Come the revolution!

Prizefighter is finally here! Eight heavyweights, last man standing and £25,000 to the winner...

Settle down for an historic night of heavyweight boxing on Sky Sports

Sky Sports could be giving you a glimpse into the future of boxing when Prizefighter laces up its gloves on Friday night. Barry Hearn's revolutionary heavyweight tournament takes place at the York Hall as the old and the new and eight hungry fighters collide. The format is quite simple. Three three-minute rounds, a total of seven bouts, with the last man standing pocketing a cool £25,000. Hearn is the man behind the revolutionary plan and if the heavyweights prove a knockout, he has promised to bring Prizefighter to the lower weights. But for now, it is all about eight bigguns - and two reserves - from across Britain, who have the chance to make a name for themselves, as well as the sort of money they can only dream of as a fighter. And that, says Hearn, means a special night on Sky Sports. "These boys won't try and nick it, because that will be too dangerous, so hopefully we'll get more exciting fights in a short period of time," he said. "They know they will have to come back again and again and the crowd will be following the progress of the four winners. They'll be seeing a whole competition on one night and that's never been done before. "That's the sort of thing that may just bring a new audience into boxing - and also give us a bit more crash, bang, wallop, thank you very much!" The York Hall is expected to be packed the rafters, while squeezing inside a crowd will be Sky Sports' own heavyweight line-up. Dave Clark will be joined by Glenn McCrory and Nicky Piper to analyse the action, while Johnny Nelson will be joining Adam Smith on commentary to guide you through the seven fast and furious fights, culminating in the winner-takes-all finale. And if you fancy cashing in on the crash, bang, wallop, you can bet live with Skybet, whose Dale Tempest will be ringside all evening updating their odds and offering some sensational specials.

The fights

First up will be Billy Bessey, a former ABA champion and proud Portsmouth fan looking to emulate his side's recent Wembley success against David Ferguson from Newcastle, who brings one of three undefeated records to the table. The second bout of the night sees the baby of the bunch, 22-year-old Alex Ibbs concede 11 years to Martin Rogan, the Belfast man who says his biggest disappointment is not getting enough fights. The bottom half of the draw gives Paul Butlin the chance to prove Melton Mowbray is about more than pork pies as he goes in against one of the most experienced men in the competition, Colin Kenna, a bricklayer by trade. The final fight of the first four sees the Beast of Bonymaen, Darren Morgan, up against the tournament favourite, Sunderland's undefeated 2002 Commonwealth Games gold medalist, David Dolan. And in case anyone should come a cropper along the way, Londoner Derek 'Del Boy' Chisora and Dave Ingleby, a 26-fight veteran from Morecambe are on stand-by,

The fighters

They may not be household names, so before you settle down to see history in the making, Glenn McCrory marks your card on the first Prizefighters... DAVID FERGUSON
Age: 32 Born: 28.02.76 Height: 6'4"
Career: Fights: 4 Wins: 4 KO's: 1 Lost: 0
Skybet odds: 9/2
GLENN'S GUIDE: A big kid from my area up in Newcastle, David is pretty much a novice. But he is a big strong kid and he is undefeated - and when you haven't lost that does spur you on, so he'll be a cagey customer. But he can stop guys early and although he has only had four fights, this might suit him. BILLY BESSEY
Age: 34 Born: 08.01.74 Height: 6'1"
Career: Fights: 12 Wins: 7 KO's: 0 Lost: 5
Skybet odds: 9/1
GLENN'S GUIDE: A very good amateur and former ABA champion, who has been working hard and training well with brother Chris - another good amateur in his day. Billy is a decent fighter but does struggle with his weight (I think he likes a pint) and that lets him down at times. But he should be in shape for this - £25,000 gets most people out of bed in the morning! ALEX IBBS
Age: 22 Born: 17.08.85 Height: 6'4"
Career: Fights: 4 Wins: 3 KO's: 0 Lost: 1
Skybet odds: 8/1
GLENN'S GUIDE: The youngster among them. At 22 I would think this has come a little bit too early for him, but it will be a great experience. But he is a tough guy and as a recent amateur should be used to boxing more than once in a day. Experience will be key here, but fresh legs might just count for something. MARTIN ROGAN
Age: 33 Born: 01.05.74 Height: 6'3"
Career: Fights: 7 Wins: 7 KO's: 4 Lost: 0
Skybet odds: 9/2
GLENN'S GUIDE: Another one of our undefeated fighter and one you can make a real case for. He's a tough customer and all four of his professional KO's have come inside three rounds, so he can clearly dig. At 33 he should have experience on his side and might well be the wildcard here. I can see him upsetting a few people. PAUL BUTLIN
Age: 32 Born: 16.03.76 Height: 6'1½"
Career: Fights: 16 Wins: 11 KO's: 2 Lost: 5
Skybet odds: 8/1
GLENN'S GUIDE: A bit hot and cold as a fighter and certainly not a great puncher. He's lost his last two and that is going to make it hard for him, but he does have more pro fights under his belt than most which will help. As part of Matt Skelton's camp, you would have thought he will have some quality sparring behind him. COLIN KENNA
Age: 31 Born: 28.07.76 Height: 6'1"
Career: Fights: 24 Wins: 16 KO's: 7 Lost: 6
Skybet odds: 9/2
GLENN'S GUIDE: Much more experienced than then rest, he's right up there in the British rankings alongside the likes of Roman Greenberg and not far behind Danny Williams and Michael Sprott. He's got an excellent chance of going all the way and has six wins inside three rounds, which is more than some of these guys have had fights. DARREN MORGAN
Age: 31 Born: 26.10.76 Height: 6'1½"
Career: Fights: 8 Wins: 5 KO's: 3 Lost: 3
Skybet odds: 12/1
GLENN'S GUIDE: The Welshman is strong, a real rock. And don't take your eyes off him because he will want to have a fight, don't worry about that. He has stopped people inside three and will prove a real handful for the favourite, David Dolan. He is being thrown in at the deep end, so will he sink or swim? DAVID DOLAN
Age: 28 Born: 28.10.79 Height: 6'2"
Career: Fights: 7 Wins: 7 KO's: 3 Lost: 0
Skybet odds: 5/2
GLENN'S GUIDE: The favourite and rightly so, although he's got the tough half the draw. I criticised him once for not building on winning the 2002 Commonwealth gold, but he sees this as the chance to launch his career. An excellent amateur, he has the speed, skill and experience - and knows all about boxing under pressure.