Owen Cooper vs Chris Kongo Predictions: The ghost of Essuman hangs over well-matched welters

Worcestershire welterweight Owen Cooper looks to reassert himself in one of British boxing’s most crowded divisions as he prepares to face Chris Kongo on Saturday, May 10. The 10-round bout serves as part of the undercard for Anthony Cacace vs Leigh Wood at the Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham. DAZN will broadcast the event live.

Here are my Owen Cooper vs Chris Kongo predictions ahead of this clash of the welterweights.

Owen Cooper vs Chris Kongo Odds

Kongo comes in as the 8/15 favourite in this one. Cooper is 13/8 to pull off the upset, though not a major one in my eyes. I see this as being close. If it’s really close, the draw is 14/1.

Owen Cooper vs Chris Kongo Fight Preview

These men have one glaring thing in common and it is not a positive commonality. Each man has lost to Ekow Essuman in their most recent defeats. In fact, of the three cumulative losses these men have suffered, two-thirds of them are to Essuman. 

Cooper and Kongo now have to watch as Essuman goes on to the biggest fight of his life, a headline clash with former undisputed super lightweight champion Josh Taylor at the OVO Arena in Glasgow. Not an easy place to go, but the sort of challenge you want in order to prove yourself as a world class fighter.

Cooper and Kongo make do with an arena undercard and a tricky fight. But despite this fight being sequestered fourth-from-top on the current schedule, it might just end up being the best of the lot. 

What you have here is a previously-unbeaten prospect in Cooper looking to reset against a still-hungry veteran looking to protect his position. That is a common recipe in boxing, but it usually serves up something appetitsing.

Looking back, 24-year-old Cooper might have ran before he could walk a bit. Buoyed by a career-best stoppage of Eithan James to win the English title, the Worcester welter perhaps rushed a little in taking on a fighter of Essuman’s stature.

Here was a fighter that had won everything there is to win at British and Continental level. Even though Essuman was coming off a first career loss to Harry Scarff, it was a huge leap in class. Scarff’s win was arguably Britain’s upset of the year. It was bold to assume he could repeat the trick against an Essuman who had recently been burned.

Cooper’s wake-up call was not swift. He actually had Essuman on the brink of defeat, dropping ‘The Engine’ hard and almost closing the show. But the Botswana-born veteran battled back and finished Cooper in the 10th and final round. It was a harsh lesson, but perhaps a necessary one for Cooper.

Cooper chased a rematch, but Essuman understandably opted for the lucrative Taylor chance. But for that chaotic 10th round, it could have been Cooper in front of ‘The Tartan Tornado’.

Kongo knows what it’s like to see the ‘0’ go and rebuild. ‘2Slick’ was 12-0 when he bravely took on the challenge of 19-0 Michael McKinson. Knocked down in the first round, he fought his way back into the contest and pushed an opponent who would go on to fight some of the world’s best to the limit. Like Cooper, Kongo was far from dominated and actually seemed to learn plenty from his disappointment.

Kongo turned over journeyman Kelvin Dotel and fringe contender Sebastian Formella to earn another big night. We all know how that went by now, as the man who towers over this fight, Essuman, outscored Kongo for the British and Commonwealth titles.

Again, Kongo has rebuilt. A win over Florian Marku in a war was a strong statement in his comeback fight. The bout created a buzz with many calling it the best version of Kongo we had seen yet. I would certainly amplify that statement. A couple of tick-over six-rounders around middleweight have come since, with Kongo winning both. But now, a real fight.

Welterweight is a big division in British and boxing at the moment. Along with Essuman and Taylor, there is Conor Benn, Lewis Crocker, Pat McCormack and Harlem Eubank in the world rankings. The winner of this fight can put themselves on the radar of those men. Though both could be forgiven for not wanting Essuman to be the one who picks them out of the hat. 

Owen Cooper vs Chris Kongo Full Card

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Owen Cooper vs Chris Kongo

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Owen Cooper vs Chris Kongo Prediction

Cooper was the same price as Essuman going into their fight, with both boxers priced at 10/11. Now the prospect has dropped to 6/4 for what is arguably a less daunting fight. Has the fact Cooper got stopped swayed the court of public opinion? 

Boxing is a results business, ultimately. The fact Cooper lost, despite nearly claiming a dramatic victory, is essentially all that matters. But Kongo lost to the same foe. Has the Marku result over a year ago tipped the scales into his favour?

I’m going to go against the grain here. Cooper is young, up-and-coming and gave a world-ranked fighter absolute fits. Kongo is 32, has fought journeymen opposition exclusively recently and you do wonder how much some hard fights, like Marku, have taken out of him.

This will be a close fight. Of the three losses these men have had, all have been narrow. I can see this starting a little tentative before breaking down into fistic warfare. It will be hard-fought and thrilling until the final bell.

I think at that bell, when the scores are read out, Cooper will emerge as a points victor. If you fancy backing my selection you can at odds of 5/2. 

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