Mark Tibbs identified Alen Babic as Johnny Fisher’s next opponent after watching him spar.
The heavyweights will clash Saturday at the Copper Box Arena in London in what will be the 25-year-old Fisher’s biggest and most hard fight yet.
The Croatian Babic, like Fisher, built his reputation on participating in spectacular fights, usually organized by Matchroom, but Tibbs, Fisher’s trainer, knew about him even before his professional debut.
It was when Dillian Whyte – then working under Tibbs and in the process of putting together his best performances and recording his best wins – was preparing to fight Oscar Rivas in July 2019, that Babic was hired as a sparring partner and for the first time made an impression on the coach.
After getting a close look at Fisher and not being impressed by the list of opponents previously lined up against him on Saturday, Tibbs asked to match up his main contender with the 33-year-old Babić.
Babić was stopped in a round by Łukasz Różański in a low-profile bridge division in April 2023, but like Fisher, he remains undefeated at heavyweight and, Tibbs believes, is well-positioned to test Fisher because his alternative opponents lack ambition.
“I passed it on to Johnny,” the coach said. “I looked at the opponents they put up against me and those above him in the top ten in the UK – there are still battles going on between them.
“I was shown some Americans and I thought, ‘I don’t see any development if he gets rid of them; if he didn’t get rid of them, it wouldn’t look good.’ There were [Gerald] Washington; [Mariusz] Wah; among a few others and I just thought they wouldn’t be doing Johnny any favors.
“I just thought about that [Babic]. “I’ll give you a name. Think about it.” I left and the next thing I know, it’s over. If we execute our game plan in this fight, Johnny will be a bigger star than he already is.
“I like [Babic’s] fighting style. You don’t have to look for it. Looking at his last fights, for the fans, he would be a winner. You’re never protected when you have a guy who wants to fight; who wants to win; who came to win. But [Fisher’s] he just won the area title and he’s going to fight people who want to win; when they get punched in the face, come back. He’s a very proud man, Alen Babic. I know him very, very well.
“When he first came to the UK, Dillian hired him to spar when we fought Rivas. The day I picked him up I went to Nando’s with him. Lovely ancient chap – a real, lovely guy. A real fighter. Aged school. I didn’t want to mess with any S&C – I just wanted to fight. So I know him really well.
“This is not a walkover. We have to get the right tactics and we’re not going to underestimate him, but Johnny has what it takes to beat him.
“He just wants to go to war right away – he’s not afraid to go to war. He doesn’t care. He tore into Dillian in the first round. I said, “Hold on, hold on – we’re fighting in a few weeks.”[Dillian said] “No no. Let him go, Mark. Let him go, Mark.” That’s how it was. But he was wonderful, Alen. He was wonderful. “Serene down a little, Al – please.” He’s a wonderful character. He’s a fighter and he’s going to fight.”
Fisher was the winner of the recent Boxing Writers’ Club Newborn Fighter of the Year award. He is also a popular figure whose value lies largely in his ability to sell lots of tickets to fight nights, but he remains so unproven that the subject of his potential wrongdoing divides opinion.
“We can’t afford to make any mistakes,” Tibbs continued. “I’m for it. We’re for it. We can’t afford to make any mistakes. We don’t want to stop and we don’t want to let the British public down. They’re spending a lot of money – he’s selling a lot of tickets. We want to play the game and bring Johnny in – develop him. Develop his confidence and everything.
“[Babic is] wild swinger. A bit changeable. But I think it will be good for us.
“[Fisher’s] he has a huge heart. But it takes more than just the heart – there are levels. All we can do is polish him and make him sweet – serene him down a little, if at all. He does it. You saw him [stoppage of Dmytro Bezus in Las Vegas in February in his past] fight – excellent. A little wild in the first rounds; corrected him, and he did it immediately.
“Straighten your right arm up.” Gigantic swings. ‘What’s wrong with you?’ – Now bend it a little, but not too much. I like working with people like that – who listen and trust.
“I believe he can [reach the same level as Whyte]. He’s got the heart. The work ethic. We’ve got to keep coming back; keep fighting for that British title. If he wins that British title, the world is his oyster.”
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