Edwards vs Ory Predictions: Charlie walks the comeback trail

World-ranked bantamweight Charlie Edwards is in action this Friday, 12 April as he takes on former European champions Georges Ory. The fight goes down at the iconic York Hall in Bethnal Green live on Channel 5. Here are my Edwards vs Ory predictions as the 118-pounders take centre stage.

In terms of taking centre stage, Charlie’s brother has been doing the bulk of that for the family in recent years. Sunny Edwards, the former IBF flyweight champion, is constantly in the headlines for both his in-ring displays and his social media histrionics. 

Elder sibling Charlie is not as much of a capital-P “Personality” as his precocious kin. But he is every bit the boxer, as the WBC flyweight title he once held reflects. It is a title Edwards never lost in the ring. His 2019 defence against Julio Cesar Martinez was initially ruled a third round knockout in the challenger’s favour. But it was later ruled a No Contest as Edwards was struck with a body shot while kneeling on the canvas. Edwards would later vacate the title due to difficulty making the flyweight limit.

Despite not losing to Martinez, Edwards have never quite been the same since that ill-fated title bout. He has boxed three times since, winning them all. But none of those bouts have elevated Edwards back to championship level. The trio of fights were fought over 10, eight and six rounds respectively. Kyle Williams, Jacob Borreto and Darwing Martinez are not the sort of world class opponents Charlie had grown accustomed to facing.

Ory is a step in the right direction on that front. The Frenchman is a former European and IBO champion. Ory is a cut above the level of competition Edwards has mixed in since the Martinez debacle. But he is also somewhat of a safe landing for Edwards. Ory has never fought outside his native France and has lost to Jeremy Beccu, Geoffrey Dos Santos and Karim Guerfi in the past. 

This is the sort of fight that will demonstrate the level Edwards is at. The man that beat the likes of Cristofer Rosales and Angel Moreno in WBC flyweight title outings should have no trouble with Ory. But at the age of 31, with just three fights under his belt in five years, an undercooked Edwards would find this fight a lot harder. Moreso than last year’s six-round victory over journeymen Darwing Martinez, this is a true test.

Should Edwards win, the picture will start to open up for him at bantamweight. Ranked at number 14 with the WBC, you would envision Edwards creeping into the rankings of a couple more sanctioning bodies in the event of a victory. It would be a joyous way to end what has been a difficult period in Edwards’ life. While his most recent ring battles have not been the most taxing, the emotional toll of his life has been incredibly tough.

Edwards has been candid about the impact of losing his mother. The former champion has also gone into detail about how it felt to relinquish the title and his reliance on alcohol to get through difficult times. The pain of being written off by those who perceived his No Contest against Martinez and vacation of the title as signs of a decline stung Edwards. Initially this led to a period of self-medication. But now, the Surrey man is dedicated to proving his doubters wrong.

A convincing win over Ory would be a fine start. I think he will secure it too. Edwards isn’t a noted knockout puncher, having stopped seven of his 18 victims. I think Ory will stick around to hear the final bell, but will find himself thoroughly outboxed en route. My prediction is Edwards to win, which is priced at 1/16. Edwards has worked hard on himself in order to hit the comeback trail. I feel he will get the rewards he deserves on Friday and quite possibly beyond.

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