By Frank Warren

We didn’t have to ponder for too long in coming up with a title for our proposed show in London on July 8 – especially after the headliner Billy Joe Saunders labelled his 5ft 4″ opponent a puffed up Danny DeVito.

So with the stocky Avtandil Khurtsidze set to emerge from the opposite corner at the Copper Box, we reckon ‘Get Shorty’ fits the bill nicely.

Jokes aside, Khurtsidze showed on Saturday in Leicester that he presents a clear and present threat to everyone in the middleweight division.

He is like a bull charging forward and you could say Tommy Langford got caught short by a bludgeoning left hook in the fifth round that ended his night as well as his hopes of landing the WBO interim world title.

Khurtsidze fighting Langford for the secondary title was part of a package we put together that would allow Billy Joe to fight Gennady Golovkin in a unification contest. The Georgian was also paid a step-aside fee for the delay to his mandatory challenge.

With the Golovkin camp stalling on putting the final piece in the middleweight title jigsaw, Bill cannot afford to sit around waiting any longer and needs to get active against genuine challengers.

Khurtsidze showed his credentials in Leicester and we now have a real fight on our hands, although we nearly had a prequel at the press conference when Khurtsidze called it on early, with Bill being more than happy to oblige.

A number of commentators Stateside believe this will be a foregone conclusion and can’t see Bill repelling the charge of the Brooklyn resident.

Myself and, obviously, Bill view it very differently. There is not a lot of science in the methods of Khurtsidze, who is predictable and telegraphs his shots.

A clever, slippery customer like Bill is far too stealthy to get himself cornered and, even if he lands the odd lucky one, our man has one of the best chins in the middleweight business.

It will be an exciting and intriguing fight, but I can only see one winner.

While the Golovkin fight being parked up for a while was a natural frustration of Bill, it could also be a blessing in disguise. Hunting down the supposed top dogs of the division has resulted in Bill stagnating a bit, so a couple of solid defences of his belt against dangerous opponents could be just what he needs.

As long as he remains champion, the Golovkin and Canelo fights will come soon enough and Bill’s stock will only increase if he delivers one or two statement performances beforehand.

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