Utria vs Nkosi Predictions: The final beckons for super lightweights in Saudi

Carlos Utria takes on surprise package Ntethelelo Nkosi in the super lightweight semi final of the WBC Boxing Grand Prix this Sunday, October 19. The scheduled six-rounder takes place at the BLVD City Global Theater in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. DAZN will broadcast the whole event live, which takes in the semi final stage of the competition across four weight classes.

Here are my Utria vs Nkosi predictions ahead of this super lightweight semi.

Utria vs Nkosi Odds

Undefeated Utria is 3/10 to keep his winning run going. Nkosi is the underdog at 11/4, but he is used to that and often shocks his favoured foes. The draw is 16/1.

Utria vs Nkosi Fight Preview

The premise of the WBC Boxing Grand Prix is simple. Five single-elimination tournament rounds featuring 128 boxers from 41 countries. The competition has four individual weight class brackets, with featherweight, super lightweight, middleweight and heavyweight being featured. The fights are over six rounds and if you win, you move to the next stage of the bracket. Simple.

As with anything in modern boxing, there are some unwelcome entanglements. Every fight takes place in Riyadh, the Las Vegas of the 2020s in pugilistic prevalence and dark underbelly if not Elvis impersonators and drunken debauchery. 

The tournament also carries the usual odious sanctioning body trappings. The winner gets not only a reported $220k purse but also the Jose Sulaiman Trophy, named after the deceased founder of the World Boxing Council. All that is fine. But the promise of a shot at the WBC silver championship, a low-tier ranking belt barely worth its weight in precious metals, is a sorry reminder of how this shady business really works. 

But this format is less about belts and more about impact. While the one-night thrills of a Prizefighter or Ultimate Boxxer are not on display, the all-or-nothing stakes evokes the days of the Super Six World Boxing Classic tournaments. 

The names on show are not as well-known as Super Six winner Andre Ward or the likes of WBSS winners Oleksandr Usyk and Naoya Inoue. But with the WBC Grand Prix that is sort of the point. The Saudi smackdown has been envisaged to shine a light on the up-and-comers of the sport.

Utria is a Colombian knockout artist who came into the tournament having stopped every professional opponent he had faced. Unbeaten Dominican Elianel Guerrero felt that force in the round of 32, as Utria knocked him down three times on the way to a second-round KO.

The 22-year-old has had to go deeper in his further Grand Prix efforts. Utria’s last-16 fight with fellow heavy-hitter David Allen Crenz was a turn-up for the books. The pair entered with a combined 25-1 record with 24 knockouts. But Utria won on points in a decent little scrap.

The young puncher took 12-0 Canadian Spencer Wilcox’s unbeaten record in his quarter-final bout, but again it took him six rounds to do it. Utria has had to show in this tournament that there is more to his game than explosive power.

Nkosi has shown plenty of what he is capable of in this tournament too. He gambled a lot on this competition, vacating the South African super lightweight title to compete in Riyadh. After stopping Egypt’s 5-0 Marwan Mohamad Madboly in the round of 32, an accomplished decision over former regional WBO and IBO titlist Ju Wu put Nkosi’s name in a lot of mouths.

Twenty-two-year-old Italian Fiorenzo Priolo was 11-0 coming into his quarter-final with Nkosi. But he left with a wide unanimous decision loss on his record at Nkosi’s hand. 

The lure of a WBC ranking, life-changing money and a shiny trophy is strong. But ultimately, neither man will be thinking of the final just yet. Utria and Nkosi have got six rounds of hard work to do.

Utria vs Nkosi Full Card

Carlos Utria vs Ntethelelo Nkosi

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Muhamet Qamili vs Yoni Valverde Jr

Ahmed Krnjic vs Keaton Gomes

Dante Stone vs Kevin Cristopher Ramirez

Dylan Biggs vs Lancelot Proton de la Chapelle

Utria vs Nkosi Prediction

Utria is the banger here, with 10 knockouts from his 12 wins. But it is telling that, fighting higher-level guys in this competition, he has gone the distance more often. 

Nkosi has proven durable and adept over this six-round clip. He has got pop in his shots beyond what his five knockouts in 10 outings suggests. The resident of Johannesburg knocked Sanele Msimang out in a single round of his final South African title defence. The Guerrero KO to open his Grand Prix account was a fine scalp, too.

Nkosi has got the mettle to give Utria a real test here. But I do think the irrepressible Colombian comes through. Even if he stops short of the knockout, the 22-year-old has the power and pressure to keep his man in check. Utria to win at 3/10.

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