Betdistrict.com
The undefeated Tyson Fury will take on Romanian Christian “Hammer” Ciocan in a mandatory challenger fight for the Heavyweight division title tonight at the O2 Arena in London. The winner will get to fight for the Heavyweight title, as he will become the mandatory challenger for Wladimir Klitschko.
Fury (23-0-0, 17KO) is Britain biggest hope in the Heavyweight boxing division and one of the few fighters expected to be able to challenge Klitschko. Fury cruised to his 23 wins so far and is really looking promising, though he didn`t really meet the top fighters aside for Derek Chisora, whom he defeated twice. The Brit is one of the most powerful heavyweights of the moment, standing at 2.06 cm tall and about 120 kg in weight. He said that he consideres Cristian Ciocan a “necessary gamble” in his career and that he is as focused as ever.
Christian ‘Hammer’ Ciocan (17-3-0, 10 KO) lost 3 fights early in his career and never looked like a classy Heavyweight, but a good run in his last 9-10 fights along with favorable circumstances gave him the chance to challenge Fury today at the O2. I was very surprised that ‘Hammer’ was given this chance, but as Fury said, he was the only one willing to take it at this moment. The Romanian has a lot of heart but not much else – he doesn`t have power for this division, his boxing skillset is mediocre and he was already knocked down and knocked out in his career. His biggest fights and wins were against two washed up veteran boxers, Danny Williams and Kevin Johnson.
Bet on Tyson Fury vs. Christian Hammer and get your 100% bonus at Bet365.com!
Fury holds advantages over Christian Hammer in all physical categories, having more than 15cm advantage in height, about 5-6 kg in weight and a wider reach. This, along with his excellent KO record makes me believe that Hammer has little to no chance of resisting more than 5-6 rounds today. The Romanian is clearly not ready for this fight, he is nowhere near the top level in the Heavyweight division, never fought at a venue like the O2 and it`s obvious that he jumped too early to take a fight against a guy like Fury. He doesn`t have the quality to challenge the Brit and he doesn`t have the power to trouble him. More importantly, he doesn`t have the chin to at least take it to distance.
These two do not seem to be in the same category in quality or even in weight, it`s more like a training match for Fury ahead of a probable fight with Klitschko, so I expect him to easily outbox and outpower Ciocan early. Tyson ended 14 of his 23 fights in under 3 rounds, so I expect a similar outcome today.
My tip is Fury to win in rounds 1-6. For better safety you can go with the under 8,5 rounds (odds of about 1.60, seems like a ‘banker’), but I will take a risk for better value – just can`t see Ciocan resisting against a much bigger and classier opponent. Prediction: Fury TKO in Round 5.
Pick: Fury to win in Rounds 1-6
Odds: 2.25 @ Ladbrokes
Stake: 7
Possible profit: 8.75
Event date: 28 February
