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Fight Week: Joe Joyce to take on Carlos Takam, ShoBox celebrates anniversary

Michael Rosenthal
·2 min read

FIGHT WEEK

Joe joyce will RISK RANKING AGAINST VETERAN CARLOS TAKAM ON SATURDAY IN LONDON. ALSO, SHOBOX: THE NEXT GENERATION CELEBRATES ITS 20TH ANNIVERSARY.

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JOE JOYCE (12-0, 11 KOs)
VS. CARLOS TAKAM (39-5-1, 28 KOs)

  • When: Saturday, July 24

  • Where: SSE Arena, London

  • TV/Stream: BT Sport in U.K. (no TV in U.S. at the moment)

  • Division: Heavyweight (unlimited)

  • At stake: No titles

  • Pound-for-pound ranking: None

  • Odds: Joyce 9½-1 favorite

  • Also on the card: Hamzah Sheeraz vs. Guido Nicolas Pitto, junior middleweights; Jack Catterall vs. Abderrazak Houya, junior welterweights

  • Prediction: Joyce KO 6

  • Background: Joyce, the 6-foot-6 2016 Olympic silver medalist from London, will return to the ring for the first time since his breakthrough 10th-round knockout of Daniel Dubois this past November in Westminster. The 35-year-old is ranked No. 2 by the WBO but, assuming he wins on Saturday, he’ll probably move up a notch after Anthony Joshua defends his titles against current No. 1 Oleksandr Usyk this fall. Takam is nearing the end of his career at 40 but he has performed reasonably well of late, defeating four second-tier opponents since back-to-back KO losses to Anthony Joshua (for two titles) and Derek Chisora. He outpointed capable Jerry Forrest in July, his most-recent fight. Takam, 6-foot-1½ will have a height disadvantage but he has a slightly longer reach than Joyce, 80½ inches to 80. The Cameroonian-born Frenchman is based in Las Vegas.

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ISAIAH STEEN (15-0, 12 KOs)
VS. KALVIN HENDERSON (14-0-1, 10 KOs)

  • When: Friday, July 24

  • Where: Heartland Events Center, Grand Island, Neb.

  • TV/Stream: Showtime

  • Division: Super middleweight (168 pounds)

  • At stake: No titles

  • Pound-for-pound ranking: None

  • Odds: Not available

  • Also on the card: Janelson Figueroa Bocachica vs. Shinard Bunch, welterweights

  • Prediction: Steen UD

  • Background: This card is as much about the 20th anniversary of Showtime’s popular ShoBox: The New Generation series as any of the fights that will be televised. The series has showcased 84 fighters who have gone on to win world titles. Could Steen or Henderson be next in line? Steen is the half brother of U.S. Olympian Charles Conwell. The 24-year-old product of Cleveland also has a solid amateur foundation — he reportedly was 85-15 in the unpaid ranks — and has power, as his record indicates. He last fought in November, when he stopped Juan De Angel in five rounds. Henderson, a 31-year-old from Arkansas, is also a boxer-puncher. He reportedly had 70 amateur fights and has a high KO percentage, including stoppages in his last two fights. Both principals will fighting in their first scheduled 10-rounder. They were scheduled to meet in October but Henderson pulled out of the fight because he was ill.