Conor Benn will look to move one step closer to world title contention when he faces South African Chris van Heerden on Saturday.
The British welterweight will look to continue his rise through the rankings when he defends his WBA Contentinal title against the veteran.
Benn was last in action in December, when he recorded a stunning knockout victory over Chris Algieri in Liverpool, while his opponent also boxed in December, although his fight with Jaron Ennis was ruled a no contest.
At odds of 1/16, it is pretty obvious that the majority of the boxing world expects Benn to cruise to victory this weekend as he tries to prove he belongs at world level.
Van Heerden has rarely boxed anyone at world level, and when he has, he has lost, so he is the outsider at 7/1.
The card in Manchester is due to start at 19:00, but the main event should not get underway before 22:00.
Saturday's bout will be exclusively shown live on DAZN in the UK.
Despite a few nerve-wracking moments at the start of his career, Benn, son of former two-division world champion Nigel Benn, remains unbeaten in 20 fights.
The 25-year-old has not had it easy despite his family connections, and he had to weather a few early storms at the beginning of his career.
Benn has registered 13 knockouts so far and, while he has touched the canvas on occasions, he has shown incredible heart to get up and continue fighting.
Boxing: All you need to know about Gennadiy Golovkin v Ryota Murata
Boxing: All you need to know about Savannah Marshall v Femke Hermans
Boxing: All you need to know about Deion Jumah v Richard Riakporhe
Boxing: All you need to know about Kiko Martinez v Josh Warrington
Benn's career kicked off at the end of 2020 when he beat Sebastian Formella on points, before then dismantling Samuel Varas via TKO in April 2021.
Since then, he has been taken to points by Adrian Granados, while he knocked Algieri out cold at the Echo Arena in Liverpool.
Van Heerden has only lost two of his 28 fights so far, and he has proven a tough nut to crack.
Only Errol Spence Jr has stopped the South African and considering he is one of the best fighters on the planet, that is nothing for Van Heerden to be ashamed about.
'The Heat' has plenty of experience fighting in the USA, but he has yet to fight in Great Britain, and he will be expecting to come up against partisan crowd backing Benn this weekend.
When the fight was announced, critics were quick to jump on Benn's back slating the calibre of his opponent.
Benn has claimed for several months that he is ready to challenge for world honours, and to back those words further, he needs a big performance.
Van Heerden's 12 KO wins show he does carry some power, but he would need a career-best display to have his hand raised.
Benn has shown he has a strong chin, a big heart and a superb array of shots so far, and he should be stopping the South African inside the scheduled distance.
With Van Heerden only losing one fight so far, Benn may need to stay patient inside the early rounds, but a middle to late stoppage looks the way to go for this main event in Manchester.
Latest sports betting and odds
Head to the bet365 YouTube channel for exclusive boxing content
We use cookies to deliver a better and more personalised service. For more information, see our Cookie Policy
