BILLY JOE SAUNDERS will bid to shock the world next month by dethroning pound-for-pound king Canelo Alvarez.
The Welwyn warrior will throw down with the hard-hitting Mexican in an eagerly-anticipated super-middleweight title unification bout on May 8.
Saunders, 31, goes into his showdown with Canelo as a huge underdog – despite never having tasted defeat.
But some fight fans are predicting the slick southpaw to win the Dallas dust-up, which will take place in front of a capacity crowd at Cowboys Stadium.
Here, SunSport reveals predictions for the tasty 168lb affair from some of the biggest names in boxing.
Mike Tyson
Iron Mike has tipped Canelo to run through Saunders, backing the Mexican to get the Brit out of the ring in TWO rounds.
He told ES News: “Two rounds. He (Billy Joe Saunders) might run though. I think he’s gonna run a little.
“He has good moves, but Canelo might wear him down.”
Prediction: Canelo
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Tyson Fury
The Gypsy King reckons WBO 168lb champ Saunders will put on a clinic on May 8, telling Behind The Gloves: “I think Billy Joe gives him a boxing lesson.
“That’s what I’m here to see and that’s what I think will happen.
“I think everyone raves on about Canelo and how good he is and how he’s such a great guy but I just think every time Billy Joe steps into the pressure cooker he delivers, much like myself.”
He added: “Canelo’s tasted defeat and we know he can be outboxed because we’ve seen it. [Floyd] Mayweather outboxed him convincingly.
“He’s had a couple of sticky fights, struggled in a couple of southpaw fights. He struggled with [Erislandy] Lara.
“If Lara was a bit more of a name, a bit more of a draw, he probably would’ve got the decision.
“Billy Joe is a very good boxer, a very slick southpaw, and I know he’ll fancy this one.
“What’s on the line here is him [Saunders] being a world champion twice or going down as a great in the sport.
“This is what’s on the line here. He’s going to shock a lot of people and it’s going to be an easier fight then people think it is.”
Prediction: Saunders
Demetrius Andrade
WBO middleweight champ Andrade reckons Saunders will be bounced from the ranks of the unbeaten if he fights the same way he did against Martin Murray last December.
He told Boxing Scene: “May the best man win.
“Canelo showed that he was maybe able to carry a little power [up to the 168-pound division].
“He’s trying to be a little more agile and mobile, or whatever.
“Just going off the last fight, Saunders looked like s**t when he fought Martin Murray. He couldn’t do anything.
“He really didn’t dominate him in the way that he should’ve, the way somebody supposedly that good, that talented, should’ve done against Martin Murray, who’s been out the ring for however many years.
“If he brings that same type of fight to Canelo, I think Canelo’s gonna beat him.”
Prediction: Canelo
Chris Eubank Jr
Saunders’ bitter rival is expecting his fellow Brit to be brutally dismantled by the imperious Canelo.
When asked to give his prediction for the fight, Eubankr Jr told the Sport Bible: “That’s an execution.”
Prediction: Canelo
