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Royston Barney-Smith wants to win the world title in 2027

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Barney-Smith is one of Queensberry's brightest young prospects (photo: Frank Warren X)

Royston Barney-Smith is hoping to fight for the world title in 2027 before his next test against Conor McIntosh.

Barney-Smith’s fight with McIntosh for the vacant British and Commonwealth super featherweight titles will be his first since claiming victory on the undercard in October Fabio Wardley won against Joseph Parker.

He faced WBO European super featherweight champion Danny Quartermaine, who was undefeated before the fight, his only disadvantage being a draw with Jack Bateson after a cut.

Barney-Smith is one of Queensberry’s brightest adolescent prospects (photo: Frank Warren X)

Barney-Smith handled the fight with ease, winning most of the rounds handily, with the judges’ scorecards reading 98-90 and 100-88 in the remaining two.

The 22-year-old shared his thoughts on the fight and I honestly told how challenging it was.

“I prepared for a much tougher fight than what it was,” Barney-Smith told proboxing-fans.com.

“If I hadn’t prepared the way I did, it wouldn’t have made it this far.”

Barney-Smith will face McIntosh on the undercard of Friday’s rematch between Nathaniel Collins and Cristobal Lorente in Glasgow.

“I feel good, I’m a bit skinny, but I can’t complain.

“I expect everything and more, but at the same time I know that I have prepared as best as I could.”

The athlete from Dorset wants to fight for the world title in 2027 and dreams of fighting in America.

“St Mary’s Football Stadium or MGM [Grand in Las Vegas].

“I would like to become British, Commonwealth and European champion and early next year I would like to fight in an eliminator or for the full world title.”

The rising super featherweight was a standout amateur before turning professional and revealing some of his most notable achievements.

Barney Smith has been impressive since the photo was uploaded. Photo credit: Mikey Williams/Top Rank via Getty Images
Barney Smith has been impressive since the photo was uploaded. Photo credit: Mikey Williams/Top Rank via Getty Images

“I won two European gold medals, a European bronze medal, fought 28 international fights for England and won 27 of them.

“It’s really almost like a racehorse, right from the start you want to push and go all the way, but you need a jockey to hold him back and tell him when to go.

“This is where your coaches and promoter have to hold you back.

“Every boxer wants to go as swift as possible. They [promoters] discover the full scope of what you can do and they will nurture your talent until you achieve it.

“It’s challenging, but at the same time I’m grateful.”

The post Royston Barney-Smith wants to win the world title in 2027 appeared first on ProBoxing-Fans.com.

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UK Boxing

Five experts predict that the result of the Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois match will be chosen as the “overwhelming favourite”.

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On Saturday, Fabio Wardley will face Daniel Dubois in an action-packed title clash (Photo: Getty)

Fabio Wardley’s heavyweight bout with Daniel Dubois promises to be one of the most anticipated fights in recent British boxing history. In the latest installment of delicious heavyweight drama, Wardley puts his WBO belt on the line for the first time against former WBA and IBF champion Dubois on Saturday at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester.

With 41 knockout victories under his belt, fans are guaranteed a thrilling spectacle featuring two of Britain’s best heavyweights. Undefeated in professional rings, 31-year-old Wardley was the last to enter the ring and won after a break over Joseph Parker. The 29-year-old Dubois will be desperate to get back to winning ways after a devastating knockout defeat to Oleksandr Usyk last July. Both men possess tremendous striking power, leaving many experts sharply divided as to who will emerge victorious on the night.

Carl Froch-Dubois

Carl Froch cannot forget Dubois’ devastating knockout record, even though Wardley has won by stoppage in all but one of his 21 fights. The former super middleweight world champion explained: “This could be the one where he [Wardley] learns what professional boxing is all about because Daniel Dubois, if he’s firing on all cylinders and enjoys the job, can really do some damage and knock out Fabio Wardley badly.

“But Fabio Wardley has knocked out most of his opponents, he has never done it himself. I want to say that on paper it is a 50/50 fight, but in reality you have to make Daniel Dubois the favorite, and a pretty forceful favorite at that.”

Plush Atlas – Wardley

Teddy Atlas has stressed the importance of mental strength in the All-British clash, insisting that Wardley has the advantage in this regard thanks to his impressive run of victories. Recognizing Dubois’ greater skills and experience in the ring, the renowned boxing coach and commentator refused to underestimate the Ipswich-born fighter.

I’m talking about his Fight Channel on YouTubeAtlas said: “Mental attitude is always critical. Where is the guy’s mentality? 75% of it is mentality. That advantage now has to go to Wardley, who just won the heavyweight title, is undefeated, and Dubois is coming off a knockout loss to Usyk.”

“So mentally you have to have an advantage over Wardley, but Dubois has been here before. Dubois is much more experienced and I don’t mean [just] as for the pros, I mean he had amateur experience. What makes Wardley so unusual and what makes his story so extraordinary is the fact that he did not compete in amateur fights.

“It’s a very captivating fight, I’m going to fight the under [8.5 rounds]. I think Dubois has a chance to win this fight, I really do, but I won’t fight Wardley, not if he’s going to the magic carpet.”

Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois open training

Fabio Wardley defends his WBO title for the first time in a fight against Daniel Dubois (Photo: Getty)

Tony Bellew-Wardley

Tony Bellew hedged his bets by predicting this weekend’s fight. Given Dubois’ impressive tally of 21 knockout wins, Liverpool-born Bellew insisted Wardley must weather his opponent’s early storm if he is to have any chance of victory.

He claimed that if Wardley managed to drag the fight beyond the first four rounds, only he could claim victory. “Once three or four rounds go by, it will probably only go one way,” the 43-year-old said Fight in your corner.

“But for the first three or four rounds, Fabio may be in trouble. He needs to land a punch on Daniel Dubois in the first few minutes of the fight. Daniel Dubois is a bully when it comes to boxing, and bullies don’t do well when it starts going against them. As a top-level fighter, Daniel Dubois is a problem.

“So you’ve got to give him a strenuous time in the first few minutes and start losing confidence, because if you give him any confidence you’re going to get into trouble. Only Wardley can win at the end.”

Johnny Nelson-Dubois

Johnny Nelson was full of praise for Wardley’s skills in the ring and admitted that the fight would be extremely close, although he ultimately tipped Dubois to take the spoils. – said the former cruiserweight champion Boxing RS: “It’s a challenging one, I would lean towards Daniel Dubois, but Fabio Wardley is a very clever player.

“He’s a fighter who knows how to deal with challenging moments, challenging moments, challenging moments. It’s a choice, it’s going to be a crazy fight, either way. I’ll tell Daniel right now [will win]But tomorrow I may change my mind.”

Josh Taylor-Dubois

Josh Taylor was initially hesitant to pick a winner, but pointed to Dubois’ dominance over Wardley’s former opponent Justis Huni as his reason for backing the former world champion to win on Saturday.

Narrated by a retired Scottish boxer Sun: “I don’t know, Fabio had a strenuous time with Huni, I think he really had a strenuous time. Daniel Dubois is a little bit bigger than Huni and also bigger and stronger. So I would move a little bit towards Dubois.”

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UK Boxing

“Not Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury or Daniel Dubois – he’s the one who packs the hardest punch.”

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Heavyweight boxer Kevin Johnson has proven himself against some of the most recognizable names in boxing during his long career. The 46-year-old American has previously fought Anthony Joshua for the WBC international heavyweight title and has also lost to Tyson Fury and Daniel Dubois on British soil, but he overlooked all three when it came to deciding who he thought had the strongest punch.

This honor did not even go to Vitali Klitschko, who in 2009 handed Johnson the first defeat of his career in a title fight. Instead, it’s Australian player Alex Leapai who nods to all these household names. “Alex Leapai is the physically strongest boxer I have ever met in my life,” Johnson told Russian newspaper Sport Express. “Not just in fighting – then I came back to Australia, lived there for a while and we sparred every day. He’s powerful.” The rating is consistent with what Johnson previously told iFL TV. “The worst punch I ever felt was Alex Leapai. And don’t f**k me, he was stronger than Vitali,” he said.

Johnson and Leapai met in the ring in Brisbane in 2012, with the former winning by TKO. At the time, Johnson had not been stopped by an opponent in nearly 30 fights, a record until his TKO loss to Joshua in 2015.

Leapai won 32 of his 44 career fights, including 26 by knockout. He failed to win the world title against Wladimir Kiltschko in 2014, and his last fight ended in defeat against Joseph Parker in 2019.

Johnson retired from boxing after his loss to Joshua, but returned to the ring in 2017. The American had already lost to Fury by unanimous decision in 2012, and his loss to Dubois came after his return.

Dubois, who will face Fabio Wardley this weekend, was just 21 at the time of the clash in Leicester but won on points, handing over to Johnson for what was then his third defeat in the series. The Greenwich-born fighter is now 22-3 in his career, with 21 of his wins – including against Joshua in 2024 – coming by knockout.

However, there were some doubts as promoter Eddie Hearn suggested that Joshua’s defeat to Kristian Prenga could prompt a change of plans. “There is no doubt and this is the risk we are taking,” he said.

“We know it’s perilous, but if you can’t beat this guy then you don’t really deserve to fight Tyson Fury. I think in AJ’s case it’s a fair assessment and he understands that too.”

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Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois – weigh-in results

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Fabio Wardley will defend his WBO heavyweight title against Daniel Dubois on Saturday in Manchester live on DAZN on pay-per-view. Photo: Queensberry/Leigh Dawney

Fabio Wardley was lighter than Daniel Dubois, who stepped on the scale at the highest weight of his career.

Wardley will defend his WBO heavyweight title against Dubois on Saturday at the Co-op Live Arena, live on DAZN.

Wardley tipped the scales at 242.2 pounds, just under half a pound less than his last victory over Joseph Parker, when he entered the competition at 242.7 pounds; in the fight with Parker he was lower, as he will be on Saturday.

Dubois weighed 251.7 pounds, the most of his career; “DDD” had his last fight against Oleksandr Usyk weighing in at 243.8 pounds, so the weight enhance is clearly intentional.

TalkSport’s Simon Jordan covered the pair’s latest clash on DAZN’s recent fight week format, ‘The Cauldron’.

Both men pursed their lips, saying, “The call is over,” waiting for the first bell to ring, which could be expected in less than 24 hours.

Wardley is defending his world heavyweight title for the first time after being promoted from interim champion in November.

Fabio Wardley will defend his WBO heavyweight title against Daniel Dubois on Saturday in Manchester live on DAZN on pay-per-view. Photo: Queensberry/Leigh Dawney

The undefeated Ipswich fighter stopped former world champion Joseph Parker in the 11th round in his last appearance in October.

Dubois looks like a two-time world heavyweight champion who previously held the IBF crown.

The 28-year-old will enter the All-British fight following a fifth-round knockout defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in July last year.

With a knockout rate of 95% in each case, few expect Saturday’s fight to be a long one, and a defiant Dubois predicted a knockout victory.

“I’m going to eliminate him,” the 28-year-old said Sky Sports News.

“Put him to sleep, take this belt.

“I’m just going to fight like I fight, and what I do is cause damage and cause pain.

“That’s all I’m going to do.

“He was a decent fighter, but I will show that it is at a certain level.

“But he behaved decently, you can’t take anything away from him.

“Just watch and see. I will show up.

“I’m motivated, really motivated.

“I came back from being champion and I’m going to try to be champion again, so I’m ready for it.”

Wardley and Dubois face to face ahead of Saturday's world title clash Photo: Queensberry/Leigh Dawney
Wardley and Dubois face to face ahead of Saturday’s world title clash Photo: Queensberry/Leigh Dawney

Wardley is as confident as his rival and has warned him against getting into a shootout with him.

“If he wants to commit and get stuck in, in my case I don’t think it will last long,” the 31-year-old told Pro Boxing Fans after Thursday’s final press conference.

– This won’t work in his favor.

“But from the sounds of it, his team has no plans to do that.

“I think they’re trying to stay away from me.”

Undercard scales

David Morrell vs Zak Chelli – delicate heavyweight – 10 rounds

  • David Morrell – 176.1 pounds
  • Zak Chelli – 177.1 pounds

Jack Rafferty vs Ekow Essuman – welterweight – 10 rounds

  • Jack Rafferty – 146.9 pounds
  • Ekow Essuman – 146.7 lbs

Liam Cameron vs. Bradley Rea – delicate heavyweight – 10 rounds

  • Liam Cameron – 174.4 pounds
  • Bradley Rhea – 173.11 pounds

Bakhodir Jalolov vs Argon Smakici – heavyweight – 10 rounds

  • Bakhodir Yalolov – 254.9 lbs
  • Argon Smakici – 241 lbs

Khaleel Majid vs Gavin Gwynne – super lightweight – 10 rounds

  • Khaleel Majid – 139.7 lbs
  • Gavin Gwynne – 139.7 pounds

The post Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois – weigh-in results appeared first on ProBoxing-Fans.com.

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