Wednesday 25 July 2018 10:43, UK
Carl Froch backs Conor Benn to produce a clinical knockout in his rematch, while he expects Katie Taylor and Joshua Buatsi to showcase their destructive skills at The O2.
There's a lot of talent on show this weekend and, beneath the Dillian Whyte-Joseph Parker heavyweight clash, live on Sky Sports Box Office, one fight I'm really looking forward to is Benn's rematch with Cedrick Peynaud.
We all know what happened last December and Benn will have learnt a lot from that night. To be put down and resiliently get back up to taste victory says a hell of a lot about a fighter. He's slowly maturing and I expect to see a much-improved performance this time, one where he boxes better. We know 'The Destroyer' can fight when he has to, he loves a scrap, but this is about proving a point and I expect him to clinically get the Frenchman out of there.
Conor's becoming more similar to his father with every performance I see and I like that.
Wrongly or rightly, we always speak about how Conor compares to his Dad and Nigel has been in camp for this and seems more involved than before. That can only help Conor's development and from what I've seen, he's becoming more similar to his father with every performance he has and I like that. Of course, whether he carries the same power as Nigel is hard to say, he does hit hard but is smaller down at welterweight. For now, the important thing is to get this win and continue his rise.
While Benn did not have the famed amateur career, two fighters that did are Katie Taylor and Joshua Buatsi and I'm sure they are both very much destined for the highest level of the sport.
Every time we see Taylor fight it's exciting and she always seems to perform above and beyond the call of duty. Even if she's won every round and has totally dominated and outboxed an opponent, she will stay in the pocket late on to look for that highlight knockout, she's an entertainer.
Katie's just a great fighter and a brilliant boxer as her amateur record suggests. It seems there's no slowing her momentum right now and, on Saturday, it'll be another dominant performance that will raise her stock as a unified world champion even more.
Buatsi is of similar ilk, a brilliant talent, a fighter who can move, box and fight when he needs to. I'm almost certain that he will go on to become a world champion. It's still very early in his career and you have to take things one step at a time, but he seems to have it all.
Buatsi is destined for the top. It's still very early in his career and you have to take things one step at a time, but he seems to have it all.
As much as I'm sure he makes it, he has to be guided meticulously because that light heavyweight division is full of monsters. The Russians alone, the likes of Dmitry Bivol (WBA) and Sergey Kovalev (WBO) sitting at the top of the tree, are as dangerous as they come, so I just hope Buatsi is where he needs to be for when his time comes.
Then you've got Dereck Chisora's fight with Carlos Takam which is going to be great. If 'Del Boy' is serious about getting back in the heavyweight mix, he's got an opportunity here to have a real humdinger with someone who will quite equally reciprocate the blows. Takam will get stuck in, he comes to fight, we saw that with AJ, and I'm excited.
Dereck is always in good fights, there's always something going off, but this is going to be tough. I stood next to Takam before that Joshua fight and he has massive broad shoulders and is so rough and tough. Chisora needs his A-game for this and I hope he really has gone all out in training.
Watch Dillian Whyte vs Joseph Parker with Katie Taylor, Dereck Chisora, Joshua Buatsi, Conor Benn and more the undercard, live on Sky Sports Box Office, from The O2, Saturday, July 28.
You can book via your Sky remote, via sky.com/boxofficeonline here and even if you aren't a Sky subscriber you can book and watch it via skysports.com/boxofficelive.
