Today, in London’s historic York Hall, Sam Noakes will face Yvan Mendy for the vacant European lightweight title.
The action starts at 2.45pm EST (7.45pm local in the UK) on TNT Sports in the UK. There is no ESPN+ coverage or anything related to this show, so if you’re in the States and want to watch, content hunting.
We won’t be doing the usual live coverage, but comments are open to those of you who are watching the fights.
You probably remember 38-year-old Mendy (48-6-1, 22 KO) from his 2015 upset of then-undefeated Luke Campbell. Mendy did little after this victory, returning to rings in France until a 2018 rematch with Campbell, who clearly took revenge for the defeat.
Since the loss to Campbell, Mendy is 8-1, but has also been cautious when facing opponents, with the exception of a loss to Denys Berinchyk at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in overdue 2022. He fought once last year, beating undefeated but unproven Bastien Ballesty by split decision in May, so it’s been almost a year since his last fight.
Noakes (13-0, 13 KO), 26, is one of the UK’s more intriguing newborn fighters and has had a knockout record on his way to the top, showing real strength. Last time out in February he stopped Lewis Sylvester in the fourth round to win the British title, adding to the Commonwealth belt he won a year ago. He clearly wants to march forward and win the European belt here, preparing for world-class fights.
On the card: Super lightweight prospect Henry Turner returns against Maykol Mendoza in a fight for WBC trinkets and more!