Boxing

Murtazaliev warns Ennis after Lima explosion: ‘I am ready’

Published

1 year ago

October 12, 2025

Image: Negotiating Bakhram Murtazaliev vs. Vergil Ortiz Jr.: IBF Title Fight Hinges on Financial Agreement

Bakhram Murtazaliev responded on social media to Jaron “Boots” Ennis’ victory over Uisma Lima last Saturday night, saying: “I’m ready.”

Hearn’s target list keeps Bakhram waiting

IBF junior middleweight champion Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KO) is one of five names Ennis’ promoter Eddie Hearn wants to mention next in his fight. Hearn is taking aim at all champions, including interim belt holder Vergil Ortiz Jr.

Unfortunately for Bakhram, he is not the main target of “Boots” (35-0, 31 KO) and Hearn. They want Vergil Jr. (23-0, 21 KO) because he is better known, more popular and it would be a bigger pay-per-view fight. Moreover, it is probably easier than facing Murtazaliev, who had a terrible left hook that could have caused Ennis a lot of problems.

The Mute Shark Finally Speaks

I’m ready 😉

— Bakhram Murtazaliev (@bakhram95) October 12, 2025

No one wants Tszyu treated like this again

Murtazaliev’s inactivity may be a problem for him. He has not fought since a third-round knockout of former WBO junior middleweight champion Tim Tszyu on October 19, 2024. All the top fighters and their promoters showed no interest in fighting him after he reduced Tszyu to rubble.

As you might expect, Hearn and Ennis will save Murtazaliev for last, after they first fought these fighters and won belts at 154:

Vergil Ortiz Jr: WBC interim
Sebastian Fundora: WBC
Abass Baraou: WBA
Xander Zayas: WBO

Last night, “Boots” didn’t have to worry so much about getting hit, as he crushed the inexperienced Lima (14-2, 10 KO) in the first round after dropping him twice at the Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The ending came when Ennis hit Lima with a barrage of fire, prompting referee Shawn Clark to stop the fight at 1:58. Lima, 32, had no experience fighting top fighters in the 154-pound weight class.

The only fighter on Lima’s resume is Aaron McKenna, a middleweight who lost to him by a one-sided, 10-round unanimous decision two years ago on June 16, 2023. Hearn smartly chose Uisma as the ideal exhibition opponent for “Boots” to debut against at 154, rather than someone who could give him real fight.

This was a waste of time for Ennis and dampened fan reaction. If he had fought a better opponent than Lima, his popularity would have increased much more today than it did after defeating the losing, little-known Uisma Lima. This fight didn’t even look sporty.

Woods’ view: the fight Hearn doesn’t want yet

Hearn’s top two options – Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Sebastian Fundora for Ennis’ next fight – clearly show that he is not yet willing to test his fighter against IBF champion Murtazaliev.

It appears that Hearn wants to take his fighter slowly, in tiny steps, next fighting brawler Vergil Jr. and then Fundora.

So if Ennis beats these fighters and looks like pure gold, Hearn will roll the dice and compare him to the 154-pound boogeyman, Bakhram. This is a clever way to fit the “Boots”, but it will also snail-paced down its development, stunting its popularity and growth.

Is it possible that Hearn still remembers Ennis’ performance against Karen Chukhadzhian in the rematch last November, which caused him to put on the brakes to face unsafe striker Murtazaliev?

Ken Woods was a senior writer in Boxing News 24 since 2013, covering sports from every angle. With years of reporting from the ring, he delivers fight news, results and analysis that cuts through the noise. Ken’s work consistently focuses on champions, challengers and prospects, giving fans a piercing and informed view of the global boxing scene.

Last update: 12/10/2025

Boxing

Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley 2 Live Fight Scorecard and Results – Boxing News

Published

1 hour ago

October 17, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley 2 Live Fight Scorecard and Results - Boxing News"

Daniel Dubois and Fabio Wardley meet for the WBO heavyweight title this evening in their highly-anticipated rematch.

It was back in May when Wardley was making the first defence of his WBO crown against Dubois, in a fight that turned out to be one of the best of the entire year.

‘DDD’ was knocked down twice early on, but was able to recover from those setbacks to dominate the action and inflict plenty of punishment on his rival, leading to the 11th round stoppage win to wrestle the belt away from Wardley.

Just five months on, the pair will meet again after Wardley activated his rematch clause, as the Ipswich man bids to reclaim his title at the first attempt.

He has a difficult task on his hands though, with many backing Dubois to come out on top once moreand potentially move on to unification battles with the likes of Agit Kabayel and former foe Filip Hrgovic.

Stay with Boxing News for a live scorecard, for as long as the fight lasts, and the official result as the British heavyweight duo do battle once more.

Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley live scorecard

This is a Boxing News live scorecard and not the official score from the judges.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Total
Dubois	10	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	10
Wardley	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8

Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley fight result

Daniel Dubois TKO2.A destructive performance from Dubois. Back in May he had to recover from the first round knockdown, but this time around he returned the favour by dropping his rival early on and Wardley struggled to recover from that point onwards.

The Ipswich man managed to survive the opening round but it was more of the same in round two, with ‘DDD’ piling on even more pressure and landing a number of huge shots, forcing referee Steve Gray to jump in and stop the action, just as trainer Ben Davison was also throwing the towel in.

A huge statement from Dubois sent out to the rest of the banner division as he retains his WBO heavyweight title.

Boxing

Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley II: Start Time and Live Results

Published

4 hours ago

October 17, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley II: Start Time and Live Results"

Daniel Dubois defends his WBO heavyweight title against Fabio Wardley on Saturday, October 17, 2026, at The O2 Arena in London, with coverage starting at 7 p.m. BST / 2 p.m. ET and ring walks expected around 10:30 p.m. BST / 5:30 p.m. ET. The rematch airs on DAZN PPV for £24.99 in the UK and $59.99 in the US.

Updated Oct 17, 2026, 2:57 pm EDT

FIGHT DAY! Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley

Daniel Dubois

Fabio Wardley

Date: Saturday, October 17, 2026
Card starts: 12:30pm EDT / 5:30pm BST
Expected ring walks: 6:00 pm EDT / 11:00 pm BST
Scheduled distance: 12 rounds

Super featherweight Nelson Birchall (13-0, 10 KOs) handed Levi Giles (17-4-1) his first stoppage defeat with a seventh-round TKO. The unbeaten prospect’s quick, accurate punching wore down Giles over the scheduled ten-round contest. Giles maintained his effort, but Birchall landed the cleaner shots and increasingly took control. A fifth-round knockdown began a punishing stretch for Giles.

Birchall sent him to the canvas again in the sixth. Giles went down for a third time in the seventh, bringing the fight to an end. Birchall finished with three knockdowns in as many rounds to secure his tenth stoppage victory.

Tony Curtis (15-1, 4 KOs) captured the vacant Commonwealth International super flyweight title with a fourth-round TKO over Kerim Agius (4-2, 2 KOs).

Agius went down in the second and fourth rounds. Referee Sean McAvoy waved off the scheduled eight-round contest at 2:57 of round four.

Leighton Birchall (6-0, 3 KOs) earned a shutout points win over Alejandro Morales Chazaro (9-10-2, 5 KOs) in a featherweight bout. The six-round contest was scored 60-54 in Birchall’s favor.

Super bantamweight Manny Safari (1-0, 1 KO) stopped Jake Pollard (1-122, 1 KO) in the fifth round, marking his first professional appearance with a TKO victory.

Lightweight Fawas Aborode (3-0, 3 KOs) stopped Rashid Omar (8-10, 1 KO) in the fourth round. Aborode dictated the action and finished the contest inside the distance, maintaining his perfect knockout record.

Aaron Noriega (3-0) scored a fourth-round TKO over Leonardo Baez in their super featherweight bout. Noriega celebrated the victory in the ring wearing a Mexican-flag cap.

Middleweight Issiah Hamilton-Allen (4-0) earned a shutout points victory over Jensen Irving (6-41-2, 1 KO). The four-round bout ended with a 40-36 score in Hamilton-Allen’s favor.

Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley
WBO heavyweight title
Expected ring walks: 10:30 p.m. BST / 5:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. PT

Louie O’Doherty vs Michael Gomez Jr.
British and Commonwealth lightweight titles
Approximate start: 9:30 p.m. BST / 4:30 p.m. ET / 1:30 p.m. PT

Adam Olaniyan vs Garber
Approximate start: 9:10 p.m. BST / 4:10 p.m. ET / 1:10 p.m. PT

Bakhodir Jalolov vs Solomon Dacres
Heavyweight
Approximate start: 8:10 p.m. BST / 3:10 p.m. ET / 12:10 p.m. PT

Weights:

Dubois 253.9 vs Wardley 248.3
O’Doherty 134.12 vs Gomez Jr 134.3
Olaniyan 250.15 vs Garber 223.15
Jalolov 255.12 vs Dacres 242.9

Watch Daniel Dubois vs Fabio Wardley 2 on DAZN

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Boxing247.com is an independent boxing news publication covering the sport since 2001. It provides original reporting, fight analysis, schedules, results, and informed coverage of major fighters and events worldwide, backed by more than 25 years of professional boxing journalism.

Boxing

Sebastian Fundora vs Ermal Hadribeaj: Live Round-by-Round Updates and Results

Published

4 hours ago

October 17, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

Sebastian Fundora vs Ermal Hadribeaj: Live Round-by-Round Updates and Results

Sebastian Fundora will return to action tonight, defending his WBC super welterweight title against Ermal Hadribaj in a main event that will air live on TNT as well as stream on DAZN.

Fundora has staked his claim as the top dog at 154 lbs right now, though there are other, potentially tougher challenges than Hadribeaj, but the challenger has his chance tonight, and he’ll look to make it count.

UPDATE (2:35 pm ET): The fight between Brandon Figueroa and Tomoki Kameda has been officially canceled. Figueroa lost his WBA featherweight title on the scales yesterday, then fell ill overnight.

Wil Esco will lead the live coverage this evening, with live results and updates for the two main card undercard bouts, then round-by-round results and updates for the main event. Join us!