There is something special about a domestic dust-up at the York Hall in Bethnal Green.
Add into the mix the British and Commonwealth middleweight titles being on the line and the fact that the bookies can barely split the pair, then Kieron Conway versus George Liddard has all the ingredients to be a Friday night cracker on DAZN.
With Conway available at a best price of 6/5, Liddard is the slight favourite at 5/6 despite being the one who is stepping up in class here and he has more to prove right now.
Admittedly, Liddard has looked good in compiling a record of 12-0 (seven early) but this is the Essex man’s first scheduled 12-rounder and he is very much the challenger.
Conway, on the other hand, holds both the aforementioned titles and has boxed at a higher level, as well as having much more experience under his belt. His record of 23-3-1 may have a few blemishes on it but they came against good opposition, and he arrives in the form of his life, having learnt from those defeats.
Conway dropped a split decision to Souleymane Cissokho in 2021 and a unanimous decision to Austin Williams the following year, but he performed with plenty of credit against those then-unbeaten foes and those trips to American clearly did him plenty of good, as he has won five on the bounce since that latest defeat.
There have been good wins in that streak, including halting Linus Udofia in six rounds, going to Japan to stop Ainiwaer Yilixiati and a hard-fought points win over Ryan Kelly. The man from Northampton looked better than ever last time out, when he battered Gerome Warburton into a fourth-round stoppage to add the British strap to his Commonwealth belt.
Now 29, Conway looks a much more rounded fighter and the move up to middleweight has really helped him, especially with his power as he now seems to be hitting with much more authority.
Liddard is six years younger at 23 but has been talked about as a hot prospect for some time and his performances in the ring have done nothing to quieten that chatter. The ‘Billericay Bomber’ likes to live up to his nickname as he ploughs forward on the front foot with a good work rate and looks to land plenty of heavy leather.
He did just that when dropping Aaron Sutton three times on his way to a stoppage in the fifth round when last seen in May, on the same card that Conway blew away Warburton, and Liddard certainly looked ready for a step up that night.
However, is this too much of a step up at this stage of his career?
Listening to Liddard, you wouldn’t think so as he oozes self-confidence and clearly believes that Conway will be just another of his victims. He is improving all the time and certainly has plenty of ability, so it may be that he makes the required improvements to maintain his perfect record. He is 6/4 to win by decision and 11/2 to score a stoppage success.
However, Liddard’s opponents to date have been way below that of Conway and a sizeable jump up is required. As always in these classic ‘crossroads’ bouts, it’s a case of potential versus experience and, in this case, I am inclined to side with the latter.
Conway looks the better all-round boxer right now and when you add that to his superior experience, then he could just know a bit too much if this goes into the second half of the fight. He knows how to do 12 rounds well and that could prove vital down the stretch.
Conway is certainly hitting harder now, and I wouldn’t rule out a stoppage for him at 9/2, but I prefer the 12/5 about him winning by decision.
He appears the more skilled boxer of the two and takes a shot pretty well, so I believe he can stand up to what Liddard has to offer and come back firing. That may pose some serious questions of the inexperienced Liddard, and he may not have the answers at stage of his career.
Preview published at 1245 BST on 16/10/25
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Both of these like to go for the knockout and they carry power, but I expect Marshall to have too much on her return to boxing and the 4/1 about her getting a stoppage looks too big to me.