What next for Delicious Orie? Matchroom, Queensberry & BOXXER eye 2024 Olympian

Britain's 2024 Olympic super-heavyweight star Delicious Orie isn't short of admirers, and we take a look at which promoter the Wolverhampton man could ink an agreement with as he looks to turn professional.

Headline writers everywhere let out a collective cry of dismay as Delicious Orie crashed out of the Paris 2024 Olympics after suffering a shock defeat to Davit Chaloyan, denying the world of ‘Golden’ Delicious.

The Midlander entered the Games with high expectations; he was the No.2 seed and had previously won gold at the Commonwealth and European games.

Team GB has a long history of guiding big men to glory; every super-heavyweight they entered had claimed a medal from Sydney 2000 to Tokyo 2020.

Despite the setback, the 27-year-old has a bright future ahead of him.

The Moscow-born fighter moved to England aged seven, and whilst he originally had his sights set on becoming a professional basketballer, subsequent passport issues prevented him from pursuing his 'American Dream'.

However, after witnessing Anthony Joshua knockout Charles Martin to become IBF heavyweight champion, Orie switched his focus to the sweet science of boxing.

The learning curve was steep, but the he persevered and progressed remarkably quickly.

In fact, his rise has been so rapid that he has already sparred many of the top professional heavyweights in the country.

AJ himself, is known to be a keen admirer of the 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medallist, having posted a picture of the pair together on Instagram with the caption: ‘The present and the future.’

Orie now looks primed to join his fighting idol in the professional ranks, even possibly working with the Watford star's 258 Management group.

However, what is less clear is which promoter Orie will choose to align himself with.

With Matchroom, Queensberry and BOXXER all expected to be battling for his signature, we take a look at what each of the three could offer...

Matchroom

Promoted by Eddie Hearn

Given the reverence Orie has for Anthony Joshua, it is likely he would be open to working with Eddie Hearn, who guided AJ from debut to unified heavyweight champion of the world.

Hearn has the gift of the gab and a large profile, which he uses to talk up his fighters at every opportunity.

He has a proven track record of guiding Olympians to world titles, having done so with Joshua, Joe Cordina, Kal Yafai and Lawrence Okolie.

The Essex promoter has a good working relationship with Turki Alalshikh, who is currently bank-rolling the biggest fights in the sport too, which would represent a pull.

The main downside to signing with Matchroom is that the promotional outfit have an exclusivity deal with, the streaming app, DAZN, meaning the online platform doesn't possess the same domestic reach as conventional channels such as Sky Sports or TNT Sports.

Queensberry

Promoted by Frank Warren

Frank Warren has seen and done everything in boxing, having been a promoter for over 40 years, and is, somehow, still operating at the top of the game.

At the minute, he has the deepest heavyweight stable in the country with: Tyson Fury, Daniel Dubois, Fabio Wardley, Joe Joyce, Derek Chisora and Moses Itauma all on his books. Orie would be in good company.

Warren has worked with some of the best boxers in Britain over his long career, turning the likes of ‘Prince’ Naseem Hamed into household names.

Queensberry currently have a broadcast deal with TNT Sports, which may aid in the process of building another superstar.

Like Hearn, Warren has worked with Turki Alalshikh to stage many big fights and, if anything, boasts an even closer relationship with the 'His Excellency'.

The only slight negative mark against the promotional company is that the last male Olympian they led to world title glory was Billy Joe Saunders, a number of years ago.

BOXXER

Promoted by Ben Shalom

The least established of the three major promoters in Britain, but Ben Shalom’s outfit have an exclusivity deal with Sky Sports.

The draw of the broadcaster cannot be underestimated, as, 2016 Olympians, Joshua Buatsi and Lawrence Okolie, both left Matchroom to ink a pact with BOXXER, citing the profile of the platform as a major factor in their decision.

The allure was clear to see once more when, Tokyo 2020 medallists, Frazer Clarke and Ben Whittaker signed with Shalom, after participating in the Olympics.

The upstart promotional company does not have the proven track record of developing fighters that their rivals have, but they have several cruiserweights on the books who could conceivably move up to heavyweight to take on Orie.

Until recently, Shalom had been on the outside looking in as Hearn and Warren staged major events in Saudi, but he has recently started working with Turki Alalshikh, although his relationship is not as established as the others.

With pros and cons to each, it remains to be seen who Orie will entrust to help take him to the pinnacle of the sport.