Prince looks to continue impressive run against Rose – Wigan show preview

A clash of former sparring partners sees Prince Arron defend his British light-middleweight title against challenger Brian Rose at Robin Park Arena in Wigan this Saturday. On paper, Arron appears to hold all of the advantages and will start a strong favourite in his maiden championship defence.

Undefeated in his previous 12 contests (11 wins and a solitary draw), the 23-year-old Drolysden stylist arrives into this on the crest of a wave after producing a career-best performance to capture the British crown with a 12th round stoppage over Sam Webb in May. Despite flooring Webb and having him all at sea in round five, Arron was forced to wait until the final round to seal his win when a groggy Webb was rescued following a sustained attack on the ropes after rising from the canvas for a second time.

Victory capped an impressive career turnaround for Arron who has made tremendous strides since suffering early stoppage losses to Anthony Small and John Duddy when still just a teenager. Revitalised under the tutelage of trainer Bob Shannon, Arron announced his arrival as a domestic contender by winning the Prizefighter light-middleweight tournament with a hat-trick of points wins over George Hillyard, Bradley Pryce and the late Brett Flournoy in the final.

At 6’3 Arron makes full use of his sizable height and reach advantages by utilising a snappy jab behind a pinpoint right hand. The British champion has also introduced a dangerous bolo punch into his arsenal of late which has seen him stop his last three opponents after previously only registering a solitary inside-the-distance win in his 25-fight career (21-3-1).

The only recent blemish on Prince’s 12-fight unbeaten streak saw him held to a six-round draw against Birmingham’s Max Maxwell in December 2009. The Drolysden man promptly set the record straight six months later, clearly outscoring Maxwell over eight rounds (78-74). In contrast, and perhaps significantly, Maxwell is the only man to defeat Saturday’s challenger Rose when he abruptly ended the Blackpool man’s unbeaten 15-fight start to his career with a shock sixth round knockout.

It’s worth pointing out that this was Brian’s first fight after his final round knockout over Doncaster’s Jason Rushton which saw Jason collapse in his dressing room afterwards where he was consequently rushed to hospital. Thankfully Jason recovered (though he will never box again) but one wonders if this was playing on Rose’s mind going into the Maxwell contest in which he was uncharacteristically subdued.

Since suffering his shock loss to Maxwell, Rose has strung together three wins which has seen him capture the vacant English light-middleweight crown with a repeat points win against Lee Noble and retain with a an eighth round stoppage over the previously undefeated Martin Welsh in May. So, Brian will undoubtedly come into this in confidence, and having sparred with Arron previously will fancy his chances.

To succeed Rose must set and maintain a fast tempo throughout and force Arron onto the back foot and look to target the lanky champion’s body. Arron can be lazy in patches and has a tendency to seek to grab in close when under pressure rather than work inside. It’s imperative therefore for Rose to unleash lots of quick combinations before moving out of punching range to ensure Arron cannot smother his attacks.

It’s a big ask though and clearly Arron proved against Sam Webb that he is made of much sterner stuff compared with the youngster who quickly unravelled against Anthony Small and John Duddy. The British champion will look to establish his trademark jab and catch the shorter Rose coming in with right hands and uppercuts. Arron is unlikely to have to go looking for Rose who looks relatively easy to hit.

The contest could be competitive early on but the vastly improved Arron should gradually pick the outclassed Rose apart to record a stoppage somewhere between rounds seven and nine.

In the chief support, an intriguing North West derby pits Manchester’s Karl Place against Liverpool’s Steve Williams in a ten-round eliminator for the British light-welterweight title. It promises to be a competitive and exciting battle between two attack-minded fighters.

The undefeated Place, 15-0 (8), has been steadily enhancing his reputation on domestic undercards by registering some decent wins against George Watson (TKO 5), Michael Grant (pts6) and Steve Saville (TKO2). The 23-year-old also holds a fifth round stoppage over the normally durable Michael Frontin. Karl clearly relishes a tear-up but his recklessness could ultimately prove his undoing as he steps up in class. Both the aforementioned Watson and Saville shook Place early on but the boxer bizarrely nicknamed ‘bulbhead’ was able to recover quickly and fire back, eventually overwhelming both opponents in a brace of entertaining shoot-outs.

The 27-year-old Williams, 11-1 (4) has had three fewer fights than Place but has mixed in better company. The Scouser holds inside-the-distance victories over former English title challengers Graeme Higginson and Dean Hickman and a points win over Celtic title challenger Stuart Green (over eight). Williams’ best win came against common opponent Michael Grant which saw him finish strongly to claim the vacant English light-welterweight crown on points over ten.

That earned Steve a crack at then British 10st champion Lenny Daws last July but after matching Daws early on, Williams struggled against Lenny’s superior skills and was eventually retired by his corner at the end of round ten after sustaining a cut to his right eye. The Liverpudlian has bounced back with two wins in 2011 – an impressive second round pounding over former Commonwealth lightweight title challenger Charlie Green and a six-round points win over Armenia’s Araik Sachbazjan in June.

The suspicion, based on his loss to Daws, is that Williams may have found his level whereas Place has the potential to progress to better things. Williams possesses both height and reach advantages over Place but is likely to be drawn into a close-quarters slugfest as both men have a tendency to load up early on. It could come down to who has the better defence and the greater stamina. Williams has been eight rounds and ten rounds twice and has a good engine on him. In contrast, Place is yet to go beyond six and it will be interesting to see whether Karl can maintain the intensity of his attacks if Williams is able to weather the expected early onslaught.

I think Place could ultimately go further in his career but fights are all about timings. However, my tip is for Williams to eek out a narrow points win in a contest which should see plenty of leather being exchanged.