Boxing
Andre Berto stops sullied boxing ahead of the April 10 DBX6 in Miami
Published
2 weeks agoon
Former two-division world champion Andre Berto believes Soiled Boxing’s hybrid ruleset was designed to ensure non-stop action.
The Soiled Boxing Championship returns on April 10 with DBX6 at the James L. Knight Center in Miami as an emerging hybrid format combining customary boxing striking with MMA-style fighting.
The concept, co-founded by Jon Jones and Mike Perry, began to attract attention in combat sports circles, combining a boxing attack with confined clinch work and controlled ground finishing intended to maintain the momentum of the fight.
As the organization prepares for its newest event, WBN spoke with Berto about how he first encountered Soiled Boxing and why the format immediately caught his attention.
Andre Berto on discovering Soiled Boxing
Berto, who took on the job of commentating Soiled Boxing’s January show, explained that his introduction to the promotion came through a close friend who became involved with the league as an investor.
“He was actually a really good friend of mine. He met with one of the co-founders of Soiled Boxing. He explained the whole concept to him, and this guy was a friend of mine and a gigantic investor, but he didn’t know much about the fight space. He just knew it was fresh and different, so he called me,” Berto told World Boxing News exclusively.
“He told me that he met the guy who started this fresh league and he wanted to meet me and him. I was in Miami, we had this meeting and he explained the whole concept to me and invited me to the next DBX event so I could see the concept in real life.
“I obviously know a lot about boxing, but I come from an MMA background. My family – my dad fought in the UFC and my brother and sister are gigantic MMA fighters – so I just wanted to see if what he was telling me would become a reality.
“So I finally went to my first event.”
Why Soiled Boxing is built to last
What caught Berto’s attention was the way the rules are structured to remove the slower moments that can sometimes make a fight complex in both boxing and mixed martial arts.
“I think it’s great. I think it’s frigid, fresh, fresh. I think the idea of taking away all the lifeless, stagnant parts of UFC and real boxing and creating your own kind of sport is pretty frigid.”
“It’s not as gruesome as a bare-knuckle fight because you’re wearing little gloves. It just puts you in full action. It’s a miniature ring, no grappling. You can fight on your feet, you can grab, you can clinch, you can put your elbows up.”
“If you knock someone down, you can finish them off, but you only have five or six seconds to finish them off or they’ll put you back on your feet.
“So he’s geared towards non-stop action. That’s why I think they’ve had so many amazing knockouts.”
Could boxers have an advantage?
A hybrid ruleset naturally raises questions about which players can benefit most from this format.
According to Berto, experienced boxers could maintain a natural advantage given how much of the action takes place on the feet.
“Maybe a little bit, because honestly, I think if you’re a very good boxer, you can definitely have an advantage.
“Because, like I said, it’s all on your feet – no grabbing, no holding. The only thing that’s different is you can throw elbows in the clinch.
“And sometimes we boxers, when we’re in training camps or even during fights, we may feel like throwing an elbow, but we can’t. So I don’t think it’s too far from the principles of boxing.”
The DBX6 will arrive in Miami on April 10
The next Soiled Boxing Championship event will take place on April 10 at the James L. Knight Center in Miami and will be broadcast live and free on the promotion’s YouTube channel.
The main attraction of the event will be a clash for the interim heavyweight title between undefeated DBX fighters, Michael Garcia and Rob “The Wolf” Perez.
In the co-main event, Montavious Ware will face Luis Saldana, and on the main card, Miami fan favorite Bryan “El Gallo” Duran will face Tristan Gallichan.
Berto expects Perez to bring plenty of personality to the main event.
“I don’t know much about the other guy, but I’ve seen Wolf fight and I hear he talks a lot of trash and gets under his opponent’s skin quite well.
“But my assessment of Wolf the last time I saw him – I mean, he had a devastating knockout that night. I know that just from his presence and his energy.”
“The DM keeps telling me, ‘I hope you come to this fight. I’m going to kill him, I’m going to kill him.’
“So I think he’s going to go out there and really try to put on a show. He’s very expressive. He wants that attention. He wants people to know that he’s going to be the next star of DBX.”
About the Author
Phil Jay is the editor-in-chief of World Boxing News (WBN) and a boxing veteran with over 15 years of experience. Read the full biography.
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Boxing
Gervonta Davis accused of avoiding undefeated rival: ‘He said he would never fight’
Published
31 minutes agoon
April 23, 2026
Gervonta Davis’ return appears imminent, but it’s unclear whether the now-hiatus WBA lightweight champion will fight at 135 pounds, and the team of his expected lightweight opponent says “Tank” is avoiding them.
Davis, a three-division champion, has held the WBA title since delayed 2023 and defended it twice, defeating Frank Martin and then drawing with Lamont Roach Jr during his last trip, over a year ago.
However, in January, Davis lost his champion status and was instead named halftime champion, meaning he will likely get a chance to regain the belt after his first fight at 135 pounds.
Although despite rumors that the Baltimore-born knockout puncher will fight at super lightweight and face Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz upon his return, no modern lightweight champion has yet been crowned or a free-for-all title fight ordered.
Floyd Schofield is currently the man to benefit from this situation, but his team is growing increasingly frustrated with the slowness of the process as they wait to be promoted to champion or ordered to fight for the title – against Davis or an alternative challenger.
I’m talking to Boxing in Mill City“Kid Austin”‘s father and trainer, Floyd Schofield Snr, expressed his belief that Davis was avoiding his son and revealed plans to fight for the “Tank” title against a slimmed-down version.
“You need to drop the belt! They’re breaking the law now, federal law. Do I think ‘Kid’ is ready for ‘Tank’?” “The Kid” is ready for them all. There’s a reason why Tank said, “I’ll never get in the ring with that kid. There’s a reason his trainer went online and said Tank will never get in the ring with him.”
“Tank said it out of his own mouth and Tank’s trainer said it on the internet in an interview and said that ‘The reason Tank said it is because he looks at him like an older brother.’ The thing is, Tank can’t go down to 135 and fight Kid, Tank would be at a disadvantage.”
“We want to suck him arid and fight him at 135 pounds, that’s the biggest advantage we have right now. If we let Tank get used to it, he would be on fire, and we let Tank get used to that weight? No!”
“He weighs around 175 pounds now, he needs to get down to 135 pounds and get ready to get in the ring to fight, and the WBA will just do it.” [rehydration clause] where it can only go up to 152 pounds.
Negotiations for Davis-Cruz II are believed to be ongoing, and once confirmation is announced, the WBA will likely make its own announcement regarding the modern lightweight champion.
Boxing
Jermell Charlo is negotiating a fight with Sebastian Fundora
Published
3 hours agoon
April 23, 2026
He also claimed that future options are already planned for Tim Tszyu and Errol Spence Jr.
“We are talking to Tim Tszyu and Errol Spence. All three have agreed to fight me.”
This is an ambitious statement from a fighter who has not competed since his defeat to Canelo Alvarez in 2023. Charlo turns 36 on May 19, and many fans believe the long break should mean tuning in or fighting a challenger first rather than immediately fighting for the champion. Charlo, however, made it clear that he still sees himself as the best man in the division.
The problem is that Jermell is essentially trying to cash his 2022 check in a completely different economy. PPV prices on PBC have increased to over $75, and asking fans to pay that for a guy who hasn’t won a fight since May 2022 is tough. This is a financial risk for promoters.
Jermell is used to unquestioned ‘money. If he’s asking for a huge guaranteed amount to fight Fundora or Ennis, the math just doesn’t work for the promoter unless the bid is above $150 or $200,000.
In boxing, three years is an eternity. Since Jermell stayed noiseless, we’ve seen the rise of Xander Zayas and the emergence of “Boots” Ennis at 154.
“I told you I was coming back. I told you I wanted my stripes,” Charlo said. “Nobody beat me by the belt.”
Promoters aren’t calling because Jermell’s confidence is currently low. If the promoter puts him in the main event and he looks like the version of himself that did or didn’t show up in the Canelo Alvarez match, the event is a disaster. Financially, it could still be a disaster.
Jermell wants the reward of a champion without the upgrade tax that every other veteran has to pay after a long layoff. With 2026 filled with newborn, hungry and busy talent, thinking that you can simply move to the front of the queue because of what you did four years ago is definitely a bold choice.
If Jermell had just gone for it and beaten some of the top 154 fighters like Israil Madrimov, Bakhram Murtazaliev and Brandon Adams, it wouldn’t have been much of a problem.
Dan Ambrose is a boxing journalist at Boxing News 24, respected for his direct analysis and extensive coverage of the global fight landscape. His reports focus on the most vital fights, division development and the most discussed stories in sports.
Boxing
David Benavidez Says One Man ‘Must Face Him’ After Zurdo Ramirez: ‘I’m Taking All His Belts’
Published
5 hours agoon
April 23, 2026
David Benavidez will fight for Gilberto Ramirez’s unified cruiserweight crown this weekend and if he passes this test, there will only be one person in the “Mexican Monster”.
Benavidez has established himself as one of the most fan-friendly fighters in sports, not only thanks to his fascinating fighting style, but also thanks to his mentality that allows him to face all opponents and take on the toughest challenges.
Reigning at both super middleweight and lightweight heavyweight, the reigning WBC 175-pound champion now moves up to cruiserweight, hoping to hand “Zurdo” Ramirez his second career defeat in what will be the titleholder’s 50th career appearance.
The only other man to defeat Ramirez is unified light heavyweight ruler Dmitry Bivoland v interview with Ariel HelwaniBenavidez made it clear that he intended to return to lightweight heavyweight and then face the Russian.
“I don’t want it to look like he’s scared or nothing, but he knows what it’s like when it comes to David Benavidez. He saw me up close and I saw him up close too.
“He’s a great fighter, we had some great sparring sessions, but he knows I’m not coming to play. He knows that when David Benavidez steps into the ring, all those belts go with David Benavidez.
“I think he knows the dangers and seriousness of this fight and that’s why he took the preparatory fight first. I respect Dmitry Bivol, he’s a great fighter, but he will definitely have to come to me after this fight.”
While Benavidez will fight next weekend, Bivol will make a mandatory defense of his titles against German Michael Eifert on Saturday, May 23, which will be his first fight on home soil since 2021.
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