The fighting pride of Aberdeen, Lee McAllister, makes the second defence of his Commonwealth crown infront of the Sky Sports cameras tonight from 10pm.
Little known Ghanaian Sam Amoako stands in the way of a step closer to another crack at the Lonsdale belt for the 27 year old Scot and it could be an interesting evening, with details of the challengers ability kept to a minimum.
With almost nothing known about the travelling lightweight, we have to take what we can from his patchy record. The fighter nicknamed `Bruno` first ducked between the ropes in 2005, and has remained undefeated since, picking up the Ghanaian lightweight title along the way.
Amoako has halted each of his last two opponents, yet the challenger is ranked only fourth in his nation and with his victims bringing a combined record of ten wins against twenty two defeats and one draw, it is hard to see just what Amoako has done to deserve a shot at this respected title.
With the Ghanaian yet to fight outwith the country of his birth, he will make his big break without a friend in the arena and bookmakers think it will be a wasted journey, offering him as big as 8/1 (Stan James).
The Aberdeen Assassin may have a cult following in his home city, but the champion will attempt to gain favour in Glasgow with an impressive performance in Bellahouston.
Ranked sixth in the UK, McAllister has lost only twice during a thirty-two fight career. A surprise loss at the hands of Dean Hickman back in 2003 ended Lee’s undefeated run, yet the flashy orthodox didn’t taste defeat again until an eighth round stoppage in 2009 threatened to derail his career.
After out-boxing British champion John Murray for the first half of their meeting, the 5ft 9inch stylist threw the fight away with a bout of ill timed bravado, allowing hard hitting Murray to put the fight to bed.
The champion bounced back however, winning his last three outings in a run which has seen him both capture and defend the Commonwealth strap.
There has been very little value in boxing betting this year so far and unfortunately, with McAllister priced up at 1/14 (Ladbrokes), this week is no different.
Considering the champion has stopped each of his last two opponents inside seven rounds, including Amoako’s countryman Godfriend Sowah, it’s obvious that the Scot has been working on his power in the gym.
With this being the Ghanaian's first fight outside of his own country, I think he will really struggle and punters may be interested in the 11/2 about Amoako receiving a count during the first round.
It is a possibility that the fighter taking up residence in the away dressing room is an undiscovered gem, but I am not counting on it. McAllister has boxed at a much higher level throughout his career and should have the skill, intelligence and experience to record a knockout win at an appealing 6/4 (Bet 365).
