MANCHESTER, ENGLAND — Zak Miller and Zach Parker produced contrasting decisions, the former winning featherweight gold in an upset, during Queensberry’s first card of 2025. Elsewhere, Jack Rafferty served Southern Area champion Reece MacMillan a reality check to retain his British and Commonwealth 140-pound titles. Read below for the undercard fight recaps…
Khati cuts Heaney’s return short in style
One-time British middleweight champion Nathan Heaney (18-1-2, 6 KOs) began well but the raucous Stoke-centric atmosphere was stunned into silence as French national titleholder Sofiane Khati (18-5, 7 KOs) boxed astutely en route to a seventh-round finish, plunging the 35-year-old’s career into doubt.
Heaney had to change one of his gloves in the ring before their contest began, foreshadowing a disruptive night’s work during the evening’s co-feature.
Rebounding after a career-first defeat last time out, Heaney soaked up the reception from hundreds of travelling fans but despite an encouraging start packed with vicious rights and intent, found himself up against it as Khati grew bolder.
His head trainer Steve Woodvine told him between rounds: “He’s wild, don’t give him any gaps, you’re winning behind the jab – don’t make it complicated,” before the fourth, though Khati had found a home for his right hand and Heaney’s face was a crimson red by this stage above the left eye and his nose too.
Into the fifth they went, the Frenchman conceivably ahead and the tide had turned. Two big left hooks rocked Heaney, the ropes in the right place to cushion him, as the Frenchman’s corner hit the canvas in encouragement.
Woodvine read Heaney the riot act before round six, berating him for leaving his defences open by lowering his hands and while the 35-year-old agreed with the instructions, questions over his durability persisted as Khati pressed with body work.
Heaney was dropped heavy by a flurry of punches at the start of the seventh, referee Bob Williams gave the Hitman ample time to recover as his gumshield lay on the canvas and needed to be refreshed, though the barrage merely continued after brief respite. Soon enough, it was all over.
Rafferty reels off another stoppage
Rafferty, who upset then-unbeaten prospect Henry Turner in October, embraced his TV debut as defending champion and the 29-year-old’s relentlessness was clear early on. After narrowly outpointing Kane Gardner on November 30, the underdog had no answers for the power, despite an inspired stanza midway through their contest.
Peppering the Lancashire-born challenger behind his jab, round four was far more competitive after a one-sided first ten minutes or so as MacMillan embraced the danger by punching with the titleholder, finding the target with increasing success.
Rafferty unloaded two and three-punch combinations in the fifth, worked well to head-and-body in the sixth and more steely composure would see him set up a welcome stoppage. Powerful punching in bunches, body work and pressure was pushing a morose-looking MacMillan backwards.
Holding the towel ever tighter in the last half-minute, Reece’s corner told him they would stop it if they didn’t see an improvement as referee Mark Bates looked intently, ready to intervene himself. Eventually they did, throwing the towel in Bates’ face just as he looked to step in.
Parker flatters to deceive, again
After three very different displays on his comeback from a broken hand in a career-best opportunity against the now-retired world title challenger John Ryder, this was set to be a crossroads clash at light-heavyweight for Zach Parker (26-1, 18 KOs).
Instead, Willy Hutchinson dislocated-and-tore his shoulder in sparring so France’s Mickael Diallo (21-2-2, 18 KOs) stepped up on less than a week’s notice, cutting and stifling the Derby man’s work over ten rounds.
Both were bleeding from their right eye, Diallo over an early head clash while Parker was punctured by a punch and quickly found himself uncomfortable against another European opponent.
Referee Victor Loughlin’s white shirt was swiftly stained with blood as their bruising exchanges were exhausting and this only intensified, the longer they went.
After continued success in the middle rounds, Diallo started the eighth brilliantly next to his corner, before Parker responded in kind with a beautifully-timed right hand as the crowd noise swelled in anticipation. Instead, Parker was twice on the floor – both ruled slips – as this contest became scrappy and increasingly gruelling.
Parker was warned for excessive holding a minute into the ninth, cuffing punches missing their target as the Frenchman’s corner implored their man to finish strong, aware this potentially remained up for grabs if he could conjure up more clean work in the final few minutes.
Parker was again helped to his feet twice more, a visibly unimpressed official told the story as he ultimately laboured to another wide decision but didn’t look sharp.
Miller-Abdulah lives up to the billing
Having fallen short at this level against now-former champion Nathaniel Collins in November 2023, Zak Miller (16-1, 3 KOs) had a second shot at British and Commonwealth featherweight gold against another unbeaten entity with Masood Abdulah (11-1, 7 KOs).
He produced a disciplined, determined and defensively savvy showing over twelve rounds to edge past the Londoner, delighting the bloodthirsty crowd as the right man had done enough to be rewarded with two new shiny 126-pound titles.
114-114, 115-114, 115-113 read the scorecards after an absorbing contest, the majority decision nod going to an underdog refusing to relent throughout. Armed with a vociferous crowd cheering his every move in his hometown, the 27-year-old got off to an encouraging start by punching first and retaining a tight guard.
After being sternly warned for rabbit punching to finish a frenetic first-round, Abdulah soon had bigger issues to deal with. In the final half-minute of a competitive third, Abdulah instinctively knew he was cut, blood soon streaming down near his right eye as referee Mark Lyson gesticulated it was a head clash.
“Stop overthinking it, go with your shots earlier, you’ve got to believe it,” was the instruction from Abdulah’s corner before the fourth and while on the front foot early, Miller had a target to aim at – the right eye clearly bothering the favourite.
Abdulah stalked forward intently in the fifth and while the more powerful, was clipped cleanly with a stinging counter right during another tightly-contested stanza. Likely 3-2 either way through five, Abdulah found a home for the uppercut and their close-range exchanges suited him better as he connected to body, then head.
Miller’s ringside supporters were increasingly quiet and the 27-year-old was sporting a cut to his right eye through six. Perhaps energised by that, he pitched a defiant seventh with pressure and consistent work – clean scoring shots were doing the trick trying to disrupt Abdulah’s rhythm.
Abdulah pinged the Mancunian back on a series of occasions behind his jab in the eighth, physio attention doing its job for Miller as his left eye was cut and the back-and-forth nature of this contest left things finely poised in the final four rounds.
Abdulah landed a lovely one-two with Miller’s back near the corner in the final minute of round nine, having already invested downstairs and both embraced rough work up close.
Miller’s corner urged him to press the issue, the official separating them more often as they exchanged scoring shots on the inside before a stern warning centre ring as their overtly physical battles persisted.
Tidy it up was Lyson’s plea before the penultimate round, both guilty of leading with their head and trying to stretch every ounce of effort in outworking the other.
Abdulah’s attacks might’ve been predictable but while Miller countered well, wasn’t able to keep the Londoner off his chest. Abdulah was urged to clean up his punch mechanics and be smarter if they engaged in the clinch as they entered the final round, almost an impossible ask given what he’d expended to reach this juncture.
Miller moved and countered where possible, before Abdulah landed two big rights around the back of his head – boos reverberating around the arena – the referee ignoring any complaints, instead saying it was fair as the challenger turned his head.
That sequence didn’t prove decision-altering and a feelgood story was written for a new champion who still doesn’t box full-time. Perhaps that will change very shortly.
Full undercard results
Middleweight: Sofiane Khati TKO7 (1:08) Nathan Heaney
Junior-welterweight: Jack Rafferty TKO7 (1:37) Reece MacMillan
Light-heavyweight: Zach Parker UD10 (98-92, 98-93, 97-94) Mickael Diallo
Featherweight: Zak Miller MD12 (114-114, 115-114, 115-113) Masood Abdulah to win British, Commonwealth titles
Heavyweight: Lewis Williams UD4 (40-36) Cristian Uwaka
Middleweight: Walter Fury UD4 (40-37) Joe Hardy
Middleweight: Joe Cooper UD4 (40-36) Artjom Spatar
Super-featherweight: Jermaine Dhliwayo UD4 (40-36) Mark Butler
Picture source: Leigh Dawney/Queensberry
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