Frank Warren’s Queensberry promote another Magnificent Seven card at Resorts World in Birmingham this Saturday evening, with Nathan Heaney and Brad Pauls meeting in a rematch for Heaney’s British middleweight title in the headliner.
TNT Sports televise Heaney vs Pauls in the UK.
The pair met at the same venue in March, and with Heaney (18-0-1, 6 KOs) favoured to win, he was dragged into deep waters by Pauls (18-1-1, 10 KOs), with the judges undecided in a three-way split draw.
The defending champion is highly-ranked with the WBA and WBO, sitting at number five with both organisations, so he can’t afford a slip-up here.
The 35-year-old Stoke man bagged a pair of wins against Jack Flatley to earn a shot at the Lonsdale belt in November last year against Denzel Bentley, and he upset the Londoner, taking the title in Manchester with a majority decision win.
Pauls’ sole loss looks better with every passing contest, as he was defeated on the cards against Tyler Denny for the English title in February last year, and he won that vacant belt in September, halting Mitchell Frearson in eight.
Prediction: This could be another closely-contested fight, but I lean towards Heaney making the necessary adjustments to score a clear points win.
𝑰𝑻’𝑺 𝑭𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻 𝑾𝑬𝑬𝑲 🔥
Yet another Magnificent 7 card that is absolutely stacked with British talent 😮💨#Magnificent7 | 20.07.24 | Resorts World Arena, Birmingham pic.twitter.com/sRyEtQZY4a
— Queensberry Promotions (@Queensberry) July 15, 2024
Cameron returns
The undercard sees Chantelle Cameron make her Queensberry debut, as she takes on France’s Elhem Mekhaled for the interim WBC super lightweight title.
Cameron (18-1, 8 KOs) completed the undisputed set of belts in November 2022, outpointing Jessica McCaskill in Abu Dhabi, and she then shocked Katie Taylor in Dublin to retain last May.
The Northampton native would be denied in a rematch though in November, dropping a majority decision.
The 33-year-old has responded by splitting with trainer Jamie Moore and moving to Grant Smith as well as leaving Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing to join forces with Frank Warren.
Mekhaled (17-2, 3 KOs) challenged for world honours in February last year, but was dropped twice and widely outscored by Alycia Baumgardner for the undisputed super featherweight title.
Prediction: Cameron will look to impress her new handlers, and Mekhaled looks an opponent that she can do just that against. I think Cameron will dominate and can get the job done before the final bell.
Lane puts British & Commonwealth titles on the line
Ashley Lane, fresh off a stunning upset sixth round stoppage of Chris Bourke, defends his British and Commonwealth bantamweight titles for a first time against Andrew Cain.
Cain (11-1, 10 KOs) lost a tight split decision to Ionut Baluta last March, but is heavy-handed.
Prediction: With Lane (18-10-2, 3 KOs) having been stopped six times in ten defeats, I think Cain can become the new champion with a win inside schedule.
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Cooper clashes with Essuman
An intriguing ten rounder takes place at welterweight, and Ekow Essuman can rebound from losing his British and Commonwealth titles to Harry Scarff last time out by taking the English and WBO European belts that belong to Owen Cooper (10-0, 4 KOs).
Prediction: Essuman (19-1, 7 KOs) can come through on the cards.
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Dacres meets Webster
Sol Dacres was due to take on David Adeleye in what looked a cracker, but Adeleye has had to withdraw due to an injury, so in steps Michael Webster (10-1, 6 KOs) in a rematch of their November 2023 meeting.
Prediction: Dacres (8-0, 2 KOs) won that by close majority decision, and he should be able to learn from that experience, and can win more handily on points this time around.
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Parker faces Arnfield
Zach Parker (24-1, 17 KOs) can continue his rebuild after defeat to John Ryder in 2022, and the super middleweight can take his ten round meeting with Jack Arnfield (26-3, 6 KOs) on points.
Remaining Undercard
Ezra Taylor (8-0, 6 KOs) can claim his first professional title, the WBC International light heavyweight crown, with an early win against Spain’s Carlos Alberto Lamela (8-3, 5 KOs).
Another to see a fight fall through is Shabaz Masoud (12-0, 4 KOs), as his clash with Liam Davies was postponed, but he can take his frustrations out on Marvin Solano (24-17, 8 KOs), winning their featherweight eight rounder clearly on the scorecards.
A four rounder at super flyweight should see Bradley Thompson (4-0, 2 KOs) outscore Stephen Jackson (1-51-1, 1 KO).
