2/7 BETFRED

Joshua to WIN by KO 13/2 William Hill

Much is written about whether Anthony Joshua, 26-3 (23ko) is the same fighter he was in 2016 when first exploding on to the world-scene as an aggressive, come forward puncher. Either by evolution, or as a result of the trauma of boxing at elite level with thunderous men like Wladimir Klitschko, the master craftsman Oleksander Usyk or the deceptively quick Andy Ruiz, he is much changed.

No other prizefighter, probably since the various reincarnations of Mike Tyson, is challenged on his own form, style or ability to recreate the past and whether he is as good as he once was like Joshua. Questions often posed alongside queries on his own ‘mentality’. The latter a response to the confused ramblings he offered in the aftermath of the Usyk losses.

In pre-fight media obligations for his weekend fixture with Sweden’s capable Otto Wallin, Joshua has bristled at even rudimentary questions. Responses that have fanned rather than extinguished the eternal debate; ‘where is Joshua’s head at?’

All the leading Bookmakers are keen to offer markets for this heavyweight feature.

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December 22, 2023 0

Dubois can expose the Miller myth

Twice suspended for failed PED tests, Jarell Miller has still received an invitation back to the big time with a match versus Daniel Dubois

Article first appeared on Gambling.com

Dubois to win by decision 15/8 with BETVICTOR

On Saturday in Riyhad, Saudi Arabia, amidst the huge Day or Reckoning card, Daniel Dubois arrives at a crossroads in his boxing career. Triumph, and some of the lustre lost in defeat to Joe Joyce and Oleksander Usyk will be restored, defeat, and the suggestion Dubois lacks the ability and resolve to succeed at world-level will be confirmed.

Now aged 26, Dubois, 19-2 (18ko), was long-marketed by Hall of Fame promoter Frank Warren as the future of the division. The heir to the throne variously occupied by Fury, Joshua and Usyk.

The defeat to Joyce back in 2020, a knockout loss in which Dubois suffered a broken orbital bone around his eye and opted to kneel and take the 10-count when ahead on the cards, curbed excitement about his prospects. Warren too, seemed discouraged. It posed the question; is Dubois willing to risk, in the way the greats often must, to land the prize?

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December 22, 2023 0

Don’t call it a comeback. Garcia faces Duarte on return

Article first appeared on gambling.com

Describing the first fight after the loss of a pristine record as a ‘comeback’ is problematic but nevertheless commonplace. It is one of the many tenants of the modern cult of the unbeaten fighter. An ideology with far fewer followers in bygone eras when activity was king.

Ryan Garcia, 23-1 (19ko), is the latest to find himself cast in role of the comeback kid. His matinee idol good looks, fast hands and a flair for social media launched the now 25-year-old into PPV level fights at an early age. His last fight, a loss to Gervonta Davis, LKO7, in which Garcia was knocked down twice, was a gargantuan feature bought by more than 1.2 million households in the US. The fight grossed in excess of $100 million in gate and broadcast revenue alone.

The ‘star’ was the match-up, but Garcia proved his own box office potential.

No surprise then that leading bookmakers all offer markets for his return against Oscar Duarte and favour Garcia strongly, 1/4 with UNIBET the best available on the Outright Win, but he isn’t quite the overwhelming favourite he would’ve been before that defeat. The inevitable question, how has Garcia digested defeat, is an intangible in predicting the outcome. Only the isolation of the ring in the Toyota Centre, Houston on Saturday night can now provide the answer.

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