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Eddie Hearn Predicts Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn: Hes a Big Puncher

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Eddie Hearn Predicts Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn: "He's a Big Puncher"

Eddie Hearn has questioned the power and durability of one man as Ryan Garcia vs Conor Benn is officially announced.

The pair will collide at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on September 12, heading a co-promotion between Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy and Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing.

Their welterweight showdown had, of course, been rumoured for quite some time, with an announcement earlier this week finally confirming Garcia’s WBC title defence.

The 27-year-old claimed his belt by dethroning Mario Barrios with a unanimous decision victory in February, which followed his largely unexpected points defeat to Rolando Romero in May 2025.

But despite his previous setbacks, Garcia is now widely considered to be a world-level fighter while Benn, on the other hand, is yet to prove his top-class credentials.

In fact, the 29-year-old’s most significant victories have all arrived against fighters on the brink of retirement, including Chris Eubank Jr and Regis Prograis.

Not only that, but Benn has fought above 147lbs since his second-round finish over Chris van Heerden – another carefully selected opponent – in 2022.

It is, therefore, partly for this reason that Matchroom promoter Hearn has expressed doubt over Benn’s chances in an interview with K.O. Artist Sports.

“It’s an exciting fight for boxing. I don’t like Conor at 147[lbs]; I don’t believe he should be fighting down there.

“He had those two fights with Eubank at 160[lbs]. I’m not saying he’s a middleweight, [but then] he fought Regis Prograis at 150[lbs]. He looked terrible in that fight.

“[Making 147lbs should be] brutal for him now. He trains so hard, but I don’t think he has power down there. I don’t think he’ll have the chin down there.

“And Ryan’s a world-class fighter. He’s very sharp and is a big puncher. But it’ll be fun because Conor’s got big balls – he’ll have a right go.”

While Hearn is likely expressing his true belief, it is equally important to consider his public fallout with Benn, who left Matchroom for Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing earlier this year.

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Former Heavyweight Champion Makes Comeback at 53, Ready to Face Any Challenge After Defeating Lennox Lewis

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"Former Heavyweight Champion Makes Comeback at 53, Ready to Face Any Challenge After Defeating Lennox Lewis"

Hasim Rahman is willing to compete with the world’s top operators as he bids to break George Foreman’s record and become the oldest heavyweight champion in history.

Should he succeed in doing so, the 53-year-old would also trump the record of Bernard Hopkins, who was 49 when he reigned as boxing’s oldest-ever world champion.

Before attempting to tackle this challenge, though, Rahman must first end over 12 years of inactivity and complete his comeback assignment on September 24.

Standing in the opposite corner will be Phillip Triantafillo, who, with a record of 4-4, is certainly no world-beater and would be the first to admit his limitations.

Nevertheless, he is the man tasked with scuppering Rahman’s title ambitions in Indiana, where both men have agreed to collide in a scheduled six-round contest.

In his last professional outing, Rahman lost a three-round unanimous decision to little-known Australian Anthony Nansen and, prior to that, was stopped in two rounds by Alexander Povetkin.

As he looks to eventually secure a world title shot, however, the American has told Abrams Boxing that he is prepared to face any heavyweight in the sport.

“Any time I can make history I’m interested in doing it. It don’t really matter who’s on the other side [of the ring]. It could be any heavyweight in the world – any of them. I feel like I’m capable of getting in there with anybody in the world.

I’m punching like a 25-year-old and out working young guys in the gym. I’m ready for whatever and whoever, this is just step one.”

Known for his almighty upset victory over Lennox Lewiswho he stopped in five rounds before suffering a fourth-round stoppage defeat in their immediate rematchRahman went on to cement his legacy as a two-time world champion.

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John Hedges vs Pat Brown Fight Results and Scorecard Analysis

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John Hedges vs Pat Brown Fight Results and Scorecard Analysis

World Boxing News provides results and a round-by-round scorecard as unbeaten cruiserweights Pat Brown and John Hedges collide at Manchester’s Co-op Live tonight.

Brown enters the biggest fight of his six-bout professional career against the more experienced Hedges, with both men putting their undefeated records on the line.

The British, Commonwealth, WBA International and IBF Intercontinental cruiserweight titles are at stake in the 12-round main event.

WBN will provide live updates and a live scorecard for the main event from Co-op Live throughout the evening.


Hedges vs Brown Live Scorecard

Pat Brown vs John Hedges

(Round-by-round scorecard will refresh every 2 mins)

British, Commonwealth, WBA International & IBF Intercontinental Cruiserweight Titles
Co-op Live, Manchester
12×3


Round HEDGES BROWN
Round 1 10 9
Round 2 9 10
Round 3 9 10
Round 4 10 9
Round 5 9 10
Round 6 IS
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
WBN Totals:

Official Result: BROWN KO6


Hedges vs Brown Results

Times are local UK

22:20

Pat Brown stopped John Hedges in six rounds courtesy of two beautifully placed body shots. Hedges had started well and stuck to his game plan, while Brown spent the early rounds looking for the heavier shots after a slow opener.

By the sixth, Hedges had become a little ragged and Brown switched his attention to the body after initially targeting the head. The finish came from a devastating shot to the solar plexus that doubled Hedges over, leaving him unable to beat the referee’s count of ten.

21:44

Shabaz Masoud dominated Ckari Cani Mansilla from start to finish to remain unbeaten and move to 16-0. Masoud swept every round on all three scorecards, with the judges unanimously returning shutout scores of 100-90.

20:45

Mark Jeffers improved to 21-2 with a unanimous decision victory over Kieron Conway after ten competitive rounds at super middleweight.

Conway remained in the contest throughout, but Jeffers did enough to earn scores of 97-93, 97-93 and 96-94.

19:52

Cory O’Regan became the new English lightweight champion with a commanding unanimous decision victory over Joe Howarth. The judges scored the contest 99-91 and 98-92 twice in O’Regan’s favor. O’Regan moves to 16-1, while Howarth drops to 15-3.

18:25

Alfie Middlemiss recorded the first stoppage victory of his professional career after Christopher Mondongo was pulled out by his corner following the fourth round.

17:53

Middleweight Tom Rafferty moved to 18-0 by stopping Irishman Liam Walsh in the second round of a scheduled eight.

17:35

Jack Power took every sessiok from Victor Ionascu to score a 60-54 decision at middleweight.

17:04

Super welterweight Garan Croft needed less than 90 seconds to get the job done, hurting Mohammed Graich before finishing him in the opening round.

16:50

Emily Whitworth kicked off the prelims by defeating Beata Dudek over six rounds at bantamweight. Whitworth won every round, with the referee scoring the contest 60-54.


Matchroom Boxing

Preview

Pat Brown and John Hedges meet over 12 rounds in an all-British cruiserweight clash at Co-op Live in Manchester.

Brown enters the main event with a perfect 6-0 record after stopping every opponent since turning professional. The Manchester fighter represented Great Britain at the Paris 2024 Olympics before beginning his professional career.

Hedges brings considerably more professional experience into the contest at 12-0 and travels to Brown’s home city looking to maintain his own undefeated record.

The vacant British and Commonwealth titles are on the line alongside the WBA International and IBF Intercontinental championships.

Shabaz Masoud features prominently on the undercard as he moves up to featherweight against Ckari Cani Mansilla, while Kieron Conway and Mark Jeffers meet in a British super middleweight title eliminator.

All bouts will be updated as results come in throughout the night, with more live coverage on World Boxing News.


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.

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Reality Check for Hamzah Sheeraz: Why Turki is Overpriced

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"Reality Check for Hamzah Sheeraz: Why Turki is Overpriced"

Hamzah Sheeraz has become the first solid example of what happens when a fighter paid far beyond his traditional market value is eventually forced back into boxing’s normal pay structure.

The Briton has voluntarily relinquished his coveted WBO super middleweight title rather than face mandatory challenger Janibek Alimkhanuly after Queensberry Promotions won the purse bid with an offer of $1,001,809.

Under the WBO’s 75-25 split, Sheeraz would have received $751,356.75. That figure is considerably below the money he has become accustomed to earning since his association with Saudi powerbroker Turki Alalshikh.

Sheeraz has earned seven-figure purses while appearing on Riyadh Season events. His payday for defeating Edgar Berlanga was widely reported to have been around $5 million, many times greater than the $751,356.75 now available to face Janibek.

Now the old boxing market has delivered its verdict after Sheeraz walked away from his stipulated test.

Promoter Warren was clear about the purse available to his fighter after Queensberry secured home advantage for the proposed Janibek fight.

“It’s 75/25, he gets $750K! Why wouldn’t he have this fight? That’s the market value, we’ve secured him home advantage, so get on with the fight,” Warren told IFL TV before Sheeraz relinquished the belt.

The Turki Effect

Alalshikh’s enormous investment in boxing has created purses that traditional promoters would struggle to match for the same fights.

Sheeraz may now be the clearest example of the consequences when that money is no longer available.

There is nothing wrong with a fighter taking the biggest purse available. Few would turn down millions of dollars when somebody is willing to pay it.

The problem comes when that money disappears.

Sheeraz has gone from earning a far bigger purse against Berlanga to being offered three-quarters of a million dollars for one of the most dangerous opponents of his career.

Former WBN Lead Writer Dan Rafael summed up the difference when responding to the suggestion that Sheeraz was being asked to take short money.

“It’s not short money. It’s the actual market assessing his value.”

That is the curse of becoming a Turki ambassador. Once a fighter has operated inside a financial system capable of paying considerably more than the traditional market, returning to conventional boxing economics becomes considerably more difficult.

The Canelo Payday

There could also be a considerable sporting cost to Sheeraz’s decision. The Briton has made no secret of his desire to face Canelo Alvarez, who challenges WBC champion Christian Mbilli on October 31 as the Mexican attempts to regain one of his former super middleweight titles.

Sheeraz holding the WBO title could have given him something Canelo may want if the Mexican defeats Mbilli and decides to rebuild his former undisputed collection. Walking away from the belt removes that potential bargaining chip at precisely the wrong time.

The 27-year-old may therefore have rejected $750,000 against Janibek while simultaneously weakening his position in the pursuit of the considerably greater payday he really wants.

Sheeraz Could Join Zuffa

The situation becomes even more interesting because Sheeraz is approaching the end of his long relationship with Warren.

Sheeraz confirmed last month that he has only one fight remaining on his Queensberry contract and intends to examine his options before deciding where his career continues.

Unless an extension is signed, the ex-WBO ruler could therefore enter free agency after his next appearance.

Zuffa Boxing would immediately become one of the obvious destinations. Sheeraz has already confirmed that joining the promotion is an option he intends to explore when he becomes available.

The financial expectations built during Sheeraz’s rise as one of Alalshikh’s chosen fighters have now collided with Warren’s assessment of what the traditional market will pay.

Sheeraz chose not to accept it.

His next contract may tell boxing whether the traditional market can afford to get him back.


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.

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