Crocker vs McComb Predictions: The most avoided super lightweight returns

Ben Crocker puts his IBF European super lightweight strap on the line this Saturday, September 27 against Belfast fringe contender Sean McComb. The bout headlines at the Park Community Arena in Sheffield with DAZN screening the event live. 

Here are my Crocker vs McComb predictions ahead of this 10-round attraction.

Crocker vs McComb Odds

Crocker opens as a 10/3 underdog. Experienced McComb has mixed at world level, which is reflected in his 1/4 price. You can back the draw at 14/1. McComb has never drawn a pro fight, but Crocker’s most recent result was a stalemate.

Crocker vs McComb Fight Preview

A lot of fighters would suffer their first career setback and go down in levels. But Crocker is fronting up to his draw with Tiernan Bradley back in April by taking on the toughest opponent of his career. You can’t knock the hustle. 

McComb is another fighter with a lot of that particular trait too. A gritty Belfast boxer, ‘The Public Nuisance’ has been to world level. A controversial split-decision loss to Arthur Barboza Jr. showed the fine margins in this game. 

The Californian, who many thought had lost to McComb, went on to beat Jack Catterall and fight Teofimo Lopez for the WBO, The Ring and lineal crown. Meanwhile, Crocker, the winner in the eyes of most, had to hit the comeback trail.

It has been slow going. McComb was out of the ring for 14 months after the Barboza defeat. Through no fault of his own, the Irishman ended up in the ‘who needs him?’ club. Britain’s world level 140-pounders Jack Catterall, Adam Azim and Dalton Smith all ignored offers according to McComb. A fight with Pierce O’Leary on the Chris Eubank Jr. vs Conor Benn undercard fell by the wayside. 

McComb was a victim of his own moral success. The WBO had harshly jettisoned him from their world rankings for the Barboza loss. An extreme measure considering the strength of the veteran’s performance. The 33-year-old is superior to many fighters currently in the organisation’s top 15. 

Full credit then to Crocker for taking on the man nobody wants to face. The IBF European title on the line is not a patch on the historic and legitimate EBU version, a belt so ubiquitous that in boxing parlance it is simply referred to as the European title. However, it is a helpful foothold for the winner of this. 

More than jewellery, this fight has a plain old narrative. Two men step into the ring with it all to prove and only one can win.

For McComb the plan is simple. So basic it could tempt complacency. The Belfast boy proved he belongs at world level by giving Barboza a chasing. The same opponent Catterall could not find a way past. So the six-foot southpaw will simply look to come and impose his world class will on Crocker.

For the defending champion, this is a huge undertaking. It is relatively rare for the A-side of a main event to be the underdog. Implied probability makes him 23.1% likely to win, using his 10/3 price at press time. McComb is not a fighter many would take on at this stage.

Crocker’s draw with Ireland’s Tiernan Bradley last time out could have pumped the brakes on for the 31-year-old. In many ways it was a result for Crocker, who was a betting underdog. There were compelling arguments for his hand being raised, though Bradley boxed far too well for the word ‘robbery’ to be employed.

But adjusting to a stalemate after a boxing lifetime of victories can be tough. Many boxers would reset. Take a soft touch. But Crocker is doing something most would avoid. McComb is a step-up in class at a time when others would be questioning themselves.

At 31 and with 15 fights under his belt, a gamble is exactly what he needs. A Hail Mary reach for the world rankings. There are elements of this fight that work in Crocker’s favour. The Welshman has been far more active, boxing three times in 2024 to McComb’s single outing. Both men have one each this year, but Crocker’s 10 tricky rounds with Bradley would account for more sharpness than McComb’s six-round procession over journeyman Alexis Torres.

McComb has the experience edge. 21 fights to 15 for Crocker does not sound like a huge gulf, but it is quality as well as quantity. Crocker largely fought journeymen until his two wins over Stelios Papadopoulos. McComb has beaten quality domestic talent like Sam Maxwell and Kaisee Benjamin as well as solid Spaniard Alejandro Moya and Zelfa Barrett-conquering hard-nut Ronnie ‘The Shark’ Clark. 

This is the first time Crocker will have dipped his toe into those deep waters. It’s time to sink or swim.

Crocker vs McComb Full Card

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Crocker vs McComb Prediction

How much McComb has got left is open to discussion. The Torres procession is not an effective measuring stick for the Irishman’s ambitions going forward. The version that gave Barboza conniptions last year walks this fight. But Sean has not had a proper fight in a year. 

In the meantime, Crocker has been working hard and racking up rounds. Ten in the Bradley draw. Another 18 across the dual Papadopoulos victories. Crocker has been doing his learning in the ring. He’s sharp and he’ll be ready, there’s not doubt.

However, I am going to wager that McComb is still the man who should have gatecrashed the elite last year. If that guy turns up, he wins this fight via decision at 4/9.

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