New York born boxer Willie Monroe Jr will be hoping his second shot at a world title next month ends better than his opening opportunity when he takes on Billy Joe Saunders. The middleweight was stopped in the sixth round against Gennady Golovkin in 2015, as Triple G proved no match for him in Inglewood, California.
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Since that defeat, Monroe Jr has recovered with solid points victories over John Thompson and Gabriel Rosado respectively – the latter of which has earned him the opportunity to fight for Saunders’ WBO title.
If Monroe can get past Saunders in London, he could face Golovkin in a rematch. The Kazakhstani boxer does have to get through his bout with Saul Alvarez in Las Vegas in September though. That fight is likely to be for the unified middleweight title as all the belts in the division will be on the line.
The trip to the UK will be Monroe Jr’s first fight outside the USA as a professional. The American had an impressive amateur career with a 128-14 record and he is hoping he can reach the top of the paid ranks with a world title in 2017.
The WBO champion Saunders is returning to the ring after a nine-month break. He has only once defended his title since winning the belt against Andy Lee in December 2015. A number of factors including injuries, postponed fights and chasing a clash with Golovkin, which looked close to happening earlier this year, have prevented the British boxer from appearing sooner than his booking with Monroe Jr.
Saunders goes into the fight with the American with an unbeaten record as he has 24 wins and zero defeats next to his name. One of his most impressive victories came against Chris Eubank Jr in 2014 where he got the decision from the judges after 12 pulsating rounds.
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Although all eyes will be on Golovkin-Alvarez in September, Saunders will believe he can become the undisputed world middleweight champion himself. The winner of the Las Vegas fight will need to get past the British boxer if he retains his belt in his latest defence.
The bookmakers make Saunders the -250 favourite in the latest boxing odds for the fight, while Monroe Jr can be backed at +200 to take the belt back to the USA with him. Saunders has won 12 of his fights by KO and TKO but only two of his last nine victories have been inside the distance.
Also on the undercard to Saunders-Monroe Jr, talented light-heavyweight Anthony Yarde meets Ryan Ford for the WBO inter-continental title. The British boxer has a 92% knockout rate and will be fancied to improve that percentage on his latest outing. There will also be the opportunity to see heavyweight Daniel Dubois in action as Dynamite will be having his fifth professional fight as he looks to get more experience against AJ Carter. Dubois has been tipped to be a future heavyweight world title contender so will be expected to shine again in London earlier in the evening.