Interviews
Why do we want to come back?
Lyndon Arthur established himself as one of Britain’s top featherlight heavyweights when he defeated Anthony Yarde in December.
Arthur, under the guidance of trainer Pat Barrett, executed the game plan and resisted a slow attack to secure a split decision victory over Yarde and added the vacant WBO Inter-Continental title to his Commonwealth crown.
The pair will appear on the same event, but in separate fights, on July 10, and although Hall of Fame promoter Frank Warren says a rematch is expected to take place in the fall, Barrett would prefer the fight be for the world title.
“Like I said before, this fight is over, we’re not looking back on it now,” Barrett said proboxing-fans.com.
“We won the fight, we made the decision that it was time to completely move on and I have no intention of looking back at Anthony Yarde because at the moment there is nothing to look back on until he is actually back where he belongs and he has to be.
“Winning titles and winning fights and doing what he does best.”
Asked if he would be interested in a rematch, the former British and European champion added: “For a world title yes, for a normal fight no.
“Because he doesn’t really have anything to bring to the table. We won the WBO [Inter-Continental belt] it was empty and Lyndon was there [Commonwealth] champion when we fought him.
So even when we fought him, we were champions just as much as we fought him, and now we are still champions, so really and honestly, why do we want to go back and fight someone who has nothing when we are going to try to elevate them?”
“King Arthur” is number one in the ranking of contenders for the WBO world title Joe Smith Jrwho retained the vacant title in April after a majority vote victory over Maxim Vlasov.
In the headlines, the 30-year-old’s fight against undefeated Davide Faraci will take place next month at the Royal Albert Hall. Barrett, who himself fought for world honors as a professional, insists they will not look to the Italian and wants his protégé to gain as much experience as possible before fighting for the world title.
“One step at a time,” Barrett added.
“Lyndon now has to defend his WBO Inter-Continental title, that’s what you do, you don’t look beyond something and look for something else.
“Once he learns how to defend his Inter-Continental, we will move on to the actual WBO world title because we don’t want to be left behind for a moment.
“So once we get some practice there, we’ll be ready to be world champions. So before you move on, you win other titles, you don’t skip over and say, “I’m ready to fight for the world title,” without being tested at British level.
“I don’t want to be at the top and then come down and start all over again.
“If we don’t win, we won’t win because we got into the ring with someone who was better than us, not because we didn’t have experience.”
In addition to training renowned professionals Arthur and Zelfa Barrett, as well as the next generation, Pat runs her own promotional company, Black Flash Promotions.
Miniature boxing hall, Black Flash Promotions have two upcoming shows on July 24 at the Victoria Warehouse in Manchester and July 30 at The Devonshire House Hotel in Liverpool, and the Manchester native is relishing the opportunity to return and raise the next generation.
“Black Flash Promotions is getting there pretty quickly and is getting the respect it deserves.
“I always want to stay a petite venue because I like the grassroots. I like to run them from the bottom and make sure they have a proper, solid background.
“The next generation of Zelfa and Lyndon is emerging right now.
“I also manage and promote kids where I don’t train them, and I enjoy that too because I give them a chance to do petite shows, get a solid platform, and everyone sees what it does.
“So the grassroots roots are starting to grow now.”
Watch the full interview with Pat Barrett below:
Natasha Jonas unified the welterweight division by defeating Ivana Habazin by clear points on Saturday to add the WBC title to her IBF crown at the Exhibition Center in Liverpool.
Jonas (16-2-1, 9 KO) was last seen defending her title in January in a hard-fought split decision over Mikaela Mayer, while Habazin (23-6, 7 KO) won the vacant WBC welterweight title in her home country. time out, winning by wide points over Kinga Magyar.
After a technical opening round, Jonas settled into a steady rhythm before landing a powerful right hand in the fourth round that crushed Habazin.
There was a rivalry, but the home favorite was much better in the rallies and seemed to be losing round after round.
This situation lasted until the final bell, when Jonas became the winner by scores of 100-90, 99-91 and 99-92.
Price is closing in on Jonas’ match
Lauren Price definitely stayed on as a collision course with Jonas and easily defended her WBA and IBO welterweight titles after a third-round fight against Bexcy Mateus.
Mateus (7-1, 6 KO) was on board in the first round, after the Welshman landed a powerful left hand, and the Colombian struggled to match Price’s speed.
The same shot caused the 29-year-old to repeat the punch in the second round, and the round later ended when another stinging left hand stunned Meteus and she fell to the canvas, after which the fight was stopped.
Price (8-0, 2 KO) has agreed to face Jonas next, and promoter Ben Shalom revealed it could be announced next week.
Knife edge passes McKenna
Lee Cutler scored an upset victory to claim the silver WBC International welterweight title after winning a majority decision against Stephen McKenna.
McKenna (15-1, 14 KO) was eliminated in the first round, his knee touching the canvas after being tagged, and Cutler (15-1, 7 KO) took full advantage of his opponent’s weakness in the seventh round when his right hand plunged into his knee. The Irishman who ultimately fell once again.
McKenna was relentless in his attacks and landed a huge number of punches.
The balance of 94-94 was surpassed by the scores of 95-93 and 96-92, which ensured the victory for Cutler.
Jeffers stopped Quartey
Mark Jeffers is on track for large fights in 2025 after defeating Joshua Quartey to defend his silver Commonwealth super middleweight title.
A pair of right hands put Quartey (10-1, 9 KO) on the board, and although he broke the count, a well-placed body shot after the restart by Jeffers (19-0, 6 KO) blew the guy away again.
A crazy attack after the restart forced a stoppage.
Riley secures Chamberlain’s face-off with a stoppage
Viddal Riley finished the heavyweight fight and stopped Dan Garber in the second of the scheduled six rounds.
Riley (12-0, 7 KO) hit Garber (7-4, 2 KO) with his right hand, and then his next attack forced the referee’s intervention.
Riley’s next match will be against Isaac Chamberlain on February 1.
Undercard remaining
Mason Cartwright (21-4-1, 8 KO) won all six rounds at super welterweight against Dzmitry Atrokhau (16-25, 7 KO), and Hope lightweight Frankie Stringer (9-0, 1 KO) did the same in the fight against Tatenda Mangombe (3-9-1).
In the flyweight division, Mikie Tallon (6-0) defeated Benn Norman (7-7) with a body shot in the first round of the match, and then settled for a 59-54 victory.
The only fighter to fight four rounds in the super featherweight division was Mason Devine (6-0, 1 KO), who won every session against Jayo Fernando Duran (15-34-1, 14 KO).
Dillian Whyte has revealed his predictions for the hotly anticipated rematch between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury on December 21.
Fury, who knocked out Whyte at Wembley Stadium in 2022, will seek revenge for the only defeat of his career in just 11 days, after losing to Usyk by split decision earlier this year.
Despite losing the night, “The Gypsy King” was a major success and many are struggling to pick a winner in his second battle against the imperious Ukrainian.
Some experts believe Fury needs to be more aggressive and take the lead if he is to win.
I’m talking to Social boxingWhyte revealed he shared that view, asking the Morecambe man to return to the game plan that saw him destroy Deontay Wilder in the return leg.
“It’s a great fight, man, I’m still trying to think – how will this fight go?
“Okay, Fury can make changes, but Usyk can make changes too. It’s a tough fight, a very, very tough fight for both fighters.
“If I were Fury’s coach, I would tell him he has to play aggressively.
“Fight him like you fought Wilder the second time.
“Bring back the aggression, bring back the tyrant!
“This is heavyweight boxing – you never know.”
It is unclear whether Fury will heed the advice of Whyte and others in the boxing world who have advised him to take the fight to Usyk, but looks noticeably heavier than before the first fight.
What are the changes? ❌@Tyson_Fury says he will exploit exactly the same game plan as the first time when he faces Oleksandr Usyk at the end of the month.
Thinks? 🧐 pic.twitter.com/VtpEwLJkWx
— Professional boxing fans (@ProBoxingFans) December 6, 2024
Win or lose, the 36-year-old could face a long-awaited home fight against Anthony Joshua, even though “A.J.” interrupted defeat against Daniel Dubois in September.
While it may not have been as great a spectacle as it once was, a clash between Joshua and Fury would still be by far the biggest all-British fight in recent memory.
As for Whyte, he returns to the ring next Sunday night and will face Ghanaian heavyweight Ebenezer Tetteh live on DAZN in Gibraltar.
The All-American fight between lightweight world champions Gervonta Davis and Shakur Stevenson is one of the most anticipated fights in all of boxing.
Both Davis and Stevenson are undefeated multi-weight champions and are staples on any respected pound-for-pound list.
With this in mind, you could be forgiven for assuming that the pair locking corners in their prime years is a given, but that doesn’t seem likely to happen in the near future.
“Tank” spoke to the media at the press conference inaugurating his performance March 1 fight with Lamont Roach, and when the prospect of fighting Stevenson arose, he didn’t seem particularly interested.
The Baltimore hitter even went so far as to question what his compatriot did to deserve him.
“What for? Who has Shakur [beat]? What did Shakur do?
“What has he achieved in sports? He didn’t do anything! Juvenile people look better than him!”
“Keyshawn [Davis] you look so much better than that nigga! Shout it out nigga, he ain’t done nothing!
I asked Gervonta about a possible fight with Shakur… #Box #TankRoach pic.twitter.com/T1eNFJ9iIO
— Dwa O Dwa Z.. (@Noo_Barzz) December 3, 2024
“Why the hell are you saying his name?”
Like Davis, Stevenson will also return to action in the first quarter of next year, fighting against up-and-comer Floyd Schofield on the February 22 Riyad season card.
The Newark southpaw has been sidelined since his July decision victory over Artem Harutyunyan after he had to withdraw from a proposed October fight with Joe Cordina due to injury.
Saudi boxing boss Turki Alalshikh has expressed his willingness to have a fight between the two virtuosos, provided both are successful in their upcoming fights.
‼️ His Excellency Turki Alalshikh stated that he wants the Gervonta Davis vs Shakur Stevenson fight: “My plan for Shakur is this fight [vs Floyd Schofield]then William Zepeda, and then let’s see if Tank wants to come on our show.” [@DAZNBoxing] pic.twitter.com/Mmi6hO7Fjo
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBenson) December 3, 2024
While he undoubtedly has the talent to rival Davis, Stevenson is not as commercial a star as his rival, and some critics believe he needs to start giving more entertaining performances if he wants to get substantial names.
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‘TYSON FURY SPARRING PARTNERS ARE NOT IN AWE!’ – Dev Sahni breaks down USYK REMATCH
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