Denzel Bentley knows he’ll be taking a risk when he takes on Derrick Osaze at the York Hall in London on Saturday night, but the former world title challenger believes it’s exactly the kind of test he needs to prepare for another top-flight fight.
The two-time British middleweight champion, with a record of 19-3-1 (16 KOs), is ranked second in the WBO middleweight rankings, just behind his domestic rival and Queensberry stablemate, Hamza Sheeraz.
Who knows where Bentley would be if he hadn’t been upset by Nathan Heaney in November 2023, but don’t expect the 29-year-old from Battersea to spend a second dwelling on what could have been, and there’s almost no chance he’ll lose focus in his fight with Osaze, 13-1 (3KOs).
The loss to Heaney was devastating at the time, but the lessons Bentley had to learn would serve him well later in his career. Bentley was taught exactly what could go wrong when he got distracted.
He bounced back in May with a decisive stop to Danny Dignum and believes the 30-year-old Osaze will be the next obstacle between him and his ultimate goal, with his London team-mate a real threat.
“He’s a good fighter,” Bentley said at a news conference Thursday. “He won the Ultimate Boxxer. You don’t win these tournaments if you can’t fight. I’m prepared and ready to fight on Saturday.”
“I look at him as a unsafe opponent. I know what he brings and I know what state of mind he’s in. I know he really wants to come in and take advantage of this opportunity. Like he said, it’s his time, right? I don’t look at it as a step in any other direction than what I have to take.”
Given Bentley’s high profile, a fight with someone like Osaze could be seen as unnecessary. Bentley isn’t the type to sit around and wait for an opportunity to arise. He’s taken every opportunity to improve since the beginning of his career, and experience has taught him that he improves when he’s motivated by the threat of a challenge in training, rather than by ticking over day after day and waiting for the perfect scenario.
“It’s my job,” he continued. “I’m a fighter. I’m a boxer. When people ask me what I do, I say I box. I don’t like to turn down fights or not want to fight this or that person. I’m not really afraid of anyone. It’s a fair fight. If it gets too scratchy, the referee says, ‘Break it down,’ so what’s there to be afraid of? I can’t be afraid of another guy who’s put in the same work that I’ve put in.
“[Fighters who prefer to sit on the sidelines] They’re just there for the aesthetics. They’re not there for what it says on the tin. They don’t do what they’re supposed to do. That’s why when you see a lot of inactive players, they complain. You don’t take what’s there. I’m not saying you have to, but it’s part of the job.
“There’s no fight I’d turn down. I’ve lost and I’ve come back stronger. I’m tenacious. I’m stubborn. I haven’t achieved what I wanted in this sport, so the journey continues.”
Osaze is a determined, slightly unorthodox player who was good enough to beat the decent Keiron Conway en route to winning the Boxxer one-day tournament, but lost to European champion Tyler Denny as he entered the championship level in 2021. He is trying not to think about where a shock victory on Saturday night might take him, and is focusing on what he knows is a tough task.
“It’s just another fight, right?” Osaze said. “It’s 10 rounds. There are two people with two arms, two legs, and we’re going to throw punches. We’re going to punch and we’re not going to get punched, and that’s what’s going to happen.
“Honestly, Denzel did well. I have nothing bad to say about what he’s accomplished in his career. I have a ton of respect for him, but at the end of the day, it won’t matter when we get in the ring. It’s me and Denzel. The bell will ring and there will be a winner.
“I’m confident. I wouldn’t have taken this fight if I wasn’t confident. God bless us both and may the best man win on Saturday.”
“A lot of people talk about the Boxxer tournament. For me, that was a long time ago. It was a great achievement, but I’ve always said it wasn’t the pinnacle; it was a milestone. The plan was always to keep going and keep improving.
“The last few years of my career haven’t gone according to plan, but I can have a lot of plans; the man at the top has other plans. He knew I’d end up at this table today. Whatever the past, it’s the past.”
Osaze deserves this opportunity, but the evening will be an opportunity for Bentley to prove he is on track to become world champion.
The in-form Sheeraz and Denny will meet at Wembley Stadium on September 21, but Bentley is focused solely on his career. He knows he can control his destiny by playing to his potential, and he is now all too aware that he could be ruining his plans if he allows his attention to wander.
“I really don’t care what happens,” he said. “I give Tyler credit for getting to this point. He’s had it the difficult way, like a lot of us have. I really don’t care. I’ll just watch as a fan.
“I’m number two in the WBO. I didn’t even have to fight Derrick. I feel like these fights are going to prepare me for what’s next. It’s only going to be harder. Nothing’s going to be effortless.
“I’m praying for another chance at a world title. I just have to do my part and whatever happens, happens. My manager Martin [Bowers] and Frank [Warren] do their part, but they can’t do their job until I do mine. I have to do mine on Saturday and whatever they come up with, they’ll come up with.
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