Last October, George Liddard was the subject of one of those declarations in the wake of his 10th round stoppage victory over Kieron Conway, which made him history’s youngest middleweight to hold British and Commonwealth titles at the same time.

Hearn, who admitted he initially considered Liddard a solid domestic prospect, was now very high on the 23-year-old from Billericay. No longer just a man capable of cleaning up the British scene, Liddard was now at ‘world level’ and one of the hottest prospects on the planet according to Hearn.



On Saturday night at London’s Copper Box Arena, Liddard will headline for the second consecutive time when he faces experienced former European middleweight champion Tyler Denny (21-3-3, 1 KOs). An awkward southpaw who has a history of victories in domestic derbies, Denny will no doubt ask Liddard a new set of questions.

He will add more weight to Hearn’s argument if he answers all of them in style and produces another statement victory but Denny has the ability to make it a long night for Liddard. There was a time when nobody ever looked good against the Rowley Regis man, now 34, but Hamzah Sheeraz became the exception to that rule when he bludgeoned his way to a second round stoppage at Wembley Stadium in September 2024.

If Liddard can produce a similarly emphatic performance, many more will begin to believe that Hearn is spot on in his assessment. But Denny, aware that an upset win will breathe new life into his career, is out to exorcise his demons on his first trip to the capital since that night.

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George Liddard said: “I need to get the job done and then hopefully move onto some bigger and better things. But listen, Tyler Denny has been given this opportunity and I think it’s well deserved. He’s a former European champion so I’m not taking anything lightly. I’m ready for a war and I’ll do what has to be done on March 21.”



Tyler Denny said: “I was surprised when I was suggested as an opponent and that’s why I didn’t take it too seriously until it was official. But you have to look at it in two ways; they either don’t rate me very much or they really believe in George. Maybe it’s a bit of both. But Eddie has already said he thinks George is world level, so when I beat him, they will have to talk about me in that way too.”

Not for the first time in his career, Tyler Denny is the rank outsider. He is as long as 8/1 (+800) with some oddsmakers to pull off the upset against defending champion George Liddard, who is as short as 1/14 (-1400) in some places. The draw, therefore, is way out at 33/1 (+330).

Two of Matchroom’s other hot prospects, who both hold English titles, are in action on the night in 10-round defences. At middleweight, Liddard’s close friend and gym mate Jimmy Sains faces Derrick Osaze while Giorgio Visioli, who is hopeful of facing Curmel Moton in the next year, takes on Levi Giles.

Copper Box Arena, London.

The five-fight main card will be streamed live on DAZN from 7pm GMT, after some undercard action on YouTube.