He started well and endured some messier moments late on, but heavyweight prospect Frazer Clarke improved to 7-0 and banked invaluable experience against former world title challenger Mariusz Wach in BOXXER’s main event from York Hall, after Caroline Dubois proved her world-level credentials at 135lbs while cruiserweight Viddal Riley left no doubt in an anticipated rematch.
Clarke’s humility on display after latest showing
100-90: Frazer Clarke improves to 7-0 with points win over Mariusz Wach
- “I think I started well, definitely faded – it’s extremely hot in here – a lot I did right and wrong… was guilty of falling in and smothering my work, he’s a difficult man to shift, definitely work on doing more rounds [in the gym], a lot of people would’ve crumbled,” Clarke’s post-fight assessment
- Promoter Ben Shalom confirms plan is for September return against another ‘very good’ opponent, says they’ve extended the Fabio Wardley fight contract offer as end-of-year British title bout remains target
- “Mission accomplished, you can’t buy experience… it’s not about the stamina, it’s about the concentration too,” Shalom says he’s delighted
- Former two-time unified world champion Anthony Joshua and Wardley active on social media post-fight, with contrasting opinions as gymmate Richard Riakporhe echoes sentiment: Clarke must ‘stay switched on’
He said it himself.
“Well done to Ben Shalom and the team. I’m not saying I would’ve lost [to Wardley] but I was an eager beaver, 10-12 rounds are a lot different, gonna continue working on myself – sometimes it’s good to listen to the knowledge.”
Then, he was wise enough to add a caveat. “I get tired after six, come and fight me, it’s one of them where there’s a lot of demand – come and prove it.”
A quick scroll down Fabio Wardley’s Twitter likes speaks to how the British champion would’ve felt watching this unfold at home, especially as it could’ve easily been the pair of them in this headline spot instead. Jose Mourinho clips will suffice for now.
It’s not an exact science and is always interchangeable, but BoxRec has moved Frazer Clarke up 17 places to world no. 43 after this latest win.
Former cruiserweight Jack Massey (#41), one-time IBF world heavyweight champion Charles Martin (#39) and durable American contender Jermaine Franklin (#33) are among those ahead of him while Wardley (#27) trains, preparing for a July return.
The fight itself
Clarke got off to a solid, unspectacular start to his first main event. His head trainer, Angel Fernandez, told him to stay disciplined and avoid being overzealous with his attacking patterns, such was the hittable tall target standing opposite him.
Mariusz Wach ate overhand rights, jabs and one-two combos without fuss, while body shots were said to be chopping down the proverbial tree for Big Fraze.
Wach used his physicality to hold and hang with Clarke better in round three, as the Olympic bronze medallist was instinctively reminded of his coach’s warning after taking a right hook flush himself.
The referee, Mark Bates, lectured both for some dirty boxing in the fourth before Sky’s cameras directed their audience into the ringside seats with an interested spectator watching on – not the man you’re thinking of.
Tottenham’s rising heavyweight prospect Jeamie TKV (5-0, 3 KOs) declared his desire to fight Clarke and called it a great prospective matchup.
On this fight though, he said Clarke’s punch selection had been very good through 12 minutes of action, almost too comfortable, and that he needed to stay on the inside and take things to the veteran if he wanted a highlight reel knockout finish.
Clarke again connected on the bigger shots in the fifth, one early and another late as he continued denting Wach with body attacks and right-hands.
However, one thing that was painfully apparent was his tendency to stay in the pocket too long and he got punished for that defensive vulnerability in ways that would encourage prospective opponents too.
Round six was the first instance where you saw his lead hand being dropped lower towards his sides, getting tagged as a consequence after another gruelling round between two massive boxers.
Just as the Sky commentary team questioned whether he was starting to physically flag, having never once surpassed the sixth as a pro, Fernandez in his corner stressed upon refusing to give Wach any unnecessary confidence by being defensively open.
The instructions were understandable.
But applying them, in the baking summer heat as you enter new territory against a man who doesn’t wilt under pressure, is another thing entirely.
He was briefly stung by a combo midway through round seven, as you could see gymmate Richard Riakporhe and others barking tips at him from ringside.
Despite being largely second best, Wach wasn’t going anywhere, not least after that rousing round.
Clarke was guilty of smothering his work unnecessarily against the ropes in round eight just as Wach landed some sneaky lefts in the pocket as Clarke targeted the body and through the guard.
Wach strode forward, unperturbed, as it was Riakporhe’s turn next to answer questions in-between rounds, his friend now navigating through choppier waters than the first few rounds suggested.
“He needs to switch on, one mistake could be fatal. I was a rabbit in the headlights [when I had my first eight, ten-round fights] but you get used to it, just a normal thing. You’ve got to go through these experiences and he’s doing decent, just gotta keep switched on.”
He landed a few decent combos as the crowd fleetingly roared him on in the ninth, though everyone was aware by this stage that Wach wasn’t going anywhere – riding the haymakers well enough, firing back more than some might’ve expected too.
As the tenth ended, you could argue he had probably learned more in this half-an-hour test than the rest of his budding pro career to date.
Invaluable for where he wants to go, it didn’t look pretty in spots but that says more about those previous challenges – unfortunate matchmaking – than anything else.
More durable opponents and a bigger element of risk, ideally from someone who isn’t a decade past their prime, will continue to whet the appetite for what’s to come.
Other results, including big wins for Dubois and Riley
R4, 2:36 – Viddal Riley bt. Anees Taj via TKO, improves to 9-0
Rising cruiserweight contender Viddal Riley said he would make the result a decisive one in an intriguing rematch and did just that.
Afterwards, he cited Cheavon Clarke’s impressive win over David Jamieson last weekend as motivation – looking to work his own way into English title contention.
Riley effortlessly boxed Taj into submission through six minutes, moving to his right, landing clean and consistently while picking off an opponent who didn’t move his head enough or offer much resistance as his head frequently snapped back.
His attacks were too predictable and telegraphed when he did foray forward, as Riley conserved his energy while still managing to control the third round without much fuss. It felt as though Taj hadn’t learned anything from their first meeting.
Round four was where things sharply intensified. Taj landed a sneaky overhand right, Riley responded by dropping his hands and nodding his head, as if to beckon him into a slugfest, as Braveheart charged forwards – exactly like their first fight.
They exchanged big shots briefly, Riley accidentally landed below the belt line and right when he was starting to have some momentum, Taj had an untimely breather that only served to help Riley regroup.
He went back to the body attacks, an unanswered flurry came as Taj complained to the referee and didn’t mask his pain, absorbing a five-punch combo.
Floored up against the ropes, he got up but soon enough the towel was flung in as Riley raced over to finish the job. With the English title remaining vacant for the moment, there will be a clamour for Riley to make up for lost time after this display.
Caroline stays true to her word
She rated it a 6-out-of-10 performance during her ringside interview and all things considered, that’s a frightening declaration as far as her contemporaries are concerned.
Caroline Dubois improved to 7-0 as a professional, answered plenty of questions along the way during a 80-71 points victory against Argentina’s Yanina del Carmen Lescano, who had no answers for the 22-year-old’s pressure nor punch variety.
Coming into this contest, Lescano was ranked #2 with the WBC and IBF, #6 with the WBO and WBA. Not any longer after this.
Guilty of overextending on some of her more powerful shots, particularly the right hook, you can see just how much damage she’s able to do when shortening punches and staying technically sound to better deal with counterstrikes. She dropped Lescano with the aforementioned punch, and her body work was brilliant too.
This was her first full eight-rounder, and talk of a potential Mikaela Mayer matchup will only persist if she continues performing like this.
As with everything though, it won’t come cheap – it’s high-risk, low-reward for a former unified world champion ten years her senior.
Elsewhere…
98-92, 98-93, 100-91: Aaron McKenna bt. Uisma Lima, won WBC International middleweight title
Isaac Chamberlain had his first eight-rounder for almost three full years, winning 78-74 against short-notice opponent Dylan Bregeon
English light-middleweight champion Sam Gilley produced a career-best showing, finishing with a body shot R6 KO of Ellis Corrie
Welterweight prospect Hassan Azim scored his third first-round win, this time against Ruben Angulo
Ilford middleweight Joshua Gustave is now 5-0 after a 50-43 victory vs. Remi Scholder
Roman Fury improved to 2-0 with a 40-36 win over Erik Nazaryan at cruiserweight
Picture source: Lawrence Lustig / BOXXER
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