Kell Brook and Matthew Hatton will perform the live draw for Prizefighter Light Welterweights II at the sold-out Civic Hall in Wolverhampton, live on Sky Sports 1, HD1 and in 3D – and Adil Anwar is the favourite with new sponsors Betfair.
Brook and Hatton meet at the Motorpoint Arena Sheffield on March 17, and they will step into the ring in Wolverhampton to seal the fate of the eight contenders gunning for the £32,000 winner’s cheque in the 23rd edition of Matchroom Sport’s eight man, one night tournament.
Adil Anwar leads the betting with Betfair as 3.5 (5-2) favourite, with the unbeaten Leeds man relinquishing his English welterweight title this week. Hot on the 22 year-olds heels are fellow unbeaten contenders Tyrone Nurse at 4.8 (4-1) and Dale Miles at 5.4 (9-2).
Liverpudlian John Watson is a 7 (6-1) poke ahead of 9.2 (8-1) rated Scotsman Barry Morrison. Midland’s trio Young Mutley at 12.5 (between 11-1 and 12-1), Mark Lloyd 13.5 (between 12-1 and 13-1) and Dean Harrison 28 (27-1) complete the line-up.
Before the action gets underway live on Sky Sports, unbeaten young guns Tommy Ghent and Ryan Aston both feature in Prizefighter Prospect bouts.
Official weigh-in results
Adil Anwar (10st 2lb 13oz)
Dean Harrison (10st 2lb 15oz)
Mark Lloyd (10st 2lb 9oz)
Dale Miles (10st 14oz)
Barry Morrison (10st 2lb 10oz)
Young Mutley (10st 1lb 5oz)
Tyrone Nurse (10st 2lb 15oz)
John Watson (10st 2lb 3oz)
Reserves:
Danny Connor (10st 1lb 15oz)
Jerome Wilson (10st 1lb 8oz)
Banner Signs “Silky Smooth” Gonzalez
Banner Promotions president Art Pelullo has signed junior welterweight prospect Miguel “Silky Smooth” Gonzalez to a promotional contract.
Not long after the agreement was finalized, the opportunity came up for Miguel to fight Mike Dallas Jr. in the main event of ESPN’s “Friday Night Fights” on February 17. He accepted immediately.
Art Pelullo said, “Miguel is a terrific talent, and we’re pleased and excited to be his promoter. He’s on a fast track towards a world title shot, and this Friday’s fight is just the first step.”
Miguel added, “You know the sport of boxing – those last-minute calls. I was actually getting ready for a fight in late February, but I got a phone call saying they cancelled that. When this opportunity came up, I couldn’t pass it up. I’m one of these fighters, once I’m in the ring, I know how to dictate a fight. I’m confident in what I do.”
A lifelong resident of Cleveland, Ohio, Miguel has a professional record of 20-2 with 15 knockouts. Now 26 years old, he is a former amateur standout – he was a gold medalist at the 2008 U.S. National Championships at 132 pounds. He also earned a spot as an alternate on the 2008 U.S. Olympic team, but passed up going to the Beijing games to turn pro instead. Miguel had impressive amateur wins against Victor Ortiz, who went on to win the WBC welterweight world title, and current pro prospects Diego Magdaleno, Terrence Crawford, and Gary Russell Jr., among others.