A newly-crowned world champion believes he has what it takes to follow in the footsteps of Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin by becoming the best middleweight fighter on the planet.

Canelo and Golovkin each ruled the 160lb division for a number of years, culminating in two middleweight battles between the pair and one at super-middleweight.

While ‘GGG’ may have last competed in 2022, Canelo remains active, but now fights at super-middleweight, opening the door for a fighter to step up and become the top dog in the middleweight division.

One man who believes he can do just that is Aaron McKenna, who won the vacant IBF middleweight title with a unanimous decision win over Etinosa Oliha in Dublin on Saturday.

Speaking to Sky Sports following that win, McKenna explained how he has ambitions to pick up where the likes of Canelo and Golovkin left off.

“It doesn’t matter [who’s next]whoever wants it. I’m easy to find now, I have a belt. There’s no hiding any more. I want to collect every single belt in boxing. I’m the best middleweight and super-middleweight in the world. I don’t mind jumping up.

“The middleweight division’s there to be took over. It’s been dying for years since GGG (Golovkin) and Canelo left it. I said it again, a year ago, I think I’m going to be the man to take it over.”

The other world champions at 160lbs may have a thing or two to say about McKenna’s plan, as Denzel Bentley is the current WBO champion, Carlos Adamas holds the WBC belt, and Erislandy Lara is the WBA titleholder.

LIVE COVERAGE

Aaron McKenna faces the biggest night of his career as the Irish contender battles Etinosa Oliha for the vacant IBF middleweight title in Dublin.

The all-action card also features Callum Walsh against Tyler Denny, Joseph Ward’s return at light heavyweight, and appearances from Stephen McKenna, Connor Coyle and Sam Hickey.

WBN provides live results, live scorecards from the two main bouts, and updates from every bout as they happen.

Live Scorecards

Aaron McKenna vs. Etinosa Oliha

Callum Walsh vs. Tyler Denny

Live Results

Times are local IST

18:31

Connor Coyle earned a hard-fought ten-round decision against Mark Beuke but was never in danger if losing on his Zuffw debut, before Stephen McKenna blasted Owen O’Neill out in one round soon after.

17:50

Patrick O’Connor remained undefeated at 4-0 with a TKO victory over Juan Manuel Moriel to kick the action off.

TV Coverage and Remaining Bouts

United States: Paramount+
United Kingdom: Sky Sports

• Aaron McKenna vs. Etinosa Oliha – Vacant IBF World Middleweight Title (12)
• Callum Walsh vs. Tyler Denny (10)
• Joseph Ward vs. Artjom Kasparian (10)
• Sam Hickey vs. Brad Axe (8)
• Louis Greene vs. Daniel Buciuc (6)

Preview

Aaron McKenna headlines in Dublin against Etinosa Oliha for the vacant IBF middleweight titlewhile fellow Irish star Callum Walsh steps up against Tyler Denny in the chief support.

Victory for both men would move them a step closer to a potential all-Irish world title showdown, a fight Dana White has already admitted is firmly on his radar.

About the Author

Phil Jay is the Editor-in-Chief of World Boxing News (WBN), a BWAA-acknowledged boxing news website founded in 2010. A veteran boxing reporter with 16 years of experience, he has interviewed world champions, broken international exclusives, and reported ringside from major events. His work is published worldwide through WBN and distributed on platforms including Apple News.

Read Phil Jay’s full bio and latest stories.

According to Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn, Murat Gassiev is currently in negotiations for hi first defence as sole WBA heavyweight champion.

The Russian, who holds the ‘regular’ belt with the sanctioning body, became a bona fide two-division world champion in June, with Oleksandr Usyk’s splintering of the belts meaning there no longer a ‘super’ champion.

Gassiev then ended up retaining his championship status last month, stopping late replacement Peter Kadiru in six rounds after Tony Yoka was forced to pull out of their contest with an injury.

Since then, the 32-year-old has expressed his interest in a unification match, hoping to replicate his success at 200lbs by merging two of the four major belts.

Before that, though, Gassiev may need to defend his strap against Jarrell Miller who, as per Hearn’s latest comments on the matter, is now being steered towards a WBA title shot.

This follows the WBA’s admission to mistakenly naming ‘Big Baby’ as its mandatory challengerdespite having Moses Itauma as the leading contender in its rankings.

With Itauma now facing Filip Hrgovic for the vacant IBF title, however, it could be that Miller will emerge as the sanctioning body’s mandatory challenger after all.

Either way, Hearn has told IFL TV that Gassiev must defend his title against the American.

“There’s a little bit of confusion with the WBA [belt]. Gassiev is the champion. He’s got to fight Jarrell Miller, our guy, which we’re negotiating at the moment.”

Given his previous failed doping tests, Miller remains a controversial fighter but is seemingly on the cusp of another major opportunity.