Friday night sees the iconic Royal Albert Hall in London host another night of Championship boxing. Frank Warren promotes, and BT Sport televise live in the UK, in a show entitled “Every Belt”.
This is a nod to headliner, Daniel Dubois (12-0, KO11) as he continues his quest on the path to stardom with a challenge for the vacant Commonwealth Heavyweight Title.
So far in the 22 year old Dubois’ fledgling career, he has picked up the WBC Youth, Southern Area, English and WBO European belts, and added the British crown with a fifth round knockout of previously unbeaten rival, Nathan Gorman in July this year at the nearby O2 Arena.
Dubois is a big knockout artist, and carries big, concussive power. The only man to take him the distance is the wily veteran, and former World Title challenger, Kevin “Kingpin” Johnson, who Dubois easily outpointed in October last year over ten forgettable rounds in Leicester. He has done everything asked of him in his paid career to this point, and looks to add the Commonwealth strap to his collection this weekend.
The man standing in his way is yet another Ghanaian unknown quantity in Ebenezer Tetteh (19-0, KO16).
Tetteh has an impressive knockout ratio of his own, although he has never fought outside of his native Ghana since his debut in April 2012.
Tetteh has fluctuated in weight too, starting his career in and around Light Heavyweight, and won the WBA Pan African Title at that weight. He has also been his country’s National Champion at Cruiserweight, and picked up the WBO Africa belt in December 2017 with a second round knockout of Boniface Kabore. Tetteh’s last outing was in October last year, when he stopped the 5-12 Jones Quashie in three rounds in his native Accra.
Tetteh has certainly talked a good game in the build up.
Daniel Dubois has never tasted power like mine,” said the 31 year old.
“He thinks he is going to walk in and I will be on the backfoot. Once I start landing he will realise he is very wrong.”
He also referred to Dubois as a “scared boy”
“I am not like other opponents. People get in the ring with Daniel and get scared. The difference is that I see Daniel for what he really is. He is not a scary man, he is a scared boy.”
Prediction
I can’t see past a dominant Dubois win here, as the visitor will not have been hit by anything like the kind of power that “DDD” posseses. I think he will come to win in the early rounds, and will empty the tank early on in search of a bingo punch that will stun Dubois. After not being able to find this, I think that Dubois will shorten the range, and stop Tetteh in around four rounds.
Nicola Adams (5-0, KO3), after a spell as Interim holder, became promoted to full WBO Flyweight Champion in July after injury to the previous Champion, Arely Mucino, and she will make a first defence of her belt on the bill.
Adams won the Interim crown with a tougher than expected points win against Isabel Millan in Leicester in October last year.
The double Olympic Champion faces tough Mexican, (21-7-3, KO7) over the Championship distance of ten rounds.
Salinas has come up agonisingly close to becoming a World Champion three times previously. In November 2015, she travelled to Japan, and only came away with a split draw against Naoko Shibata in a challenge for the IBF Light Flyweight crown. There was further agony nine months later for Salinas, as she lost the rematch via majority verdict.
She has also challenged previous Champion, Arely Mucino, in September last year, dropping another split decision. Salinas has only been previously stopped once in seven paid defeats, a third round loss to Kenia Enriquez in May 2017.
Prediction
I think as long as Adams doesn’t engage with Salinas, and sticks to her superior boxing skills, she should be able to secure a routine points win to truly feel like a World Champion.
The impressive Archie Sharp (16-0, KO8) also appears on the card, in a decent looking clash with Irishman, Declan Geraghty (19-4, KO4). Sharp’s WBO European Super Featherweight Title is the prize. With solid recent wins against Lyon Woodstock and Jordan McCorry on his record, Sharp should be able to score a mid to late stoppage win against a man who has been stopped by James Tennyson, Jono Carroll and Marco McCullough in recent times.
Battersea Middleweight, Denzel Bentley (10-0, KO8) meets Kelcie Ball (10-1, KO2) in an eight rounder, while hot prospects, Willie Hutchinson (9-0, KO6) and Dennis McCann (3-0, KO2) are in action against limited continental opposition.
