UFC welterweight contender Stephen Thompson (#6) may be on a two-fight losing streak, but the two-time title challenger has responded to speculation that he’ll soon retire – so long as his body holds up – with his father the only man who can influence his decision to call it a day.
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After the Daily Mail’s Riath Al-Samarrai broke an exclusive story Wednesday morning uncovering Conor Benn’s positive drugs test for clomifene – something both sides reportedly knew for a few weeks – tonight’s heavily anticipated fight card was eventually cancelled altogether Thursday after a manic 30-hour sequence which again has undermined the sport.
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The dust has settled and with a rare weekend lacking big boxing or UFC fights, I reflect in detail on Vergil Ortiz Jr’s R9 TKO win over crafty British southpaw Michael McKinson three weeks ago. Ortiz Jr ended his long-awaited return while maintaining his stoppage streak (19-0, 19 KOs), but what’s next for him and McKinson – who feels this display shows he belongs at world level? Continue reading
Kamaru Usman has revealed a readiness to travel to Leon Edwards’ home comforts, as he looks to regain his welterweight title in 2023 – with London’s Wembley Stadium mooted as a possible venue – having led 3-1 on all three judges’ scorecards but ultimately suffering a dramatic final-minute leg kick KO defeat at the weekend during their rematch in the UFC 278 main event. Continue reading
Midway through the fifth, they thought he was demoralised and it was over. Instead, Leon Edwards scored a stunning head kick KO to dethrone Kamaru Usman, as the UK’s second-ever UFC champion since Michael Bisping after big main card wins for former middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa and an in-form Merab Dvalishvili at 135lbs – both against MMA legends.
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Vergil Ortiz Jr ends a 53-week layoff later tonight (Sunday, 4am BST) as he faces fellow unbeaten boxer Michael McKinson in their WBA welterweight world title eliminator. Will the 24-year-old rising star have it all his own way, against a hard-working Brit, or is a surprise in store? Continue reading
After pulling out of his scheduled fight against Zach Parker in May with a shoulder injury, WBO middleweight champion Demetrius Andrade still wants a UK appearance this year – against Parker’s compatriot and a bigger name in Chris Eubank Jr, but currently isn’t getting his way. Continue reading
Ahead of his heavily-anticipated return to the ring against Custio Clayton tonight, 24-year-old welterweight rising star Jaron Ennis has doubled down on his desire to make 2022 the best year yet: believing he will dominate and eventually stop an unbeaten Canadian (19-0-1, 12 KOs) who at 34, has a golden opportunity to skip the line, proving himself against the best at 147lbs. Continue reading
After dethroning Radzhab Butaev on the Spence-Ugas undercard last month, Lithuania’s unbeaten WBA (Regular) welterweight world champion responded to Eddie Hearn’s comments on a prospective Conor Benn matchup while targeting three-belt titlist Errol Spence Jr next. Continue reading
Errol Spence Jr endured an iffy start but made subtle adjustments on-the-fly and produced a tenth-round stoppage win over Manny Pacquiao’s conqueror Yordenis Ugas, unifying three of the sport’s four welterweight titles. At long last, surely a highly-anticipated clash against WBO champion Terence Crawford to see one true titlist reign supreme cannot be avoided any longer. Continue reading
Things came full circle for welterweight contender Belal Muhammad (#6), as he extended his unbeaten streak to eight fights with a composed all-round showing, swarming Vicente Luque (#5) and executing his tactical plan brilliantly against the same man who knocked him out in 79 seconds six years ago. Afterwards, he called out two-time title challenger Colby Covington (#1). Continue reading
An emotional, angry fighter? More like calculated with spiteful bite. Chris van Heerden experienced that first-hand as Conor Benn started aggressively and made the south African pay with some blistering punch combinations, scoring a second-round knockout in Manchester’s main event tonight to make the seventh defence of his WBA Continental welterweight belt. Continue reading
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