Mark Heffron vs Denzel Bentley – who wins and why?
Middleweight bangers Mark Heffron (25-1, 19KOs) and Denzel Bentley (13-0, 11KOs) collide inside the BT Studio in Stratford on Saturday night – live coverage begins on BT Sport 1 on September 12 from 7.30pm.
BBN asked their panel of experts for their unique and insightful views on who wins this hugely anticipated showdown.
Carl Greaves
Boxing trainer & manager
"This is another very good fight.
I think Heffron will win, he seems a different fighter since his defeat to Williams. He seems to have learned a lot in that fight.
Bentley is good and will come again, but I think this fight is a couple of fights too early for him."
Liam Williams
British middleweight champion
"I think it will be a good fight – a very good fight. I think Heffron will probably end up chinning him. Bentley is very reckless and a bit sloppy, I think so, from what I have seen. He is a little bit sloppy and, as everyone knows, Heffron is a very big puncher.
"I was actually sparring with Mark the other day and it was a good old dust-up. You would never expect anything less of Mark because he is a top fighter who comes to give it."
Steve Wood
Boxing manager & promoter
"Really looking forward to this fight and believe it will turn into an exciting shootout, which could go either way.
I believe Mark has the ability to outbox Denzel comfortably, but as with most punchers, eventually they look for the KO, so can see it being a punch up from the first time Mark is caught and he then decides to trade, which brings Denzel into the fight.
Bentley seemed to load up against Mick Hall in his last fight and, although he connected a lot, did not KO him. If Mark hit Mick with them shots, he would have gone.
I'm going with a KO win for Mark but having to overcome a little rocky patch after out-boxing him for a while."
Tim Rickson
BBN Editor
"Mark Heffron wasn’t quite ready to step up to the same level as his sole conqueror Liam Williams when they fought in December 2012. His head was snapped back from the very first round of their British middleweight title fight until he was halted in the 10th. Heffron missed a lot of punches as Williams controlled the pace and distance behind an expert jab and perfect performance.
He has since bounced back with four consecutive six-round wins – two shutout points victories followed by two first-round knockouts. So, the 28-year-old former WBC International titlist comes into his 27th contest with good momentum and confidence.
Denzel Bentley’s flashy style, with his hands held low, means that he will likely catch a few from Heffron and any other opponent he ever faces. So far, nothing has fazed him in his career. His previous opponent, Mick Hall caught him with a few good shots in the first round of their July fight, but it didn’t trouble the 25-year-old prospect one bit as he danced around, switched stance, showed off and cruised his way to sixth-round stoppage win after Hall was battered from post to post in the sixth stanza and retired before the seventh could start.
The Battersea boxer is a stylish, awkward, ruthless counter-puncher with a frightening 84% KO ratio. His heavy hands are thrown from his hips, which is extremely hard to react to as you can’t see them coming.
It’s an intriguing clash of styles, with Heffron very disciplined, experienced, powerful, sharp, with very decent all-round boxing skills. He’s very orthodox and boxes behind his jab, whereas Bentley couldn’t be any more different. He doesn’t know what he’s going to do himself, which means it’s impossible for his opponents to know either.
Both boxers are bound to land, but whose shots will be the most effective? Their KO ratios are high and almost identical in percentage. You could envisage Heffron winning the early rounds behind a sensible jab and tight guard, and racking up most of the rounds as the fight goes on, but it’s whether or not Bentley can land his damaging heavy hands cleanly to hurt Heffron and force a stoppage. It’s almost impossible to tell how the fight will play out until the first round is over.
If I really had to pick, then I'd say Heffron to win on points, but if it turns into a shootout, then Bentley gets a knockout."
Kieran Gething
Welsh Area super-lightweight champion
"I’ve not watched much of each, but seeing how dominant Williams was against Heffron and how hard Bentley hits, I’d have to side with Bentley!"
Dee the Hat
Boxing trainer
"It’s a good fight, but I have to go for Mark Heffron. He is a well-rounded professional now and I think he will have too much for Denzel."
An online poll by BT Sport Boxing showed the following results:
Mark Heffron KO: 41%
Denzel Bentley KO: 35%
Mark Heffron PTS: 13%
Denzel Bentley PTS: 11%
54% of fight fans are siding with Heffron to win, the remainding 46% are in Bentley's corner, so it's as close as you can possibly get!
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