GLENDALE, Arizona – Jaime Munguia has navigated narrow bouts before, sweating out scorecards and fretting in the center of the ring waiting to see if the referee will raise his hand.

As Friday’s super middleweight fight with Canada’s Erik Bazinyan started to take on the form of those others, Munguia flipped the script by ripping his fists toward his opponent.

Thanks to that extended barrage of blows that sent Bazinyan reeling from one side of the ring to the other, Munguia eliminated any of that past tension and set forth on a new segment of his career by knocking out Bazinyan 2 minutes and 36 seconds into the 10th round.

“It was a fight I had to dig in to win. I had to be smart and break him down,” Munguia said. “In the 10th, I came out with everything.”

Returning from an action-fight defeat on Cinco de Mayo weekend against Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, the 27-year-old Munguia (44-1, 35 KOs) made a power move toward free agency after fighting this bout under the Top Rank banner following an extended run from his time as a junior middleweight titleholder to the Canelo setback.

“He’s going to make the decision,” Munguia’s Mexican promoter Fernando Beltran told BoxingScene minutes after the bout’s completion.

Top Rank President Todd duBoef, whose company has expressed interest and plans for retaining Munguia, said he was impressed with both the enthusiasm of the 6,000-plus fans at Desert Diamond Arena and the way Munguia answered the challenge of Bazinyan (32-1-1).

“I thought there were a couple rounds he fought brilliantly, and a couple rounds he let [Bazinyan] dictate the pace,” duBoef said. “And that’s all part of this next chapter for him. It’s a comeback. Like the ebb and the flow of the fight … when he decided, ‘I’m going to motherfucking press it,’ he pulled it out. He proved he’s a guy who can finish, and always photogenic.”

Munguia laid the heavier leather on Bazinyan through three rounds, starting swelling under the Canadian’s left eye in the third and pressing the action as Bazinyan worked for opportunities to counter.

Munguia seemed willing to accept those punches as petty inconveniences to the more disabling heavier blows he was seeking to land. His continued steps forward in search of that damage brought the same kind of entertainment he created in the Alvarez loss to this evening.

But as Bazinyan’s counterpunching gave Munguia some problems in the fourth and fifth rounds, the bout seemed to turn.

“I was feeling very comfortable and felt good – he was frustrated,” Bazinyan said. “He wasn’t comfortable with my counterpunches.”

Munguia tended to body work in the sixth, and then rocked Bazinyan back to Munguia’s corner with an extended combination that featured hard right hands.

But Bazinyan answered the pain, banging his gloves together and backing up Munguia with a right hand to the face.

New Munguia trainer Erik Morales admitted to duBoef that he was influenced by his own fighting days – “the judges like me” – in instructing Munguia to take it easy in the ninth round and go all out in the 10th.

The strategy was sublime, showing Munguia as a battering force capable of destructing this top-five super middleweight contender and moving his career forward as top-ranked contenders such as Top Rank’s Christian Mbilli, along with Diego Pacheco and recent fellow Alvarez foes Caleb Plant and Edgar Berlanga, await.

“This was a great experience … [those contenders] are capable of making great wars, too,” Munguia said.

#JaimeMunguia #ErikBazinyan #Boxing #SuperMiddleweight #TopRank #KO #CaneloAlvarez #DesertDiamondArena #ChristianMbilli #CalebPlant #EdgarBerlanga #BoxingVictory #FightNight #Munguia #Bazinyan

On Saturday, US fight fans will get a reminder that boxing isn’t just an American pastime – it’s a global sport, and let’s be honest, we tend to forget that.

Daniel Dubois is putting his IBF heavyweight title on the line against Anthony Joshua at Wembley Stadium in London. Here’s the kicker: it’s not just the main event that should have your attention.

On the undercard, you’ll find names like Tyler Denny, a middleweight who’s been quietly making moves. But unless you’re glued to boxing streams at odd hours, you’ve probably never seen him fight. His bouts have rarely made it on to US television, so most fans here are completely missing out on his rise. Then there’s Willy Hutchinson, who’s taking on Joshua Buatsi for the WBO interim light-heavyweight title. Buatsi, you’ll recall, is a 2016 British Olympian training under Virgil Hunter, a name that should ring bells. Hutchinson? He’s a guy who took out Craig Richards in June opening the 5 v. 5 card, yet he’s flying under the radar Stateside.

While we’re on the subject of fighters US fans are sleeping on – sometimes literally – let’s not forget Naoya Inoue. Pound-for-pound one of the best in the world, but his fights air at 3am or 4am PST. Maybe 6am or 7am if you’re on the East Coast. So you’re probably not catching those live. It’s part of a bigger shift – fewer American fighters hold titles these days, and places like Saudi Arabia are becoming more of a focal point. It’s not all about the US anymore. Just something to think about as you sip your coffee.

Next weekend features a Top Rank card in New York City, but after that? The action again moves overseas. Nick Ball-Ronny Rios in the UK, Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol in Saudi Arabia, and a two-night title extravaganza in Japan. After one week, we’ll go almost a month with most of the big fights happening outside of the US.

As we gear up for yet another fight at a less-than-convenient hour – though, really, is it that bad? – remember, there’s something kind of fun about watching a big fight at some ungodly time.

In fact, it is fun to glorify at times. Here is a story about one such moment of waking up early for a fight. 

In 2009, I spent six months living in Armenia. The experience was a lot – I was living near the Cascade and soaking in the culture, but staying connected to my love for boxing? That took some effort. Luckily, a small cafe became my go-to for fight nights.

One that still makes me smile was the pay-per-view between Shane Mosley and Sergio Mora. At the time Mora didn’t know me from a stick in the mud, though we’ve since crossed paths. Mosley, on the other hand, was a staple of my childhood. His fights were like the music of Britney Spears or Limp Bizkit – always around, even if I wasn’t seeking them out. Growing up, it seemed like every year I’d end up at a friend's house, and at some point, Mosley was fighting and I was watching.

Mora was my guy. My grandpa, who got me into boxing, watched The Contender TV series with me. We had already followed Mike Tyson, but after his infamous ear-biting incident against Evander Holyfield it became harder to watch boxing for me. Tyson was our guy, and when he lost it stung. The Contender came at a time when I wasn’t as plugged into boxing, but my grandpa and I latched on to Mora. He won, and I was hooked.

So while many people shrugged off Mosley-Mora, I was all in. I remember watching a pre-fight video where Mora mentioned doing push-ups on a medicine ball to handle Mosley’s clinches. I tried it myself – tiny glimpses of training I thought I’d never get to see.

In Armenia, finding a place to watch the fight was tricky. I chatted with a local cafe owner, whose kids were my age, and they found a way to buy the fight; they also were below my apartment. A 5am wake-up call was necessary. My mom, who was in Armenia for business, and I walked down from our apartment with spiral stairs and an iron gate to the cafe. We waited until a light flickered on, signaling the owner was ready. I handed over way too much money for coffee and a pastry, and then we settled in.

The familiar sound of HBO Boxing filled the air, and Jim Lampley’s voice – the soundtrack to so many fights from my youth – greeted us. Maybe it was the international feed, but I want to believe it was Lampley. Either way, I was overjoyed. The cafe owner gave me a reassuring tap on the shoulder, and we watched the fight together. I scored it for Mora, and though it ended in a draw, I didn’t mind.

Homesick and far from my usual comforts, that fight made me feel connected to something familiar. In a world that feels so big, sometimes it’s the small things – like a boxing match at 5am – that makes all the difference.

Though I made the walk to watch fights after this again, this was the best one. 

So while Saturday’s fight might be timed kindly for those in the US, just remember that with each major fight someone is always inconvenienced. US fight fans are rarely inconvenienced, so when we are it is probably annoying to the rest of the world if we object to a 3pm PST main event. Some have it far worse.

: #DanielDubois #AnthonyJoshua #TylerDenny #WillyHutchinson #JoshuaBuatsi #NaoyaInoue #Boxing #WembleyStadium #FightNight #ArturBeterbiev #DmitryBivol #NickBall #RonnyRios #SportsFans #BoxingIsGlobal

This weekend at Wembley Stadium, British heavyweight boxing – at its proverbial home – will again be at the center of the boxing world, but it was not always like that. 

It took almost 100 years from Bob Fitzsimmons’ reign as heavyweight champion for another to be crowned from British shores, and there was plenty of unkind mockery and name-calling that went before.

The brave efforts of Tommy Farr, Don Cockell and Henry Cooper against Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano and Muhammad Ali respectively only served to enhance Great Britain’s unwanted reputation as the land of the Horizontal Heavyweights. 

That is not so in the modern era, rather a new status quo that if the finest heavyweights in the world do not come from Britain alone, at least they do hail from Europe. 

Still, here are some all-British heavyweight fights – some memorable, some controversial, some brilliant – that have left their mark on history, the same way IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua hope to on Saturday.

Bruce Woodcock w ko 14 Freddie Mills (June 2, 1949)

Former light heavyweight champion Mills, from Bournemouth, was up and down repeatedly, climbing off the deck in the first, fourth, eighth, 10 th and 12 th rounds before Doncaster’s Woodcock stopped Mills with a right hand in the 14 th round. Mills weighed just 175 1/2lbs, and he came in at 173lbs for the final fight of his career six months later against Joey Maxim for the world light heavyweight title.

Defeating Mills was a repeat win after Woodcock had won their first fight in 1946.

Henry Cooper w tko 11 Joe Erskine (November 17, 1959)

Memorably, Joe Erskine was – according to one commentator – turned into a “human violin bow” when on the wrong end of a devastating left hook, also known as ‘Enry’s Hammer’.

Erskine held points wins over Cooper from 1955 and 1957, but Cooper won their fourth fight in five rounds in 1961, and Cooper stopped him again in 1962.

Joe Bugner w pts 15 Henry Cooper (March 16, 1971)

Bugner won the European, Commonwealth and British titles following 15 so-so rounds which saw referee Harry Gibbs score the contest six rounds to five with four rounds even.

Bugner, at 21, was 15 years Cooper’s junior and the crowd at Wembley’s Empire Pool “booed and stamped their feet in protest” at the decision.

Just eight days on from the first Frazier-Ali fight, an incensed Cooper did what Marvin Hagler would later do after his contentious loss to Sugar Ray Leonard, in that he walked away from boxing – and kept on walking. 

“That’s it for me, I’m finished now. It’s a choker having to go out like this,” said the always popular Cooper.

“I thought I had done just enough to win,” countered Bugner. “I managed to keep out the way of his left hand and those that did connect didn’t hurt. I feel wonderful.” 

Frank Bruno w ko 8 Joe Bugner (October 24, 1987)

The fight was frowned upon before the first bell, with the contest dubbed “a mundane domestic pairing of two men who have each been discredited by failures at international level… Bruno and Bugner have made their own contributions to the dismal annals of British heavyweight boxing, but tomorrow they will become the country’s highest paid failures.”

Bugner was 37, Bruno 11 years his junior, and the younger man boxed patiently for seven rounds before pouncing in the eighth to decisively capture victory at Tottenham Hotspur’s White Hart Lane.

Barry Hearn, along with Mickey Duff and Terry Lawless, promoted.

Horace Notice w tko 10 Hughroy Currie (March 9, 1988)

Notice and Currie fought twice, both times with British and Commonwealth titles on the line. The second fight marked Notice’s third defense of his Lonsdale Belt but the boxing media remained skeptical. “Time will prove Notice’s worth,” wrote one journalist. “He is a good performer, not particularly outstanding in any one department of his trade but proficient all-round.” 

In their initial encounter, both fighters were floored. In the rematch, neither touched down although Currie was “being driven around the ring and caught squarely to the jaw” when the end came.

Currie, surmised one ringsider, “fought very bravely, but in the end ran out of gas. He never ran out of heart.”

Lennox Lewis w tko 7 Gary Mason (March 6, 1991) 

In a fight billed as one that would prove which British heavyweight was ready for an assault on world honors, Lennox Lewis came through his big test with heavy-punching Londoner Gary Mason.

Mason was 35-0 and No. 4 with the WBC, but his aspirations were “ruthlessly exposed by the superior boxing skills and physical gifts of Lewis,” wrote one ringsider.

Inside Wembley Arena, Mason’s right eye swelled from the third, and undoubtedly hindered him in front of a crowd of only around 6,000 but great things awaited Lewis, whose immediate future would spawn contests against Derek Williams and Glenn McCrory. 

“The real test… will come when he takes on a leading American,” wrote one observer. “Then we’ll see if beating Gary Mason was the highlight of his career – or just a stepping stone.”  

Lennox Lewis w tko 7 Frank Bruno (October 1, 1993)

Heavy rain threatened to cause the cancellation of the all-British WBC title fight between champion Lewis and perennial bridesmaid, at the time, Bruno at the stadium in Cardiff.

Lennox had not had things all his own way by the time the end came. Bruno had enjoyed moments of success and landed some of his biggest shots.

“Had those punches been landed by a hitter like Tommy Morrison, against whom Lewis defends in Las Vegas in March, or the ‘real’ world champion Riddick Bowe, we might now be writing the end of this most promising chapter in the history of Britain’s century-long search for a world heavyweight king,” read one ringside report.

Herbie Hide w ko 7 Michael Bentt (March 19, 1994)

The bout was recognized – if only by the fledgling WBO at the time – as a world title fight, and plenty criticized it for that. Hall of Fame boxing writer Harry Mullan deemed it “a travesty” that the 25-0 Hide was untested but somehow the WBO’s No. 3, while he took some solace in Bentt’s quick upset destruction of Tommy Morrison to at least mark him as a contender.

The build-up was marred by an ugly, infamous press conference brawl that saw both men rolling around in puddles in suits trying to get at one another following a press conference – costing them £10,000 fines apiece, but after an eighth-round stoppage, Mullan admitted “The big time beckons for Herbie Hide.”

Promoter Barry Hearn was clearly delighted with Norwich’s Hide, claiming Herbie was “the second coming of Ali… he may be the best the world has ever seen.”

Danny Williams w tko 6 Mark Potter (October 21, 2000)

In one of the most astonishing turnarounds in boxing, an almost-beaten Danny Williams, right arm dangling uncontrollably by his side courtesy of a dislocated right shoulder, produced an unforgettable left hand to knock out Potter in dramatic fashion.

Sky commentator Adam Smith was screaming how Williams was having to “hold on for dear life” and how the shoulder was “completely gone” and “he’s in a no-win situation.”

Then, Williams landed a hook-cum-uppercut and Smith cried, “Oh, that’s unbelievable!” and it was all over.

David Haye w tko 5 Derek Chisora (July 14, 2012)

This controversial clash at West Ham’s Upton Park stadium was licensed by the Luxembourg boxing federation. Both fighters had been suspended by the British Boxing Board of Control after a violent fracas in Germany following Chisora’s decision defeat to Vitali Klitschko. 

But with Luxembourg licensing both boxers, the fight was on and arguably Haye was never better, certainly at heavyweight. He did something no one else – and the list is long – has been able to do, by getting rid of Chisora in devastating fashion in five rounds.

“He’s got one of the best chins in the business, but I don’t think he’s going to get up this time,” cried John Rawling, on commentary for BoxNation, as Chisora was wasted by a final left hook.

Tyson Fury w rtd 10 Derek Chisora (November 29, 2014)

This was their second fight and possibly the most meaningful. They met earlier in their careers, when both were respective novices, and later in their careers, when Fury was at the top and Chisora was over the hill, but this one was arguably with both closest to their primes.

But it was all Fury, who boxed most of the fight as a left-hander, bamboozling and bewitching Chisora before ultimately breaking him down and forcing Chisora’s corner to pull him out following 10 one-sided rounds. 

Anthony Joshua w tko 7 Dillian Whyte (December 12, 2015)

This was, in some ways, ahead of its time and a rematch years later, scuppered due to an adverse finding for PEDs by Whyte, resulted in late notice sub Robert Helenius deputising (and also later testing positive).

But there was an appetite for a Joshua-Whyte rematch given the nature of their long rivalry, which stemmed back to their amateur days.

When they met, at the O2 Arena in London in 2015, Joshua got on top of fun fight in the seventh and closed the show, launching Whyte into the ropes with a right uppercut before he sagged loosely with his left arm draped over the bottom strand.

Joshua added the British title to his Commonwealth strap, but was now emerging onto the world scene.

Dillian Whyte w sd 12 Derek Chisora (December 10, 2016)

If the old adage style make fights is true – and sometimes it is – then Whyte and Chisora were always going to get down and dirty and turn in a violent fight. They have managed it twice. This first one, with both nearer their peaks, preceded the one that was heading the same way as this contest until Whyte bombed Chisora out with a terrific left hook late on. 

“Dillian Whyte and Dereck Chisora gave us an absolute thriller, savage, beautiful, beautiful brutality,” said Adam Smith at the end of 12 breathless rounds.

Calling for a round of applause from inside the Manchester Arena, Michael Buffer announced: “We have witnessed one hell of a heavyweight contest.”

The crowd stood as one and applauded as they listened to the split decision, 115-114 Chisora, 115-113 and 115-114 for Whyte.

Tyson Fury w tko 6 Dillian Whyte (April 23, 2022)

The curious build-up culminated with a huge night in Wembley Stadium and arguably Fury had never looked better, patiently dissecting Whyte before landing a thudding right uppercut that spelled the end of the bout. 

Whyte was flat on his back, then rolled onto his front and tried to get up, but the fight was stopped and as Whyte was consoled by the referee, Fury went and kissed him on the head.

It was all over after 2.59 on the sixth round.

Joe Joyce w ko 10 Daniel Dubois (November 28, 2020)

As lockdown gripped the world – and the sporting world – the 15-0 (14 KOs) Dubois and the 11-0 (10 KOs) Joyce, fought in front of a select audience at Church House in London. Joyce got his jab motoring early on, but the fight was not defined by how it started but by how it ended. 

With Dubois’ left eye swelling shut, in round 10 Joyce stepped in behind a jab and Dubois took a knee, where he remained listening to the count of referee Ian John-Lewis. Joyce left with the British, Commonwealth and European titles to his name while Dubois left with the scorn of the online community ringing in his ears and labels attached to his name that have taken years to shift.

“What can I say, he caught me with a good jab and his jab was accurate,” said Dubois. “I couldn’t see out of the eye. It just happens, man. I can’t explain it.”

#DanielDubois #AnthonyJoshua #BritishBoxing #HeavyweightFights #BoxingHistory #BruceWoodcock #FreddieMills #HenryCooper #JoeErskine #LennoxLewis #FrankBruno #TysonFury #DillianWhyte #DavidHaye #BoxingLegends

I’m very excited about Daniel Dubois-Anthony Joshua. It’s a fight between two heavyweights who can punch, and who can be vulnerable. 

It’s at Wembley Stadium, and approaching 100,000 people are expected to attend. It’s a classic, fun heavyweight fight that reminds me of the heavyweight division of the 1990s.

When in August 2023 Dubois lost to Oleksandr Usyk, it was hard to imagine him entering an occasion like Saturday’s. We’ve seen a major change in his psychology since then. He overcame Jarrell Miller, after Miller – who might be the best trash talker in the sport – abused him all week. His next opponent, Filip Hrgovic, also really talked down to him, and he overcame that and, in turn, broke Hrgovic the bully. 

I was very impressed with both performances – and I’d picked Miller and Hrgovic to win, and believe that the powers that be wanted Miller and Hrgovic to win so that they could be matched with Joshua. It’s really difficult to disrupt plans like those twice in succession. 

Physically, I didn’t believe anything was missing anyway – that’s why there was a sense of excitement around Dubois early in his career. But the psychology was lacking – as was shown when he succumbed in the moment against Usyk. 

I agree with those saying that Dubois has heavier hands than Joshua, but that doesn’t mean he’s the better puncher. He has more raw power, and to the extent he could be off-balance and land a right hand that knocks his opponent out. Joshua, however, has the perfect blend of speed, technique and power – he’s the best knockout puncher in the world.

I also agree that Dubois has the better punch resistance. Hrgovic, who also has power, landed some big punches, and Dubois very impressively took them. 

Where Dubois defeated Miller and Hrgovic, Joshua stopped Otto Wallin and Francis Ngannou, and as a consequence we’re being told that the confidence that was lacking against Jermaine Franklin and Robert Helenius has been restored. Ben Davison, his trainer for those two fights, appears to have helped him rediscover his self-belief. The question is how real that confidence will prove against another world-class puncher – which neither Wallin or Ngannou are. It also strikes me as relevant that Dubois is also British, the underdog, and promoted by Queensberry Promotions – the rivals of Joshua’s promoters Matchroom.

My belief is that if, like against Franklin, Joshua struggles to hurt Dubois early, we may see him change his approach. When that first hook from Dubois goes whizzing past his face, and he senses how powerfully Dubois can punch, if Joshua responds by deciding he’s not willing to risk being hit to land the punches capable of stopping Dubois, we’re going to see a very different fight. If he decides he wants to be cautious, his jab is good enough to keep Dubois at range. Those opening rounds will be particularly intriguing – and could even feature one or the other being stopped. 

Joshua being as intimidating as he is – from Dubois’ perspective, on paper at least – will also test Dubois early. He started slowly against Miller and Hrgovic, but needs to fight an aggressive, disciplined fight from the opening bell – which we’ve not yet seen him do.

Joshua’s had some of his greatest nights at Wembley – he retired Wladimir Klitschko, and stopped Alexander Povetkin. The familiarity will matter for him in the same way it matters to so many other fighters who relish fighting wherever they consider home. Mindset, at the highest level, is everything – especially for someone like Joshua. By comparison, it’ll be foreign to Dubois. If Joshua wins there’s also the possibility of him finally fighting Tyson Fury, but I sense he’s fully focused on Dubois.

It took seeing them together to realise how much bigger Joshua is than Dubois. Joshua’s a modern-day super heavyweight – it’s just that he’s so athletic that that’s often forgotten. 

His technical superiority and experience means he has to be considered the favourite – I expect him to win via stoppage in the late rounds, after coming through some difficult periods.

  #DanielDubois #AnthonyJoshua #WembleyStadium #HeavyweightBoxing #OleksandrUsyk #JarrellMiller #FilipHrgovic #OttoWallin #FrancisNgannou #Boxing #Knockout #BoxingFight #SuperHeavyweight #BoxingFans #FightNight

Devin Haney appears ready to resume his career following the rollercoaster circumstances from his last fight. 

Following a tumultuous build-up to his April 20 clash against Ryan Garcia, Haney was dropped three times and suffered a majority decision loss. However, on May 1, it was revealed that Garcia, who came into the fight 3.6 pounds over the 140-pound weight limit, tested positive for a banned substance. On June 20, the loss was changed to a No Contest and Garcia was suspended for a year due to the violation. By June 24, the WBC declared Haney the 140-pound champion in recess. 

Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) has mostly kept a low profile since the fight, but in an interview with Hall of Fame fighter turned commentator Andre Ward, Haney opened up about the past, and the future. 

“I am a competitor. When I first started out in boxing, I said, ‘I am going to be a great in the sport. I am going to be the best. I am not in here to be just a competitor, to be just one of the other guys. I am going to be the guy.’” Haney told "All The Smoke Fight."

“Nothing has changed. Just a little adversity. That’s part of it. Every great has faced adversity. So, the world can see me face it, but I am going to rise even higher than I was before.

“I fought a guy that did everything wrong leading up to the fight, and me doing everything right.

“I had a great team, coaches, and a game plan. It’s just hard to beat someone when they [have performance enhancing drugs in their system]. PEDs are going to enhance whatever you got. He always had power and speed before that. PEDs are going to enhance whatever you got.

“If he was right here I'd get it back right now. I tried to do it fair, and [Garcia] fucked up. I did everything right, all my shit came back clean. Everything's gotta be right [for the rematch]. Everything's gotta be on my terms.”

Outside of a potential rematch against Garcia, Haney, 25, still has several options to consider across the stacked junior welterweight division. 

Matchroom Boxing head Eddie Hearn is keen on offering Haney a December fight against IBF 140-pound titleholder Liam Paro in Australia, the location of which the former undisputed lightweight champion Haney is undefeated in two fights against George Kambosos Jr. 

According to Haney, an even more high-profile fight was also presented against WBO titleholder Teofimo Lopez Jr. in the Middle East, but the clash to settle their years-long beef never came to be.

“I was supposed to get back in the ring in October in Saudi [Arabia] and the next fight was gonna be Teo,” said Haney. “Turki [Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority in Saudi Arabia] offered him a fight. He said he's not ready.”

#DevinHaney #TeofimoLopez #BoxingNews #BoxingFans #FightFans #FightNews #WBO #AndreWard #PED #RyanGarcia

Richard Torrez Jr. kept letting his hands go, and Joey Dawejko kept losing his mouthpiece.

The repeated cycle led to 2021 U.S. Olympic silver medalist Torrez (11-0) recording a victory by disqualification Friday night at Desert Diamond Arena as referee Wes Melton stopped the heavyweight fight at 2 minutes, 2 seconds of the fifth round when Dawejko (28-12-4) spit out his mouthpiece for the fifth time.

The Philadelphia fighter had suffered two prior one-point deductions from Melton after spitting out the mouthpiece four times in the fourth round.

Afterward, Torrez said he felt deprived of a true boxing match as he dealt with a covering-up opponent.

“I want to keep fighting,” Torrez said. “I’m going to listen to Top Rank. I’m going to listen to my matchmakers.”

#RichardTorrezJr #JoeyDawejko #Disqualified #Boxing #BoxingNews #BoxingFans #Mouthpiece #TopRank

Just when you think you know which way a boxing match is going, the sport’s unexpected beauty arrives like a slap to the face.

Friday night’s Jaime Munguia-Erik Bazinyan undercard was electrified by an out-of-nowhere knockout punch delivered by Spain’s Ricardo Fernandez over previously unbeaten Top Rank prospect Alan Garcia.

Garcia, 21, relied on his height, strength and fitness advantages to have his way with the journeyman Fernandez, sweeping the first four rounds on all three judges’ scorecards.

But in the fifth round, Kansas’ Garcia (14-1) switched his stance to southpaw and dropped his left hand, creating the exact opening Fernandez needed to wind up the punch of his life, a wicked right hand sending the unbeaten prospect crashing backward, the back of his head bouncing on the ring mat under the ropes.

“I took advantage [of the change] to land an overhand right,” Fernandez said humbly. “A good overhand right. I felt it. I felt my knuckle. I felt the excitement. I trained hard for this. I worked for this.”

Someone watching nearby said, “Kid Kansas became Kid Canvas,” and Top Rank matchmaker Bruce Trampler recalled part of a recent conversation with Garcia’s trainer/manager Gloria Alvarado scolding Top Rank: “We should be fighting better guys.”

Upon delivering his fateful punch, Fernandez said, “I saw his eyes [roll backward], I saw he wasn’t getting up.”

Fernandez (16-13) made the sign of the cross while retreating to a neutral corner for the 10-count, reacting to just his second knockout in 29 fights.

“That [sign] was for my grandma, all my family up in heaven who believed in me, all of my [boxing] heroes – I looked up and saw [ringside broadcaster/boxing legend] Julio Cesar Chavez. I didn’t expect to see him there,” Fernandez, 31, said.

The knockout, recorded at 2:25 of round five, came from “the motivation in my head – my city, my family, my woman, my kids.”

#TopRank #AlanGarcia #RicardoFernandez #Boxing #BoxingNews #BoxingFans #FightFans #News #Sports #News #Knockout 

 

 Emiliano Vargas’ candidacy for Prospect of the Year gained a sharp boost Friday in the complete, varied showing he produced in knocking out Ireland’s Larry Fryers in the fifth round.

Vargas (12-0, 10 KOs) flashed skill not expected from a 20-year-old, including a big, stinging right hand, speedy punching delivery in both hands and relentless attention to the body and head.

“I was having success with the body shots,” he said. “I had to mix it up. I want to finish guys, but you can’t just go for it.”

An effective left uppercut helped bloody Fryers’ nose by the third round, and Vargas’ body punching set up combinations to the head that drained Fryers’ aggression and widened the scoring disparity.

Fryers began to bleed under the left eye in the fourth thanks to the ongoing barrage. If Vargas is still developing his knockout power, he has compensated with a varied attack and activity, which left Fryers pained by the body blows.

In the fifth, the knockout arrived from a right and left to the body followed by a punishing left hand to the side of the head that caused the referee to quickly wave the bout over.

“Those Irish guys are like Mexicans,” Vargas said. “They come with everything.”

The son of former champion Fernando Vargas, Emiliano Vargas said the night was nearly a complete success because he fought how he strives to.

“Never boring,” Vargas said. “What an amazing feeling to come out this early in my career and have this kind of night.”

Vargas did hurt his right hand because of all the landed punches.

“Gotta do what you gotta do to win. I’m a fighter,” he said. “Getting the experience … I’ve got to go through this test. There’s no book, no how-to video. You’ve got to go in and do it, get hit with a couple shots and experience things. This was one of my best fights, action-packed. I’m very excited.”

Following a stunning earlier undercard knockout of Top Rank prospect Alan Garcia by Spanish journeyman Ricardo Fernandez, the junior lightweight knockout victory that followed by the Philippines’ Charly Suarez over Texas’ Jorge Castaneda was anticlimactic.

Suarez (18-0, 10 KOs) knocked down Castaneda (17-4) earlier in the third round before finishing him with another potent right hand at the 2:22 mark of the third.     

Junior lightweight DJ Zamora of Las Vegas showed why he’s tagged with the moniker “The War Machine,” artfully setting up repeated discouraging left hands thrown from the southpaw stance to defeat Gerardo Antonio Perez by unanimous decision scores of 80-72, 80-72, 79-73.

Argentina’s Perez (12-6-1) opened the third round with aggression that Zamora (14-0) weathered, returning to his effective pose. The success Perez experienced encouraged him to maintain his pressure, and he landed a head-jarring uppercut in the fourth.

But Zamora was more attentive to defense, defusing the impact of the slugfest Perez openly accepted. Zamora’s combinations to close the eighth were defining, and the pair embraced following the fun eight rounds, each raising an arm to the thankful crowd.

Junior bantamweight Steven Navarro of Los Angeles battered Oscar Arroyo with a merciless combination of head shots to induce a third-round technical knockout stoppage 2 minutes, 35 seconds into the round.

The 20-year-old Navarro (4-0, 2 KOs) first landed rapid-handed head shots to knock down Arroyo in the first half of the first round, then wobbled him again with power punches from the left-handed stance.

A combination capped by a right hand and power left to the top of the head dropped Virginia’s Arroyo (3-3) again near the close of the second.

Mexico’s Jorge Garcia Perez (31-4, 26 KOs) needed only 46 seconds to finish Germany’s Ilias Essaoudi (22-3), smashing him in the left side with a right hand. As Essaoudi grimaced in pain, Perez added two hard head shots to trigger the stoppage in the super middleweight bout.

Perez and a cornerman both said they believed Essaoudi broke a rib.

Tijuana’s Sebastian Hernandez (17-0, 16 KOs) punished Venezuela’s Yonfrez Parejo (24-7-1) through four rounds, forcing Parejo’s corner to stop the junior featherweight fight after four rounds.

#EmilianoVargas #LarryFryers #Boxing #BoxingNews #TopRank #Knockout 

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez may be said to be ducking David Benavidez, but the respected trainer Robert Garcia believes the super-middleweight king can do without him.

Alvarez, 34, successfully defended his WBC, WBA and WBO super-middleweight belts against Edgar Berlanga last Saturday, with a dominant unanimous decision win at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The Alvarez-Berlanga fight reportedly recorded significant numbers despite many criticizing the match-up. Mexico’s Alvarez (62-2-2, 39 KOs) disappointed many observers by fighting Berlanga of Puerto Rico (22-1, 17 KOs) rather than Benavidez.

But Garcia believes Alvarez has continuously proved that he’s the face of boxing with incredible pay-per-view numbers irrespective of the opponent he fights.

“That just tells you, Canelo is a superstar,” he told FightHub TV. “He's the face of boxing right now. People kinda tease him about his choice of opponents, but when you look at the buys, when you look at the gate, does it look like he's kinda found the sweet spot? He doesn't give a fuck.

“He doesn't care. We would all love to see him fight Benavidez, but he doesn't have to. He's still doing great numbers with whoever he picks.”

The yet-to-be-staged bout between Alvarez and Benavidez has long been considered the most exciting the Mexican could agree to. With disappointment in his eyes, Benavidez moved up to 175lbs to fight Oleksandr Gvozdyk in June.

It is unclear if Alvarez would consider offering Benavidez an opportunity to fight him next – especially when the name of Terence Crawford keeps emerging as a potential opponent at 168lbs.

When asked who he thinks Alvarez should fight next, Garcia compared ‘Canelo’ to Floyd Mayweather, saying: “Mayweather was in that position too where no matter who he fights or who he does an exhibition with, he's still gonna do good numbers. 

“So, there's very few that could do that, and Canelo's one of them.”

#CaneloAlvarez #RobertGarcia #DavidBenavidez #EdgarBerlanga #SuperMiddleweight #Boxing #BoxingNews #BoxingFans #FightFans #Mexico #FloydMayweatherJr

Throughout the month, we keep track of the rankings put forth by the IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO. Those rankings can be found here .

Starting this month, we’ll more closely examine:

Who rose in the rankings?

Who dropped? 

Who’s new?

Who’s out? 
 

HEAVYWEIGHT

Aslanbek Makhmudov

Last month: #9

This month: off

Reason: Makhmudov lost to Guido Vianello in August.

Repercussions: Everyone formerly below Makhmudov moved up one slot, including Luis Ortiz (now #10), Otto Wallin (#11), Deontay Wilder (#12), Andy Ruiz (#13) and Jared Anderson (#14).

Guido Vianello

Last month: #34

This month: #15

Reason: Defeated Makhmudov in August
 

CRUISERWEIGHT

Mairis Briedis

Last month: #4

This month: off

Reason: Briedis has retired

Repercussions: Three fighters formerly below Briedis moved up one slot, including Brandon Glanton (now #4), Arsen Goulamirian (#5) and Richard Riakporhe (#6).

Cheavon Clarke

Last month: #14

This month: #7

Reason: Defeated Efetobor Apochi in August.

Repercussions: With Clarke departing the #14 slot, that moved Joe Smith up from #15 to #14 and brought in Mike Perez at #15.

Yves Ngabu

Last month: #10

This month: #8

Possible reason: No clue. Ngabu last fought in June.

Repercussions: Two fighters were pushed down a lot: Ilunga Makabu (now #9) and Mchunu (now #10).

Jack Massey

Last month: #13

This month: off

Reason: Massey will be fighting for the IBF title in October against Jai Opetaia. Sanctioning bodies don’t tend to keep fighters ranked when they’re competing for belts from other organizations.

Mateusz Masternak

Last month: #18

This month: #13

Possible reason: No clue why Masternak leapfrogged the other cruiserweights ahead of him to take this spot. He last fought in April.

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT

Albert Ramirez

Last month: #4

This month: #2

Reason: Defeated Adam Deines in August

Repercussions: Two fighters were pushed down a slot: Callum Smith (now #3) and Anthony Yarde (#4).

Imam Khataev

Last month: #14

This month: #12

Reason: Ezequiel Osvaldo Maderna in early September.

Repercussions: Strangely, Jesse Hart went from #12 to #14 while Yunior Menendez remained at #13.

SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT

Diego Pacheco

Last month: #4

This month: #3

Reason: Pacheco defeated Maciej Sulecki in August.

Repercussions: Because of Pacheco and Edgar Berlanga (see below), Kevin Lele Sadjo was dropped from the #3 slot down to #6, even though Osleys Iglesias retained the #5 slot. Also, Erik Bazinyan was pushed from #6 to #7.

Edgar Berlanga

Last month: #8

This month: #4

Reason: The WBC apparently rewarded Berlanga for his September loss to Canelo Alvarez.

Sergiy Derevyanchenko

This month: #10

Reason: Lost to Christian Mbilli in August.

Repercussions: Luka Plantic (now #8) and Lester Martinez (#9) each moved up one slot.

Vladimir Shishkin

Last month: #11

This month: off

Reason: Shishkin will be fighting for the IBF title in October against William Scull. Sanctioning bodies don’t tend to keep fighters ranked when they’re competing for belts from other organizations.

Repercussions: Bektemir Melikuziev was moved up from #13 to #11. Strangely, Demetrius Andrade remained in the #12 slot. With the #13 spot open, Ali Akhmedov entered the ratings, moving up from #16.

Serhat Guler

This month: out of the top 15 (now #24)

Reason: Guler lost in September to Martin Ezequiel Bulacio.

Repercussions: Shakeel Phinn (previously #18) was moved into this spot.

William Scull
 

This month: off

Reason: Scull will be fighting for the IBF title in October against Vladimir Shishkin. Sanctioning bodies don’t tend to keep fighters ranked when they’re competing for belts from other organizations.

Repercussions: Ihovsany Rafael Garcia was moved up from #19 to #15.
 

MIDDLEWEIGHT

Maciej Sulecki

Last month: #6

This month: out of the top 15, instead ranked at super middleweight at #18

Reason: Sulecki lost to super middleweight Diego Pacheco in August

Repercussions: Two fighters moved up one slot: Austin Williams (now #6) and Etinosa Oliha (#7), and without winning or losing a fight, Tyler Denny was moved from #10 to #8, bypassing the person in the #9 slot (see below).

Yoenli Hernandez

Last month: #12

This month: #9

Reason: Hernandez defeated Jose Sanchez Charles in September.

Repercussions: Bilal Jkitou went from #9 to #10, while four fighters moved up one slot: Troy Usley (now #12), Kyrone Davis (#13), Terrell Gausha (#14) and Julian Williams #15).

JUNIOR MIDDLEWEIGHT

Erickson Lubin

Last month: #7

This month: #11

Possible reason: Uncertain. Lubin hasn’t fought since his September 2023 win over Jesus Ramos (currently #5 on this list). Ramos since fought in May, defeating Johan Gonzalez.

Ermal Hadribeaj

Last month: #12

This month: #10

Reason: Hadribeaj defeated Younes Zarraa in September.

Repercussions: With this, and with Lubin arriving at #11, Josh Kelly dropped one spot to #12.

Brandon Adams

Last month: #17

This month: #14

Reason: Adams defeated Francisco Daniel Veron in August.

Repercussions: Takeshi Inoue was dropped one slot (now #15) and Jorge Garcia was moved out of the top 15 to #16.

WELTERWEIGHT

Jin Sasaki

Last month: #5

This month: #4

Reason: Sasaki defeated Qamil Balla in September.

Roman Villa

Last month: #9

This month: off

Reason: Villa was knocked out by Ricardo Salas Rodriguez in September

Repercussions: Five fighters moved up one slot into the #9-13 spots: Alexis Rocha, Giovani Santillan, Thulani Mbenge, David Avanesyan and David Papot.

Karen Chukhadzhian

Last month: #15

This month: off

Reason: Chukhadzhian has been named the IBF’s mandatory challenger.

Repercussions: Paddy Donovan moved up from #16 into the vacant #14 spot, while Aram Amirkhanyan went from #19 to #15.

JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHT

Jose Angel Rosa

This month: #11

Reason: Rosa defeated Jovanni Straffon in August.

Repercussions: Three fighters were pushed down one slot: Pierce O’Leary (now #12), Regis Prograis (#13) and Michel Rivera (#14).

LIGHTWEIGHT

Isaac Cruz Jr.

Last month: off

This month: #4

Reason: With Cruz losing his WBA junior welterweight title in August, the WBC is now willing to rank him.

Repercussions: Several fighters each moved down a spot. From #5 to #10, we now have: Edwin De Los Santos, Mark Chamberlain, Andy Cruz, Zaur Abdullaev, Frank Martin and Gustavo Lemos. Meanwhile, Antonio Perez was dropped for some reason from #10 to #12, while Sam Noakes remained static at #11. 

Claudio Daneff

Last month: #12

This month: out of the top 15 (now #21)

Reason: Daneff lost to Khariton Agrba in September up at junior welterweight. But with Perez arriving at #12, the fighters below Daneff remained in the same positions.

JUNIOR LIGHTWEIGHT

Mauricio Lara

This month: #13

Possible reason: Lara defeated a 11-12-1 opponent named Pedro Alejandro Delgado in August.

Repercussions: Albert Bell went from #13 to #14.
 

FEATHERWEIGHT

Stephen Fulton

This month: #4

Reason: Fulton won a close fight with Carlos Castro in September.

Repercussions: Pushed down one slot were Nathaniel Collins (now #5) and Castro (#6).

Joet Gonzalez

Last month: #6

This month: off

Possible reason: Gonzalez hasn’t fought in a year.

Repercussions: With Gonzalez gone from #6 and Fulton leaving the #7 slot, two fighters moved up one slot: Ruben Villa (now #7) and Reiya Abe (#8).

Victor Morales

Last month: #10

This month: #14

Possible reason: Morales hasn’t fought in a year.

Repercussions: With the other movements mentioned above, three fighters moved up two slots to occupy #9-11: Keisuke Matsumoto, Mirco Cuello and Tomoki Kameda.

Lerato Dlamini

Last month: #14

This month: out of the top 15 (now #16)

Reason: Dlamini lost a split decision to Kameda.

Repercussions: Omar Trinidad, previously #15, went up through the vacant slots to #12. Two other fighters moved into the top 15: Cristobal Lorente went from #17 to #13 and Luca Rigoldi went from #16 to #15.

JUNIOR FEATHERWEIGHT

TJ Doheny

Last month: #7

This month: #15

Reason: Doheny lost to Naoye Inoue in September.

Repercussions: John Riel Casimero went from #8 to #7.
 

Toshiki Shimomachi

Last month: #10

This month: #8

Reason: Shimomachi defeated Ryuya Tsugawa in September.

Repercussions: Three fighters moved into the #10-12 spots: Jose Israel Ramirez, Dennis McCann and Fadhili Majiha.

Kazuki Nakajima

This month: #13

Reason: Nakajima defeated Shingo Wake in August

BANTAMWEIGHT

Seiya Tsutsumi

Last month: #10

Reason: Tsutsumi will be fighting Takuma Inoue for the WBA title in October.

Repercussions: Three fighters moved into the #10-12 slots: Charlie Edwards, Landi Ngxeke and Saul Sanchez.

Daigo Higa

Last month: off

This month #13

Reason: Having lost his WBO title fight in September to Yoshiki Takei, Higa is able to be ranked by the WBC again.

Other random movements: Riku Masuda went from #16 to #14 despite his last fight being in July, which pushed Victor Reyes (now #15) and Paul Butler (#16).

JUNIOR BANTAMWEIGHT

Ricardo Malajika

Last month: #7

This month: #5

Reason: Malajika defeated Yanga Sigqibo in August.

Repercussions: Dropped one slot each were Srisaket Sor Rungvisai (now #6) and Argi Cortes (#7).
 

Phumelele Cafu

Reason: Cafu will fight Kosei Tanaka for the WBO title in October.

Kenbun Torres

Last month: #17

This month: #12

Reason: Torres defeated KJ Cataraja by split decision in August.
 

Yanga Sigqibo

Last month: #14

This month: off

Reason: Sigqibo lost to Malajika in August.

KJ Cataraja
 

Last month: #15

This month: out of the top 15, now #16

Reason: Cataraja lost a split decision to Torres in August.

Other random movements: Amid all of the above, Rene Calixto Bibiano went from #16 to #13, John “Scrappy” Ramirez went from #18 to #14 and Willibaldo Garcia went from #13 to #15.

FLYWEIGHT

Thananchai Charunphak

Last month: #7

This month: off

Reason: Charunphak will challenge Seigo Yuri Akui in October for the WBA title.

Tobias Reyes

Last month: #14

This month: #10

Reason: Reyes defeated Jackson Zapata in September.

Repercussions: With #14 open, Jay Harris moved up one spot, which allowed Juan Carlos Camacho to step in at #15.

JUNIOR FLYWEIGHT

Shokichi Iwata, Jairo Noriega and Masamichi Yabuki

Last month: #3, #6 and #5, respectively

This month: off

Reason: Iwata and Jairo Noriega will fight for the vacant WBO belt in October, while Yabuki will challenge Sivenathi Nontshinga for the IBF title in October.

Repercussions: These three vacancies pushed everyone up in the rankings. #3-15 now are Erick Rosa, Thanongsak Simsri, Erik Badillo, Regie Suganob, Junior Zarate, Ivan Garcia, Toshiki Kawamitsu, Elwin Soto, Christian Arenta, Kyosuke Takami, Jayson Vayson, Azael Villar and Adrian Curiel.

MINIMUMWEIGHT

Daniel Valladares

This month: #10

Possible reasons: Perhaps this is because Valladares hasn’t fought at 105 since his October 2023 loss to Ginjiro Shigeoka, with two appearances since coming at flyweight. Given other movements listed below, that pushed four fighters into the #11-14 spots: Yuni Takada, Wilfredo Mendez, Vic Saludar and Jake Amparo.
 

Siyakholwa Kuse

Last month: #9

This month: #7

Reason: Kuse defeated Malakhi Sobolo in August.

Alex Winwood

This month: #8

Reason: With Winwood’s majority decision loss in September to WBA titleholder Thammanoon

Niyomtrong, the WBC has opted to rank Winwood again.

Repercussions: Goki Kobayashi was pushed from #8 to #9.

Garen Diagan

Last month: #14

This month: off

Possible reason: Diagan hasn’t fought since an August 2023 loss to Oscar Collazo.

David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2 and @UnitedBoxingPod . He is the co-host of the United Boxing Podcast . David’s book, “ Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing ,” is available on Amazon.

#WBC #BoxingRankings #Heavyweight #BoxingNews #Cruiserweight #BoxingFans #BoxingUpdates #IBF #BoxingChampions #FightNight #Lightweight #Flyweight #JuniorBantamweight #Sports #News

Jaron “Boots” Ennis will defend his IBF welterweight title in a rematch with his mandatory challenger Karen Chukhadzhian on November 9, when Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez will defend his WBC super-flyweight title against Pedro Guevara.

Ennis stopped David Avanesyan to make the first defence of his title in July at the Wells Fargo Center in his home city of Philadelphia, and he will return to the same venue for his rematch with Ukraine’s Chukhadzhian, 28 and who he eased to victory over in January 2023. 

Rodriguez in June stopped Juan Francisco Estrada to enhance his reputation as one of the world’s finest fighters; his fight with Guevara will be used to build the appeal of the match-up between Ennis and Chukhadzhian that Ennis and promoters Matchroom had hoped to avoid.

“I’m excited to be back headlining in my city again,” said the 27-year-old Ennis. “I’m ready to continue dominating the division, making a big statement and showing everyone why I’m the best welterweight in the world. 

“It’s time to have some fun, keep crushing whoever is in front of me, put on a beautiful, dominant, crushing performance in front of my family, friends and supporters, while defending and retaining my title in spectacular fashion. It’s my time.”

“I will have enough time to prepare and show a beautiful and spectacular fight,” said Chukhadzhian. “Champ, get ready for the battle, it will be hot.”

Matchroom’s Eddie Hearn had hoped to deliver for the talented Ennis a unification fight with Brian Norman Jnr, who defends his WBO title against Derrieck Cuevas on November 8. 

“On November 9 tune in to DAZN, get your tickets and witness another exciting performance,” said Rodriguez, 24. “My belts aren’t going anywhere.”

Guevara is nine years Rodriguez’s senior, and he said: “I am very happy to have this opportunity to fight Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez.

“I am telling you right away that I am going to prepare to put on a war and a great show and to win on November 9 in Philadelphia. I am going with everything and for everything, Viva Mexico and Viva Mazatlan, Sinaloa.”

“Boots’ return to Philly in July was a spectacular night, the fans and the city got right behind him, and I can’t wait to return there and keep building this superstar on his doorstep,” said Hearn, who also recently agreed promotional terms with Shakur Stevenson.

“And what can you say about Bam? His win over Estrada will be one of the performances of the year when the awards are handed out, and he rightly landed in the top five of the pound-for-pound list after it. Jesse is a bonafide superstar in his own right, so to have him join Jaron on this card is a massive treat for Philly’s great fight fans – and there’s plenty more great talents to be added to a night that is not to be missed.”

There was a time when the phrase “British heavyweight” was universally accompanied, at least on the western side of the Atlantic, with the adjective “horizontal”: a barbed reference to British boxers’ repeated failures for almost a century to come close to the biggest prize in sports.

Since 1992, however, five Britons have held at least a share of the heavyweight crown (eight if the brief periods in which Michael Bentt, Henry Akinwande and Herbie Hide held the-then generally disregarded WBO belt are included). When Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois meet at Wembley Stadium this Saturday, September 21 st , it will be the latest chapter in a period in which British boxers have, alongside those from Ukraine, largely dominated the heavyweight scene.

Unsurprisingly, then, any list of the Top 10 British heavyweights of all time includes multiple representatives of this golden age, alongside others who flew the flag with varying degrees of success in the decades before British heavyweights forced the world to take them seriously. 

With apologies to Akinwande, Bentt and Hide (and to Dubois, Joe Joyce, Brian London, Gary Mason, Dillian Whyte, and others who don’t make the cut), here is one man’s list of the Top 10 heavyweights from the sceptered isle.

Don Cockell (66-14-1, 38 KOs)

After losing to Randolph Turpin, conqueror and victim of Sugar Ray Robinson, in a fight for the British and Commonwealth light-heavyweight titles in 1952, Cockell moved up to heavyweight and soon ascended the rankings. Victories over Roland LaStarza and Harry “Kid” Matthews put him in line for a world title shot against Rocky Marciano, which took place in San Francisco on May 16, 1955. Cockell lost via ninth-round knockout; he would fight twice more – both times losing by knockout – before retiring. 
 

Tommy Farr (88-34-19, 25 KOs)

After a slow start to his career, with losses almost as frequent as wins, the “Tonypandy Terror” eventually found his feet; a spell of 17-0-2 between May 1935 and June 1937 included wins over Tommy Loughran and Max Baer and earned him a shot at champion Joe Louis. Prior to facing Farr on August 30 1937, Louis had knocked out eight of nine; subsequently, he would stop seven in a row. Farr, however, went the distance, and although referee Arthur Donovan awarded the champion 13 rounds, the other two judges saw it as a much closer contest.

David Haye (28-4, 26 KOs)

While Haye’s heavyweight career couldn’t match his excellence at cruiserweight, and the injury-riddled denouement to his time in the ring was disappointing, Haye’s best performances – including wins over Nicolay Valuev, Derek Chisora, John Ruiz, and Audley Harrison – were notable and frequently electric and earned him a share of the world title.

Henry Cooper (40-14-1, 25 KOs)

Cooper’s finest and most famous moment came when he decked and badly hurt a young Cassius Clay, only to lose on cuts. (His paper-thin skin also let him down in a rematch.) He was twice European champion and held the British and Commonwealth titles from 1959 to 1971, losing them controversially by a quarter of a point to Joe Bugner in what would be the final bout of Cooper’s career.
 

Frank Bruno (40-5, 38 KOs)

Along with Cooper and Ricky Hatton, probably the most beloved British boxer in modern history. Fell short in his first two attempts at a world title, falling to Tim Witherspoon and Mike Tyson, before outpointing Oliver McCall to win the WBC belt that McCall had ripped away from Lennox Lewis. Lost the belt in his first defense against a comebacking Tyson and retired.

Joe Bugner (69-13-1, 43 KOs)

Bugner’s relatively cautious style, combined with the controversy of his win over the popular Cooper, meant the Hungary-born boxer was never really embraced by the British public. But he was consistently ranked in the Top 10 in the 1970s Golden Era of Heavyweight Boxing, going the distance (twice) with Muhammad Ali and, in an atypically exciting bout, Joe Frazier. Retired and un-retired multiple times before hanging up the gloves for the final tine in 1999, aged 49.

Anthony Joshua (28-3, 25 KOs, still active)

After a relatively brief amateur career, Joshua took gold at the 2012 London Olympics and immediately became one of the faces of British boxing.  Won the IBF belt in February 2016 and unified it with a thrilling 11 th round TKO of Wladimir Klitschko in front of 90,000 at Wembley Stadium in November of that year. A shock defeat to Andy Ruiz Jr in December 2018, although avenged, appeared to knock the confidence out of him, and two losses to Oleksander Usyk cast doubt on his future as a top contender. But, since joining forces with trainer Ben Davison, he looks to have returned to his best form, which he will be aiming to continue against Dubois.

Tyson Fury (34-1-1, 24 KOs, still active)

Like Joshua, Fury is still writing his colorful and controversial story and it is anyone’s guess where on this list he may reside when it is finally complete. Shocked the world with a win over Wladimir Klitschko in November 2015 to become lineal heavyweight champion, but did not fight again for two and a half years in the midst of mental health struggles, massive weight gain, and a pair of failed drug tests. Returned in 2018 and, later that year, climbed off the canvas to draw with Deontay Wilder, whom he subsequently defeated by stoppage twice.  Along with Floyd Patterson and Muhammad Ali, one of only three boxers to twice be recognized as heavyweight champion by The Ring . Lost his crown to Oleksander Usyk earlier this year and will be aiming to retrieve it in December.

Bob Fitzsimmons (74-8-3, 30 NDs, 67 KOs)

The lightest man ever to be heavyweight champion, “Ruby Robert” weighed just 167 pounds when he knocked out Jim Corbett in March 1897 to become the man who beat the man who beat the man and claim the nascent heavyweight championship of the world. He lost the crown to James Jeffries two years later and then picked up the light-heavyweight belt to go with the middleweight and heavyweight titles he had already claimed. Regarded as one of the hardest punchers pound-for-pound in history and famed for his patented “solar plexus” punch.

Lennox Lewis (41-2-1, 32 KOs)

Arguably not just Britain’s greatest ever heavyweight but its best fighter, period, Lewis was born in London, moving at age 12 to Canada, for whom he won gold at the 1988 Olympics. Returning to the UK to turn professional, he was retroactively awarded the WBC belt after knocking out Razor Ruddock in October 1992, when title holder Riddick Bowe refused to defend against him. Shockingly lost to McCall in 1994, but regained his belt from his conqueror three years later when McCall suffered an emotional breakdown in the ring. Became undisputed champion with a win over Evander Holyfield in 1999, lost the title to and regained it from Hasim Rahman in 2002, and concluded his career with stoppages of Mike Tyson and Vitali Klitschko before retiring in February 2004 having beaten every opponent he ever faced.

#BritishBoxing #UKBoxing #Heavyweights #GOAT #LennoxLewis #BobFitszsimmons #TysonFury #AnthonyJoshua #JoeBugner #FrankBruno #HeneyCooper #DavidHaye #TommyFarr #DonCockell 

Anthony Joshua reminded Daniel Dubois of his sense of ambition when they weighed in for Saturday’s IBF heavyweight title fight at Wembley Stadium.

In front of a crowd that lightly booed Dubois at London’s Trafalgar Square, they spoke for the final time before their arrivals at Wembley on Saturday evening for the occasion that represents the biggest fight of Dubois’ career and one that could end Joshua’s at the highest level.

Plans exist for the 34-year-old Joshua to finally fight Tyson Fury should he succeed in dethroning Dubois, but if he loses to the IBF champion on the occasion of his first title defence, unlike after successive defeats by Oleksandr Usyk, Joshua’s career would prove difficult to rebuild.

They had to be separated when the first came face to face to promote Saturday’s fight and the less experienced Dubois, 27 and increasingly recognised as dangerous, has never once appeared intimidated.

He, similarly, seemed unconcerned about Joshua’s status as favourite with the crowd that was present, but after weighing in narrowly heavier than his fellow Londoner, Joshua told DAZN: “I’m not a warrior in the garden yet. I’m not a warrior in the garden yet. I’m still on the battlefield. I’m not smelling any roses yet – just blood. 

“I look at myself as a gladiator and I’m about to step into an arena tomorrow to perform for the people who love to see blood, guts and glory. I’m pumped and I’m ready to perform for the people.”

Dubois – who despite his status as champion weighed in first – was described as “tense” by Joseph Parker, among Joshua’s former opponents, and his trainer Don Charles was again absent, but he said: “I’m ready to fight. It’s time to get in the ring and fight. Let’s go.

“We’ve been working hard. All I can say is I’m ready to fight.

“A lot of work’s gone into this. I’m just ready to go. The talking’s done.”

Willy Hutchinson had by then appeared the most confident of each of those scheduled to fight at Wembley, ahead of what represents his toughest fight, at light heavyweight against Joshua Buatsi.

Josh Warrington and Anthony Cacace, who will fight at super featherweight, were involved in a heating shouting match, and the lightweights Mark Chamberlain and Josh Padley exchanged shoves. 

#AnthonyJoshua #DanielDubois #WillyHutchinson #JoshWarrington #AnthonyCacace #WemblyStadium #JoshuaBuatsi #Heavyweights #MarkChamberlain #JoshPadley

Boxing is arguably as hot as it has ever been at the moment due to the number of huge fights that are occuring, and WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman has named who he feels will be the future of the sport.

There have been plenty of massive bouts that have taken place over the last couple of years including Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk, Terence Crawford vs. Errol Spence, and Gervonta Davis vs. Ryan Garcia.

Another big fight will be held tomorrow night at Wembley Stadium, as Anthony Joshua challenges Daniel Dubois for the IBF heavyweight title.

While Daniel may be the current member of the Dubois family in the spotlight, WBC President Sulaiman has heaped praise Daniel’s sister Caroline, after presenting her with the interim WBC lightweight title this week, alongside boxing legend Lennox Lewis.

Sulaiman said: “I’m extremely proud, I’m so happy, so excited. She is the future of boxing. A role model inside and outside the ring and today is a very special day for me to be able to present her with the green and gold belt in person. I can see she’s very disciplined, always in the gym, well prepared and ready for anything to come. When that bell rings she’s a different woman, she’s an unbelievable champion. I see a great bright future for Caroline.”

Caroline won the title last month after a dominant unanimous decision victory over Maira Moneo, taking her undefeated record to 10-0 in the process, and she was thrilled to receive the recognition from Sulaiman.Update On Daniel Dubois Trainer Situation Amid Rumours That Don Charles Has Been Sacked

“It’s amazing to have Mauricio come give me the belt. I looked up to Lennox Lewis, watching him as a young kid and obviously the WBC, the WBA, the IBF, the WBO, these are all the major belts and to now get almost a piece, it’s not the full belt which is what I will get but it’s a step in the right direction. This is not as far as I get, I go further than this. I want to touch the sky, I want to touch hearts, I want to do something that’s never been done before and I push and train every day.”

Boxxer CEO Ben Shalom added: “Caroline Dubois is one of the future faces of female boxing. Whether Katie Taylor decides to fight her or vacate, there are huge nights ahead for Caroline, who is still only 23 years old. We believe she will unify the lightweight division before moving up and becoming a multi-weight world champion and pound-for-pound star.”

Dubois is now hoping to land a showdown with WBC champion Katie Taylor in the near future, with Taylor first taking on Amanda Serrano on the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson undercard in November.

#WBC #MauricioSulaiman #CarolineDubois #Future #Boxing #Boxingnews #President

The career of Daniel Dubois can be compared to Anthony Joshua’s in several ways: the vaunted fight-ending power; the suggestion of questionable punch resistance and stamina; the humbling defeats; the regular switching of training teams; the rebirths.

Yet Dubois’ journey, at least at the highest level, would seem to be just getting started – only since he defeated Filip Hrgovic six months ago could he boast victory over a genuine Top 10 contender. Therefore, when attempting to identify revealing moments, it’s a far easier task with Dubois’ opponent than it is with him – Joshua, after all, has been operating at world class level for almost a decade. 

Even so, there are clues to uncover and signposts to follow when it comes to Dubois’ progress thus far. And the good news, if trying to build a case for him to beat Joshua, is that many of the questions we had about Dubois in the recent past have been answered. Or at least they have for now. Though the resurgence of “DD” in the last 12 months has been enormously impressive, one should be careful not to draw too many conclusions, or at least emphatic ones, from his current form. 

Therefore, the (potential) bad news is this is an assignment against a heavyweight who has consistently performed at the highest level; something that can’t be said for Dubois’ two most recent opponents, Jarrell Miller and Hrgovic, or even Dubois himself.

Labouring past Kevin Johnson

There are benefits to being a hyped heavyweight prospect which are largely centred around the opportunities presented by such a status. There are downsides, too. Whereas certain young starlets might find it difficult to get the chances they feel their talent deserves, at least they learn to fly away from the glare of the limelight. Those who are signed to a major TV promoter – particularly young and hard-hitting heavyweights – generally develop in the public eye and thus any mistakes or sideways steps are roundly criticised. Dubois experienced such a thing in November 2018 when matched with Kevin Johnson, the former contender who realized he could make a much better living from guarding the gate; his USP became making an early assessment on his opponents and, if achieving victory would take too much effort, he would make sure he at least heard the final bell. Consequently, very few got through the gate while looking great. 

When faced with the spoiling and unwilling Johnson, Dubois appeared limited, he neglected the body, his jab clearly needed some work. He was, in short, still crude and raw. Worse, Joshua had walked through Johnson in two rounds some three years before.

Dubois shouldn’t be criticized for going 10 against seasoned opposition, however. Learning is what fights against the likes of Johnson are designed for. Yet it’s included here to illustrate that though Dubois was once a promising amateur, his experience at that level was comparatively limited. He was not the blue-eyed boy like Joshua had been in the vest and Dubois was still learning the fundamentals while punching for pay. 

A reminder, then, of how far he’s come and how far he may still need to go.

Capitulation against Joe Joyce

A fight that should act as a warning about how cruel the sport can be. And it’s not just the hurt inside the ring, of which Dubois absorbed plenty against a peak Joe Joyce, but also the sniping, relentless bullying-cum-criticism a defeat like this can attract.

Dubois could likely have continued in the 10 th round when he dropped to one knee, with his left eye swollen shut, and opted to rise only when the referee called ‘10’ above him. But the pain this young man felt, coupled with a sense of discombobulation and helplessness, can only be truly known by the young man himself. 

In the eyes of many bloodthirsty fans and, worse, fellow fighters, Dubois ‘quit’. Long before Dubois’ injury was confirmed as a fractured eye socket – and don’t pretend to know what that feels like – ringside analysts like Carl Frampton and David Haye were saying they’d rather ‘go out on a stretcher’ than surrender. It’s unlikely they’d rather do that because what they’re implying, when they say things like that, is they would rather die – leaving behind their children to grieve and grow up without them – than stop taking punches to the face. But that’s what boxers say, and I don’t doubt it’s what they’ve been conditioned to believe.

Whatever the truth of the matter, in November 2020, Dubois was labelled a coward by those he respected the most. 

Trouble early against Kevin Lerena

In what was beforehand deemed a straightforward defence of Dubois’ bogus WBA strap turned into near disaster in the opening moments. A blow from the underdog caught Dubois on the top of the head as he came in, momentarily wobbling him. Yet when that wobble became a tumble, and Dubois was taking a count, it was clear that something was wrong.

The wobble had caused his knee to buckle, and though the Londoner beat the count, he was having a hard time standing. Some observers understandably assumed that Dubois had been clumped dizzy but as he fell twice more it became apparent that the wobble, and then the buckle, had caused an injury. 

Dubois complained about the problem while on the stool but nonetheless came out for the second and by the end of the third he’d won by knockout. It did not come without controversy, however: the bell to end the first round came 10 seconds early, the WBA’s three-knockdown rule was not in effect in Britain, and when Dubois applied the finishing touches to his comeback victory it appeared as if the bell to end the third had already rung. Even so, two years after the loss to Joyce, Dubois proved he could emerge victorious from a crisis. 

Oleksandr Usyk breaks his heart

The revealing moment here is twofold and does not warrant yet another debate about whether the blow that felled Usyk in round five was legal or not. Please, let’s not waste our time starting an argument that nobody can win – life is far too short for any of that.

The first point worth considering is the amount of respect that Usyk, after tasting an early blow from the challenger, afforded Dubois. In fact, before that headline-making fall in the fifth, Usyk boxed exceptionally patiently and carefully, more so than he had against Anthony Joshua and more than he would against Tyson Fury. In addition, whether low or not, the blow that put him on his backside in the fifth clearly hurt. And Usyk being ‘clearly hurt’ is rare indeed.

The second is how much Dubois then struggled to compose himself after the incident. Upon rising, and after being in discomfort, it was Usyk and not Dubois pressing the action. It was Usyk and not Dubois who then found the contest much easier to navigate. And it was Usyk and not Dubois who scored the knockdowns to win the fight.

It is of course important to reference that this is Usyk we’re talking about, a modern-day fighting genius. But the sense that Dubois had let him off the hook, perhaps after being given too much time in his own head, was hard to shake.

All steam ahead vs Filip Hrgovic

Fighters – like the rest of humankind – should not be judged on the inevitable mistakes they make but how they react to them. Though Dubois’ victory over Jarrell Miller was an exceptionally impressive response to being humbled by Usyk, and proved his stamina at a certain level, it’s what the Briton then did to Hrgovic that is worthy of the highest praise.  

Though under the cosh in the early going, there was not a solitary hint that Dubois was going to yield like he had in the past. There were no concerns about self-preservation nor any hint of self-doubt as he walked through a storm of right hands. Never had Dubois looked so incredibly bullet-proof under fire nor so dangerous when on the attack.

This should be both a concern and source of inspiration for Saturday night’s opponent. Joshua is at his best when his rivals come at him and open themselves up to be countered by his bombastic right hand. However, he’s at his worst when it becomes clear he’s going to need more than his trusty one-two to win.

Which in turn presents Dubois with the most difficult of choices to make: Does he do what’s worked so well for him recently and in turn offer Joshua his most direct route to victory or does he apply the kind of care and attention that risks compromising what he himself does best?

#DanielDubois #AnthonyJoshua #Journey #boxing #boxingnews #Career #OleksandrUsyk #FilipHrgovic #KevinLerena #KevinJohnson #JoeJoyce

Former Olympic champion Estelle Mossely is a candidate to become the president of the French Boxing Federation. The existing president is Dominique Nato, once a very good boxer and who is seeking to be re-elected when the elections are held on December 14.

Mossely won gold at Rio 2016 and then turned professional. She is 11-0-1 and, remains active. She returned to amateur boxing for Paris 2024 this year but struggled with injuries and lost in the first round. 

*The Italian champion Gianmarco Cardillo (12-0-2) and Swedish titlist Pezhman Seifkhani (17-1) are on course to fight at heavyweight. Cardillo will defend his title September 27 against Eduardo Gustini, and in the event of victory is expected to fight Seifkhani next.

*The Danish Fight Night in Copenhagen on October 12 will feature British fighters Jordan Withers and Mark Davies.

*Withers (7-0) fights for the second time in Denmark, against Under Ozgul (13-0-1), the England-based Turk. Davies (6-0) fights Poland’s Mateusz Pawlowski (2-1).

*The super middleweight Oliver Zaren (13-0), who is promoted by Wasserman, also fights – against an opponent to be confirmed.

*Sarah Mahfoud-Danil Ramos, at featherweight, is top of the bill. Part of Mahfoud’s preparations will take her to Wales to spar Elisabeth Oshoba.

*The EBU super-featherweight champion Khalil El Hadri (19-2) defends the title against Salvador Jimenez (13-0-1) on December 21 in Les Mureaux, France.

*El Hadri won the title in victory over Juanfe Gomez, who drew with Jiminez in an all-Spanish match-up in 2023.

*EC Boxing's Ukrainian heavyweight Viktor Faust (12-1) fights on Saturday in Hamburg, on P2M's promotion at the Sporthalle. Faust fights Bosnia’s Mirko Tintor (16-9), on the undercard of Nina Meinke-Daniela Bermudez for the vacant IBF featherweight title.

*German light heavyweights Tom Dzemski (21-2) and Nick Hannig (13-1-1) will fight on November 2 in Chemnitz, Germany. Their fight headlines a SES and Blanko Sports co-promotion. The cruiserweight Roman Fress (21-1) also features.

#EstelleMossely #FrenchBoxingFederation #Boxing #Boxingnews

Osleys Iglesias is to fight Petro Ivanov at the Cabaret du Casino de Montreal in Montreal, Canada on November 7.

The Cuban super middleweight, 26, who stopped Sena Agbeko in August, said: “I’m happy to be fighting so often. Petro Ivanov is an undefeated guy who dreams of becoming a world champion. 

“Most importantly, he’s brave enough to step into the ring with me. I respect that, but I’ll make sure to deliver yet another electrifying performance for the fans in Montreal and worldwide.”

Ivanov, 28 and of Ukraine, said: “I’m looking forward to November 7. It’s an incredible opportunity to make my mark on the global stage. I know Iglesias is strong and hits hard, but in our sport, everyone is beatable. I’m going to train hard to ensure he’s no exception.”

Steven Butler will fight Diego Chaves at middleweight in the chief support, by when Leila Beaudoin and Edith Soledad Matthysse will have fought at 130lbs, Dzmitry Asanau-Matias Rueda will have taken place at lightweight, Wilkens Mathieu and Marcos Karalitzky will have shared the ring at light heavyweight, and Thomas Chabot-Jhon Orobio will have met at super featherweight.  

#OsleyIglesias #PetroIvanov #November #boxingfans #boxingnews #sports

While preparing to fight Anthony Joshua on Saturday, Daniel Dubois celebrated his 27th birthday. That is an age of little significance, true, yet it is interesting all the same to consider how, in the context of Daniel Dubois, a heavyweight, it is considered especially young, while for others it is considered old – for some, The End. 

Twenty-seven, of course, is the age at which the following music icons died: Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Brian Jones, Janis Joplin, and Amy Winehouse. 

When thinking of each of them, we think of not only a life cut short but also a life well lived. After all, in those 27 years they each managed to achieve success and create a legacy, which served to make their passing so culturally important. Not just that, they seemed, for better or worse, to be adults; functioning or otherwise. They danced to the beat of their own drum and they made their own calls, then sadly suffered the consequences. 

In contrast to this, Daniel Dubois, also now 27, is someone whose father, Dave (birth name Stan), must be approached for Daniel to so much as be interviewed. He possesses a phone, yes, but one without all the bells and whistles “enjoyed” by other twentysomethings, and he still lives at home, despite, unlike most twentysomethings, boasting the financial muscle to change that. 

He is, in other words, a bit of an anomaly. He is an anomaly not only in terms of 27 year olds and the freedom they covet, but in boxing, too, where so much emphasis is placed on being strong and independent and taking matters into your own hands. Most boxers will have a team, of course, but it is ultimately on the shoulders of just one man – the boxer – that everything rests. Moreover, so accustomed are we to seeing boxers desperate to be the centre of attention and the loudest voice in the room that it is unusual, and to some degree endearing, to discover there are still boxers like Dubois who see no issue with staying silent; or, indeed, giving dad permission to play the buffer. 

“He’s a fine young man,” said Don Charles, Dubois’ coach. “He’s a very, very unique young man. A unique personality. A unique fighter. What more can I say? He’s a very pleasant person to work with. 

“Daniel is a very regimented individual. For a young man he has great discipline in the way he approaches what he does. He has a no-nonsense sort of attitude. He comes to train. There is no chit-chat or messing around. He just wants to work and put a shift in. I like that. I’m a guy with great discipline. I grew up like that. Away from boxing I’m very disciplined and I apply that to the boxing. Coincidentally Daniel also comes from a very strict background. All the [Dubois] children have discipline; they have manners. When you apply that to your profession, no matter what it is, it works out well, and that discipline and that focus stands you in good stead. It’s refreshing, to be quite honest.”

While on the cusp of making a fortune from his chosen profession, it would be imprudent of anyone to question too vigorously Dubois’ upbringing or approach to getting here. Where he may have lost in the sense of being a young man, he has clearly gained in other areas, chiefly those pertaining to his boxing career; his first love. 

In a superb piece about the Dubois family written for The Times by Tom Kershaw, Dubois said: “I was so busy in the gym thinking about my tournaments and stuff, so the outside world sort of passed me by. I’ve never tried a beer. It’s just the way life is. You’re competing for England, then you go straight into the pro game. I’ve been an athlete my whole life. Why change now? I’m content with what I’m doing.”

When reading this piece, you get a real feeling that Dubois has been cocooned for 27 years. You also start to wonder whether being cocooned, despite all the negative connotations, is perhaps not a bad thing for someone in the public eye, particularly when you consider what has happened to the maladjusted by the time they hit that age. 

In boxing, too, we see this cocooning all the time, just maybe not as overtly as in the case of Dubois. With Joshua, for instance, Dubois’ next opponent, there has been a protective barrier around him since the day he turned pro in 2013. 

Prior to turning pro, I can recall seeing Joshua in a boxing gym on his way to a meeting with a potential manager/promoter and was impressed that day by how he conversed with everybody in the gym, utterly at ease in the company of strangers. And yet, fast-forward just a few years and when I, and other members of the British press pack, visited Joshua at his Sheffield gym ahead of a world-title fight, the dynamic could not have been more different. Herded like cattle, there were pens – not the kind used to write – and an inspection typically reserved for those about to interview figures of great importance. Perhaps, given how big he had become in the sporting world, it had to be this way. Perhaps, for his team, there was no other way for things to be done. However, to protect Joshua with such intensity that it both restricted access to him and stunted his ability to fully express himself and say anything remotely interesting seemed, from the outside, rather counterproductive. “My team, we don’t do interviews,” Joshua said this week. “We keep our head down.”

With Dubois, meanwhile, you are dealing with a different character altogether. Protected not by a gang of publicists but a father, Dubois is a 27 year old who has been home-schooled and, by his own admission, knows very little about the world that exists beyond the walls of his home and those of the boxing gym. He reaps the benefits of this, yet also shows signs of the drawbacks. 

“I took Daniel to a few markets,” said his father in the Times piece. “He worked with me in Bristol. We got there at 8am and finished at 10pm, but he’s not cut out for that. He was a bit shy when he was young. I said, ‘Daniel, start calling them in, two pounds each, three pounds, four pounds, five pounds…’ He would just stare at me and he wouldn’t say a word.”

It is a scene easy to imagine: Dubois standing there, blank expression, wanting his gregarious father to make some noise on his behalf. We have, in fact, witnessed similar scenes whenever Dubois has been asked to talk at a press conference and then struggled to find the words to articulate whatever is going on in his head. “I haven’t got too much to say right now,” he said on Thursday. “I’m just ready to go on Saturday.”

Still, it is to his credit, that a fear of silence, or awkwardness, has never led to a Dubois double act. Meaning: unlike the Furys or the Eubanks, Dan and Dave do not present themselves as a team, at least not publicly, and therefore our view is not spoiled. Though interviews are hard to come by, and harder to conduct, we are free to watch a young man not only develop professionally in real time, but also emotionally and psychologically. We are seeing Dubois learn to express himself, both with punches and with words, and it is oddly fascinating, too; particularly when it takes place in a male-dominated sport, one in which so many pretend they are tougher than they are, more intelligent than they are, and more mature than they are. He is a boy in a man’s suit, absolutely, but so long as he can stand up for himself, and so long as he doesn’t let his father become an overbearing presence, Daniel Dubois has every chance of one day growing into it.

#DanielDubois #Boxing #AnthonyJoshua #sports #boxingnews #boxingfans #fightnight 

Kalle Sauerland has spent years rebuilding Josh Kelly’s confidence and standing in the sport and then cajoled and campaigned to secure him the right opportunity – and the ideal opponent – to belatedly prove he is a world-level talent. 

The best-laid plans regularly go to waste in boxing, and Liam Smith’s late withdrawal from his and Kelly’s proposed middleweight fight at Wembley Stadium on Saturday meant that years of plotting and manoeuvring devolved into a mad scramble.

Ordinarily, Kelly, 15-1-1 (8 KOs), would have been withdrawn from the promotion or matched with an opponent capable of standing on a set of scales and walking to the ring and little else, but Riyadh Season shows are anything but ordinary. 

There were plenty of names willing to replace Smith, but the magnitude of Saturday’s show at Wembley required that they were also able.

Enter Ishmael Davis, 13-0 (6 KOs).

“Josh says he’s a similar style of fighter,” Sauerland said. “I’ll be totally honest, I still don’t know that much about Ishmael Davis, apart from the fact that he’s a hot prospect with a very good record

“Josh says he’s stylistically quite similar to Liam but, mentally, he’s coming in that ring with a totally different MO. He was supposed to be boxing in a couple of weeks’ time. He’ll be fit. He’ll know exactly why he dropped out of the other fight to take this fight. It wasn’t like he was sitting around waiting for a payday; he was fighting in a couple of weeks’ time. He will be very confident but it’s our time on Saturday night.”

Davis is a talented, improving fighter who recently matched Kelly’s best career victory by outpointing Troy Williamson, and certainly he isn’t overawed at the prospect of taking on the 30 year-old.

In the past this particular set of circumstances may have triggered all kinds of worries and fears in Kelly but Sauerland insists that these days he is a much more relaxed figure and believes that the way he dealt with the disappointment of the Smith fight falling out proves his increased level of self-belief. Sauerland expects the confident Kelly to revel under the weight of expectation.

“I’ve seen quite a few locker rooms over the years,” he said. “You’ve gotta see that on Saturday night, what goes on in this locker room. It’s a very relaxed vibe. I went in there once and was very embarrassed because they asked me to dance.

“One thing I definitely can’t do is dance. Especially when I’m nervous, two minutes before walking. It was actually before the Troy Williamson fight so a pretty big fight for him. 

“We say, ‘Ok, just find an opponent’, but he had to agree to the opponent – he had to agree to a certain level of opponent too – so I think that tells me a lot. Ultimately the stage is set for Saturday night and it’s a big stage. If there are question marks, they’ll be answered Saturday. 

“I do think that a lot of the question marks for me were answered when he beat Troy Williamson. It was a big night and I think Saturday night is different challenges but he’s in a great space.”

#IshmaelDavis #JoshKelly #boxing #boxingnews #KellyDavis #RiyadhSeason #JoshuaDubois #LiamSmith #KalleSaurland

Dillian Whyte, a long-time rival of Anthony Joshua, has given his candid thoughts on the highly anticipated Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois clash for the IBF heavyweight title at Wembley Stadium. Speaking to talkSPORT Boxing, Whyte cautioned Dubois about the danger he faces in the ring, saying, “He don’t want to stand in front of ‘AJ’ and take too many right hands or he’s going to sleep.” He also compared the two heavyweights' punching styles, remarking that while Joshua is “a pig puncher,” he tends to rely more on sharp combination shots, whereas Dubois is a “slow and methodical, clubbing puncher.” However, Whyte warned that with 10oz gloves on, “anyone over 15 stone is a big puncher” and predicted the fight as a genuine 50-50 contest.

Recalling their past sparring sessions, Whyte mentioned, “Apparently Daniel bashed ‘AJ’ up in sparring,” but stressed the need for Dubois not to be overconfident as this fight could turn out very differently. According to Whyte, “If he stands in front of ‘AJ’ and takes too many right hands, he’s going to sleep.”

This title fight presents a major moment in heavyweight boxing, with Joshua eyeing a return to glory and Dubois looking to secure his first title defense. Whyte's honest assessment has added further intrigue, making this a showdown fans won’t want to miss.

#JoshuaDubois #DillianWhyte #AnthonyJoshua #DanielDubois #boxing #boxingnews #boxingfans #fightfans #predictions