Cordina: I don’t want high-risk, low-reward fights anymore
- Cordina on high-risk, low-reward opponents: “There’s unbelievable fighters out there who haven’t got the recognition or the backing behind them, so you’re fighting them, it’s a potential slip-up and you’re not getting nothing from it. I’d back myself against anyone but when you’re fighting someone like that, for no clout or money, it’s not worth your while.”
- Ouch: Cordina lost any negotiating power he held at 130lbs and his 17-0 unbeaten record via R8 TKO against Anthony Cacace in May, who despite being previously British and now IBO world champion, had never boxed for a recognised world title by the major four sanctioning bodies
- No rematch after all! Although an immediate rematch was offered, Cordina set for a long-awaited lightweight move by end of 2024 as Cacace now set to defend IBF, IBO titles against former two-time featherweight world champion Josh Warrington on Wembley card in September
- Importantly though, the former IBF super-featherweight world champion is naturally bullish about the future: “I’m just gonna enjoy my summer, then pick back up. I’ve got ambition, still wanna win world titles, just need another fight to put me back in the firing line for another world title.”
IT’S a harsh business, this boxing game. One minute you’re manoeuvring towards unification fights Stateside against dangerous, legacy-enhancing rivals and the next, you’re on the outside looking in, wondering if your instincts were right all along.
Joe Cordina originally wasn’t interested in another singular title fight, having already won three across two reigns (he was controversially stripped when injured) and made it clear: let me unify against other divisional champions or move up.
Although most remain undisclosed, the fight purses offered by Saudi powers in recent years has proven too much for boxers to reject. Especially on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk, the biggest bout over the past 25 years crowning a first undisputed world heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999.
With two weeks before fight night the original date was pushed back a further three months too, so Cordina – like multiple others – endured a training camp, then had to taper down and recover before going again while juggling the risk of overtraining before a high-risk, low-reward fight which unfolded in the worst possible way.
It’s no surprise Cordina was willing to box at 130lbs a final time for redemption, especially given the bad taste left in his mouth that Riyadh night on May 17.
He suffered a third-round knockdown he never seemed to recover from, having been punched on the break by Cacace as referee Bob Williams wasn’t assertive enough to stop them trading in the clinch. The 32-year-old has slipped into obscurity since, processing his first professional defeat in a healthy manner without the spotlight.
Their competitive bout was increasingly one-sided with time and although Cordina fought back gamely in the seventh, it was more like a defiant salvo rather than a sign the tide was turning back into his favour. A round later, it was all over.
Williams waved the contest off after seeing Cordina absorb one unanswered combination too many, with plenty in the aftermath highlighting his struggles to make weight safely as a contributing factor following a flat performance during his split decision win over Edward Vasquez last November. Speaking of…
“In the Monaco fight [against Edward Vasquez], you could see he was struggling to make that weight and talked about going up. Financially, it was a lot of money and he had to take that fight, but we all know Joe’s a better fighter than he looked [against Cacace]. He didn’t look right at all, the next step to do, is move up to 135.”
- Cordina’s head coach Tony Sims during an interview in June
Cacace offered him an immediate rematch at super-featherweight before agreeing terms to box former two-time featherweight world champion Josh Warrington on the Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois undercard at Wembley come September 21.
In conversation with BoxingScene, Cordina confirmed the Cacace rematch was an option initially but now though, lightweight beckons as the Irishman and his Queensberry handlers have moved in a different direction elsewhere.
“The standout thing in the fight was the two shots on the break – that shook me to my boots frankly, and then the momentum switched. But it is what it is. That’s why I haven’t really done interviews or come out and said this, that and the other. But that was the deciding factor, why it ended the way it did.”
He continued, discussing what protocols and officiating instructions are usually discussed with both boxers in the changing rooms beforehand before deeming the referee’s conduct after Cacace’s foul to be incompetence as Cordina wasn’t given the allotted five minutes to recover nor were points deducted either.
“If that was me and I hit him, I’d be expecting points off. He didn’t do anything, not tell him go back to a neutral corner. [Cacace] was right behind the referee after, and I just think it was a bit unfair. That’s just incompetence and bad refereeing, didn’t think he wanted to take points off. It was really bad, that should have happened – give me my five minutes.”
While revealing no-one from the Matchroom team has yet contacted him, Cordina confirmed he’ll return to full-time training in Tony Sims’ gym in September and hopes for a lightweight return before the year’s end – November or December time.
Picture source: Getty Images, quotes via BoxingScene
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