Jack Rafferty vs Mark Chamberlain fight preview, odds and prediction
Jack Rafferty vs Mark Chamberlain full fight preview
Jack Rafferty (26-0, 17 KOs) defends his British and Commonwealth super-lightweight titles to Mark Chamberlain (17-1, 12 KOs) on August 23 in Planet Ice Altrincham, live on DAZN.
The 'Demolition Man' and 'Thunder' will headline the Queensberry Promotions event, supported by Zak Miller vs Leon Woodstock for the Commonwealth featherweight title.
Now 29, Jack Rafferty spent a long time in obscurity, plying his trade and building up his record in small hall shows up and down the North West, fighting mostly journeymen right up until he was 20-0.
It wasn't until he knocked out dangerous away fighter Ben Fields in September 2023 in his first 10-rounder that he really began to catch the attention.
He followed up his fine win with a devastating first-round KO over Lee Appleyard to capture the vacant Commonwealth super-lightweight belt in December 2023.
Every victory was a career-best win for the determined Mancunian, but winning the British title against 13-0 southpaw Henry Turner with a ninth-round stoppage was the icing on the cake after seven years hard work. Turner was fleet-footed, quick, shar and elusive, but Rafferty just kept adapting, learning and applying pressure to close the southpaw down and land his bigger blows. His patience, persistence and fitness that night was highly impressive and commendable.
He defended the Lonsdale belt once with a seventh-round stoppage over 'Raging Bull' Reece MacMillan, who was a Central Area titlist.
Then, he defended his Commonwealth strap with a fifth-round TKO of 14-0 Cory O'Regan from Leeds.
Rafferty has won all six championship contests consecutively by stoppage, more than deserving of his alias 'Demolition Man'.
Portsmouth southpaw Mark Chamberlain was highly-touted, winning seven of his first 10 fights by knockout, five in the first-round.
In his 10th fight, he defeated capable gatekeeper Jeff Ofori via fifth-round stoppage, which was shortly after 'Jeffy' came close to defeating Archie Sharp.
He then won IBF European and WBC Silver belts to raise his world rankings, stopping the likes of Gavin Gwynne along the way.
His meteoric rise came to a sudden halt in September 2024 when he was upset by the relatively unknown Joshua Padley, who dropped Chamberlain in the eighth, winning widely on all three scorecards after 10-rounds. 'Paddy's' impressive win saw him catch the incredible opportunity to step in and fight Shakur Stevenson for the WBC World lightweight title in his very next fight.
Chamberlain made the step up in weight with a shutout points win over Miguel Angel Scaringi in his last fight in April.
Both Rafferty and Chamberlain are tough and powerful, so this contest is set to be filled with drama.
Betting Odds
2/5 Rafferty
11/5 Chamberlain
16/1 Draw
Prediction
Tim Rickson, BBN Editor: "Rafferty has stopped his opponents in every single championship contest, and Chamberlain has been dropped recently by someone not known for being a puncher.
"I believe these two are closely matched, but I'm more impressed with Rafferty's doggedness and determination. His confidence as a winner, champion and an unbeaten fighter is evident in his style.
"I'm picking Rafferty to win by KO, most likely in rounds 7-12."
