Florian Marku vs Chris Kongo: Betting Odds & Prediction

(Featured image: Alamy Images)

Written by: Tomos Ivers

Florian Marku takes on Chris Kongo in a must win welterweight clash at the O2 Arena on Sunday evening. 

The fight takes place on the undercard of Fabio Wardley's British heavyweight title defence versus Frazer Clarke. 

Tale of the Tape

Marku (13-0-1, 8 KOs) is a former kickboxer and is undefeated as a professional boxer, and already boasts wins against the likes of Rylan Charlton and former British champion Chris Jenkins.

The Albanian showed his punch power in his last contest when he stopped Dylan Moran inside one round, giving him a 61.5% KO ratio overall. Marku has shown his own vulnerabilities though, having been dropped by the likes of Charlton and Miguel Parra on his way to victory.

The Albanian seems to have been around British boxing for years but has failed to land himself a big fight. Victory over Kongo should secure a big name that Marku and his huge Albanian following have been calling for. 

Kongo (14-2, 7 KOs) has failed to live up to his reputation in the amateurs where he was amongst the likes of Josh Kelly as Britain’s top welterweights. The Londoner has all the tools to be at top fighter, but it’s never really happened for him as a professional. Kongo hasn’t boxed since defeat to Ekow Essuman last January for the British title but has since teamed up with coach Ben Davison.

Davison has worked wonders on struggling fighters such as Leigh Wood, taking him to two world titles, and has recently overseen the renoissance of former unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua. Kongo will be hoping to improve on his punch power with his new coach, as his KO ratio stands at only 50% heading into the Marku clash.

Prediction

The addition of Davison into Kongo’s camp gives the Londoner hope that he can pull off an upset. The bookies have Marku a slight favourite at 5/6 (Betfair), but Davison’s recent history with Wood and Joshua could prove a key factor.

Kongo has always been known for his long-range boxing and with the addition of Davison should be able to use his size to keep the smaller Marku off.

OddsNow's Pick: Chris Kongo to win (6/5 @ bet365)

CHECK OUT OUR PREVIEW OF FABIO WARDLEY VS FRAZER CLARKE HERE! 

 

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