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Dana White intensifies the clash with Eddie Hearn after Ajagba’s knockout

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Image: Shortened Careers and Limited Competition: The Hidden Risks of Dana White's UFC-Style Boxing League

Ajagba’s right hand did the trick in the ring. White held his own outside of it and ended the evening challenging the belt system in boxing.

Eddie Hearn called out Zuffa’s decision to stage the Jai Opetaia vs. Brandon Glanton’s Zuffa cruiserweight title fight as “pathetic,” wondering why anyone would dare step outside the comforting arms of the Alphabet Committees and their sanctioning fees. White, unsurprisingly, did not reach for a softer tone.

“I saw Eddie Hearn saying the belt was tacky and all that,” White said. “I don’t think anyone would look at Eddie Hearn and say, ‘oh, this guy is a visionary’… This guy has been in boxing forever.

“I look at him like most politicians do; you’ve done nothing in this sport except stay in your lane, follow all the rules and drive straight… You became part of the problem, that’s what happened.”

“I don’t want to sit here and bash Eddie Hearn or anything, but Eddie Hearn works for his dad. I don’t think he came in and ever had any vision, whereas we do. We’re going to change the whole sport.”

“This sport has been around for over 100 years and there are a lot of guys doing it. There is a lot of money in this sport. Eddie Hearn and his dad have a lot of money. It’s not that they can’t compete. They can’t compete because they don’t know how to compete. There’s no vision there.”

It was a warm-up.

White expanded it to include Oscar De La Hoya and the sanctioning crowd.

“They don’t stop talking, WBC, Eddie Hearn and all that Oscar De La Hoya shit,” White said. “We all know [De La Hoya is] fg mentally ill. The guy talks such nonsense and his company is in danger of being taken over. He sues his player to try to stay with him. Has he done Clapback Thursday lately? I would love to see this Thursday’s episode of Clapback Thursday directed by Oscar De La Hoya. Everyone feels it. It’s already happening. It’s going to be a fun year.”

The WBC also caught one.

“I said what I was going to do. I never said anything bad about the WBC, the IBF or any of them. I just said I wouldn’t do business with them. I’ll do my thing.”

He then set his sights on Mauricio Sulaiman.

“We’re three fights in and people are asking all these questions, and this Sulaimán is amazing,” White said. “He’s amazing. He’s the best PR guy in the history of how fucked up boxing is. He’s amazing.”

“At the end of the day, you should be the experts on what’s going on,” White said. “Like I said, I’m going to lay out the scope of work this year and then you can judge me based on how it goes. Everyone knows this thing has been broken for a long time.

Get rid of the insults, it’s about who holds the pen. Alphabet services run rankings, issue fines and stamp seat belts after inspections. Promoters operate within this system, lining up their fighters, protecting positions, and paying for the privilege of moving one place at a time.

White is not interested in waiting for a call from the commission. He wants to have a board in his office, rankings on paper and a strip with a logo instead of three letters.

In boxing, a belt has value when a fighter has to earn it the challenging way, through eliminators, against other top heavyweights who can hit back. Delete this path and you will have a nice photo and a recent graphics pack.

White made it clear that he preferred to write his own rankings and appoint his own principals. Next year will show whether his heavyweights are making their way through real elimination fights against major boxers or just trading leather in a closed shop with a different logo on their belt.

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Roy Jones Jr sums up Tyson Fury’s chances of beating top-ranked Lennox Lewis

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Roy Jones Jr sums up Tyson Fury’s chances of beating a prime Lennox Lewis

Britain has produced some great heavyweights in recent years, ending an almost century-long curse and seeing success in the division ever since. Predicting the outcome of the clash between two of the best fighters in the country, Lennox Lewis and Tyson Fury, Roy Jones Jr said it would be a “great fight”.

Bob Fitzsimmons became the first British world heavyweight champion in 1897, and he and Jones remain the only two fighters in boxing history to have won both middleweight and heavyweight world titles.

However, Great Britain struggled for success in the division after the Fitzsimmons fight, unable to claim heavyweight supremacy until Lennox Lewis became WBC world champion in 1992. Britain has since crowned its title 11th world heavyweight championFabio Wardley, who follows in the footsteps of Fury and Anthony Joshua.

In an interview with Grosvenor CasinoJones said he would give Lewis an advantage over the “Gypsy King” if they met in their prime.

“Tyson Fury vs. Lennox Lewis? That would be a great fight, but my first thought was Lennox Lewis because of his power. But my second thought was also that Tyson Fury was great at making adjustments. I would go with Lennox Lewis.”

At least one heavyweight world title is expected to remain in a Briton’s hands for some time, with Daniel Dubois scheduled to face another Briton, Fabio Wardley, for the WBO belt next month.

In the meantime, we hope 21-year-old Moses Itauma can continue Britain’s success for many years to come, with the youngster considered by many to be the hottest prospect in boxing.

As for Fury, he is focused on the UK-wide megafight with Joshua – their own ‘Battle of Britain’ after Lennox fought Frank Bruno in 1993.

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Jermell Charlo says Derrick James has changed with fame

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Image: Jermell Charlo says Derrick James changed as success grew

“Derrick James, he started getting a little more players and a little more buzz, and I feel like our communication has changed,” Charlo told Brian Custer.

Charlo said that as James built a larger stable, there was less hands-on time spent with him and more trying to control the gym environment. He claimed that James wanted things done his way, including telling players to remove dogs from the gym during training sessions and changing the atmosphere that helped build their success.

Charlo has been out of the ring since his loss to Saul Alvarez in 2023, and James recently split from Errol Spence Jr. A coach once considered one of the safest hands in the sport is suddenly facing public criticism from two of his biggest names.

“He wanted it his way,” Charlo said. “Coach needs us. Don’t overdo it, coach. Serene down, coach. I was your first champion.”

He also pointed to his camp leading up to the Alvarez fight, saying the support around him wasn’t the same when he needed it most.

“You don’t enter into a world title fight like that,” Charlo said.

Charlo still believes he can regain his spot in the junior middleweight division, and talks about a possible fight with Sebastian Fundora are ongoing later this year. His confidence hasn’t changed, but his patience with ancient alliances has noticeably changed. Sometimes a rift begins when success changes the room.

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Prince Naseem Hamed predicts Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua fight: ‘It’s going to sound crazy’

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Prince Naseem Hamed predicts Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua: “This is going to sound mad”

Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua look set to face each other later this year in what could be one of the biggest British boxing events of all time.

Another British legend, Naseem Hamed, presented the course of the fight in a surprising way.

Fury had his ring returned within a a decision victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov earlier this monthshaking off ring rust at the age of 37 and allegedly preparing for a showdown with Joshua that the “Gypsy King” was set to take place this summer.

However, ‘AJ’ instead maintained that he would prefer a warm-up fight first, with the Londoner expected to return to action in July, ahead of a long-awaited meeting with his arch-rival in November.

I’m talking to talkSPORT BoxingHamed was looking forward to this match and suggested that a draw could be on the cards.

“Who do I think will win the fight between AJ and Fury? Well, that is the question and everyone wants to know.

“Years ago, Tyson had this awkward style for me where he could make AJ look stupid, that’s true. Now everything has changed. Tyson seemed to have backed off a little bit.

“But with Tyson Fury you never know, maybe one night he’ll show up and box amazingly and do what he did to Wilder. Those first few rounds [against Makhmudov]I was a little disappointed that he didn’t go from the start.

“This is going to sound crazy to you, but would it be unbelievable if I said it could be a draw?”

It is unclear whether Fury will also fight in the summer or whether he will avoid risking a lucrative romance with Joshua and wait patiently on the sidelines.

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