ON Saturday evening, in Liverpool’s Echo Arena, Nick Ball makes the first defence of his WBA featherweight title against Ronny Rios. The challenger is used to rumbling around world level but hasn’t got a pedigree for beating the best.
While the little guys go at it in the main event, let’s see what else is worth a watch on the TNT undercard, put together by Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions.
Henry Turner vs. Jack Rafferty
A quality battle of the unbeatens as London’s Henry Turner goes in with Jack Rafferty. Turner brings his WBC Silver title to the table, while Rafferty is the Commonwealth super-lightweight king. Throw in the vacant British title and this should be a solid battle.
Rafferty has had 10 more fights and impressively knocked out Lee Appleyard in a round. Turner holds wins over an admittedly fading Tom Farrell and Billy Allington.
Andrew Cain vs. Lazaro Casseres
Once-beaten Cain is a heavy puncher and looked good in his last outing, taking apart British and Commonwealth champion Ashley Lane in five rounds. Casseres has only lost once and that loss came on the sole occasion he ventured outside of Colombia, which probably tells you all you need to know about his chances here.
Jadier Herrera vs. Oliver Flores
Cuba’s Herrera looks the business at 15-0 with 13 KOs. The 22-year-old scorched Andres Navarrete in one round in Belfast to rubber-stamp his credentials. Experienced Nicaraguan Flores has been in the ring with Miguel Berchelt and Felix Verdejo but is approaching yardstick territory.
James McGivern vs. Reuquen Cona Facundo Arce
In June at Belfast’s SSE Arena, James McGivern iced Rashid Omar in round two with a huge finishing shot. The comfortable boxer resembles Jack Catterall at times with his safety-first southpaw approach. Dangerman Arce is an underrated puncher who has already given Archie Sharp and Ray Moylette issues this year. McGivern should keep it long enough to avoid such concerns.
Brad Strand vs. Marvin Solano
Local man Strand lost his undefeated record to Dennis McCann in his last outing. The experience from that night should hold him in good stead on the comeback trail. Journeyman Solano shouldn’t cause too much bother, although he hasn’t been stopped in eight fights.
Ball vs. Rios Undercard – Best of the Rest
Morecambe’s Nelson Birchall gets a runout, as does Birmingham heavyweight Boma Brown. Liverpool’s Lucas Biswana makes his debut, while Walter Fury keeps the family name relevant at super-welter. Well-supported Joe Cooper fights for the second time since his debut in Belfast over the summer.