Having passed his American acid test in fellow unbeaten contender Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams on Saudi shores last time out, rising British middleweight Hamzah Sheeraz looks to seize European honours against Tyler Denny in the co-feature for Joshua-Dubois at Wembley tomorrow night. Here’s a rewind back to his fabulous display on June 1, where he answered some pressing questions…
Sheeraz searching for another superb display
IT’S a measure of the man Hamzah Sheeraz is becoming that, when asked for their predictions before his forthcoming matchup with EBU European middleweight Tyler Denny, a trio of divisional counterparts – one now retired but all three with nothing to gain from his success – were unequivocal when predicting the outcome.
Less than an hour after he stunned Nathan Heaney in their rematch, newly-crowned British champion Brad Pauls declared Denny had a chance, of course he does based on his upset resume, but Sheeraz should win.
“Denny is a very difficult fighter to beat – not just saying that because he beat me! Slick and slippery southpaw but look what he’s done, massive credit… lovely bloke.”
Former titleholder Denzel Bentley said the same after his devastating R2 knockout of Derrick Osaze last month while a chance meeting with Sheeraz’s former opponent Bradley Skeete, (who retired and is now a trainer) during fight week – who many critics felt exposed the 25-year-old in December 2021 – was honest.
He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t rooting for a Denny upset, though Hamzah has grown plenty since the bad blood between them subsided and he’s too good isn’t he? If anything, the Ammo Williams win satisfied critics feeling Sheeraz was being skyrocketed to world honours without the seasoning many had before him.
Denny’s Felix Cash win three weeks after Sheeraz’s R11 TKO win was deemed surprising at the time, but given he’s been in-form racking up more wins and staying active while a then-unbeaten Cash has dealt with a series of issues – injury, personal matters – hindsight shows that not to be the case.
Stylistically, the matchup doesn’t favour Denny at all against a boxer with physical advantages and one who hits harder from his basic fundamentals alone than anyone he will have faced. Does he embrace it? He sure does.
Liam Williams was adamant last year that Sheeraz has vulnerabilities he’d expose and while unwittingly playing into traps set by the longtime WBC Silver champion, Ammo will have given Denny some motivation: he can still be hit.
Moments like this clip show his ability to withstand danger as he successfully navigated some nervy moments in the opening few rounds:
Matchroom chief Eddie Hearn still insists Williams could’ve won with better in-fight tactics and a more disciplined, fight camp tailor-made for the Ilford man but truthfully, Sheeraz showed what many within his entourage said prior: he was levels above and that self-confidence continues growing with each passing fight.
Denny wasn’t the desired opponent for this card, a quick Google search and you’ll find that much is clear. Chris Eubank Jr and even unified world champion Janibek Alimkhanuly – who Sheeraz has sparred in the past – were both made offers but passed, likely deeming the risk-reward conundrum too high at this stage.
There’s no shame in that and Hamzah knows his time will come, provided he keeps winning. Denny’s story is refreshing: a tireless working-class man clawing his way into a big showcase opportunity like this, while Sheeraz is Queensberry’s golden goose in a way the Birmingham man, made on the small-hall circuit, can’t relate.
Expected to lose time and again, the Rowley Regis native’s abilities have been given added juice by the Ben Shalom promotional machine with Sky Sports and BOXXER over the past two years but box the way Williams did, and this won’t end well. Uppercuts and balancing risk vs. reward in the pocket is a clear Sheeraz strength:
Instead, he must keep the fight at close quarters and impose his will on Sheeraz early to have any chance of sustained success.
Hamzah, as good as he is, tends to stay too long in the pocket at times and was caught flush a few times by his American adversary last time out. Chin-checked, wobbled, buzzed, he was but learned from the experience and adjusted on-the-fly with head trainer Ricky Funez always on hand to remind him, they’ve levelled up.
The same piercing jab rendering former Denny opponent River Wilson-Bent and others helpless in previous bouts was again on show in Riyadh, something Denny must be mindful of against someone who covers ground quickly.
His punch selection is varied too, as uppercuts pierced through Williams’ high guard and his body punching will open up the head if you allow him time or space to tee off combos. Ringcraft and tactical nous, rather than Denny’s usual gumption, is needed here. Whether he can keep Sheeraz off him, remains to be seen.
Picture source: Getty Images
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