Boxing

Mind games gone wrong? Preview of the Dave Allen vs. Makhmudov fight

Published

12 months ago

October 10, 2025

Image: Mind Games Gone Wrong? Dave Allen’s Plan to Irritate Makhmudov Might Be Backfiring Before the First Bell

Dave Allen says he wants to wear out Arslanbek Makhmudov with mind games ahead of their 12-round fight this Saturday, October 11 at the Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England. Their fight will be shown live on DAZN this Saturday. The event starts at 2:00 PM ET / 11:00 PM PT.

The smile war begins

Allen’s strategy is to deliberately irritate the huge 6-foot-1/2-inch Russian Makhmudov (20-2, 19 KOs) by smiling. He admits it doesn’t seem to work. Instead of seeming enraged, Makhmudov seems elated with how genial Allen is, as seen in his smiles.

Another strategy for Allen (24-7-2, 19 KO) is to avoid Makhmudov’s firepower in the first quarter of the fight, then launch an attack in rounds four and five. Makhmudov may still be too powerful at this point in the fight for Allen to go on the attack.

In Arslanbek’s recent eighth-round knockout loss to Guido Vianello on August 17, 2024, he continued to throw with great power in rounds five through seven. Makhmudov’s left eye was swollen and injured and he could barely see out of it. Still, he threw huge haymakers with the intention of knocking him out. If it weren’t for Guido’s technical skills, he would have been cut.

Allen will have to be careful not to get hit as Makhmudov’s shots have a lot of power and weight behind them. The uppercuts and clubbing right hands he throws will cause damage if or if they land on Allen. He hasn’t fought a heavyweight at Makhmudov’s level for many years, since his fight with Tony Yoka in 2018.

“I’m trying to irritate him. I’m not sure how well it works. I wanted him to try to hit me in the head. I was trying to irritate him. The sooner he gets tired, the better,” Dave Allen said to talkSport Boxing about wanting to destroy Arslanbek Makhmudov outside and inside the ring.

Makhmudov doesn’t blink

Allen doesn’t seem to understand Makhmudov well. He seems completely indifferent to the mind games Allen is trying to play. Makhmudov has too much experience at the professional and amateur levels in Russia. Trying to irritate him probably won’t work. Again, Allen’s smile makes him seem genial. Makhmudov even said in an interview that he thought Allen was a “nice” person.

“I can’t wait to start rounds four and five. The more I can get the smile off my face, the quicker I can get him going. When he throws punches, I’ll duck and dive. I’ll get to work when he starts blowing.”

Olly Campbell has been covering boxing since 2010 and writing for Boxing News 24 since 2014. He has been based in the UK and currently covers the world boxing scene, providing fight news, results and features that allow fans to hear the biggest stories in the sport.

With a background in reporting from the UK and Europe, Olly has developed a style that combines pointed analysis with accessible writing, making his work valuable to dedicated followers and casual fans alike. His reports consistently highlight champions, challengers and emerging prospects on the global stage.

Last update: 10/10/2025

Boxing

Johnny Fisher vs Michael Pirotton Scorecard Analysis: Key Highlights and Insights

Published

7 hours ago

September 26, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Johnny Fisher vs Michael Pirotton Scorecard Analysis: Key Highlights and Insights"

World Boxing News provides a round-by-round scorecard as Johnny Fisher faces Michael Pirotton at the Copper Box Arena in London.

Fisher and Pirotton collide over ten rounds at heavyweight as Zuffa Boxing stages its latest card in the United Kingdom.

The Romford Bull returns to action with Pirotton standing in his way as the British heavyweight looks to continue his climb.

WBN provides a live scorecard of the contest below, plus live results throughout the event.

Fisher vs Pirotton Scorecard

Johnny Fisher vs Michael Pirotton

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

Heavyweight
Copper Box Arena, London
10×3

Round	Fisher	Pirotton
Round 1	10	9
Round 2	10	9
Round 3	9	10
Round 4	9	10
Round 5	10	9
Round 6	10	9
Round 7	10	9
Round 8	10	9
Round 9	10	9
Round 10	10	9
WBN Totals:	98	92

Official Result: FISHER MD – 98-92, 96-95, 95-95

Preview

Fisher faces Pirotton in the first fight of his lucrative deal with Dana White and Zuffa Boxing.

The Briton enters the contest with a 14-1 record, while Pirotton brings a 12-2 record into the Zuffa Boxing 11 bout.

The event is available live on Sky in the United Kingdom and Paramount+.

The Fisher vs Pirotton event unfolds alongside 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.

Boxing

Johnny Fisher vs Michael Pirotton Results: Latest Fight Outcome and Highlights

Published

10 hours ago

September 26, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

Johnny Fisher vs Michael Pirotton Results: Latest Fight Outcome and Highlights

World Boxing News provides results and updates as Johnny Fisher faces Michael Pirotton on Zuffa Boxing 11 at the Copper Box Arena in London.

Fisher returns to heavyweight action over ten rounds against Pirotton as part of Zuffa Boxing’s latest event in the United Kingdom.

Craig Richards faces Radivoje Kalajdzic at light heavyweight, while Lee Cutler takes on Louis Greene and Cesar Mateo Tapia faces Leo Ruiz at middleweight.

WBN provides results and updates from every bout as they happen.

Results

All times are local BST.

23:41

Johnny Fisher defeated Michael Pirotton by majority decision after ten competitive heavyweight rounds at the Copper Box Arena. WBN scored the fight 98-92 for Fisherwhile the official judges returned scores of 98-92 and 96-95 for Fisher, with the third scoring it 95-95.

22:42

Radivoje Kalajdzic improved to 31-3 with a unanimous decision over Craig Richards, who dropped to 20-5-1 after a good ten-round scrap. Both men had their moments and hurt each other at times before “Hot Rod” got the verdict on the scorecards, which included knocking Richards down for the first time in his career.

21:43

Lee Cutler carded a unanimous decision win over Louis Greene in their ten-round middleweight clash. Judges scorecard 98-92 and 97-93 twice in favor on Cutler, who improves to 17-2.

20:52

Ahead of the three main bouts, Zuffa’s only female fighter, Kayla Allendefeated Edina Kiss via TKO in their super lightweight bout.

20:32

Leo Ruiz overcame Cesar Tapia over 10 rounds at middleweight, scoring a unanimous decision to move to 18-1 as Ruiz Tapia suffered a first loss.

19:29

Alex MacMillan moved to 5-0 with a second-round stoppage of Guillaume Azagier, who went down twice in the opening round and again before the finish at 0:32 of the second.

18:40

Rogelio Romero improved to 7-0 with a third-round stoppage of previously unbeaten Aurel Ignat, ending the cruiserweight contest at 2:12.

18:24

Alexis De la Cerda improved to 10-0 with a unanimous decision over Cain Lewis, taking the eight-round contest 80-72, 79-74 and 79-73.

17:42

Fred Pullen marked his professional debut with a four-round points victory over Leonardo Faretina, who was dropped in the second round.

Remaining Bouts

Johnny Fisher vs. Michael Pirotton — 10 rounds, heavyweight

Craig Richards vs. Radivoje Kalajdzic — 10 rounds, light heavyweight

TV Coverage

The event is available live on Sky in the United Kingdom and Paramount+.

Follow WBN’s live boxing coverage throughout the event.

About the Author

Read Phil Jay’s full bio and latest stories.

Boxing

Davies vs Collins & Heaney vs Warburton II Results: Full Fight Recap

Published

11 hours ago

September 26, 2026

The Punch Junkie™ News

"Davies vs Collins & Heaney vs Warburton II Results: Full Fight Recap"

World Boxing News provides results and updates as Liam Davies faces Nathaniel Collins in the main event at bp pulse LIVE in Birmingham.

Davies and Collins collide over 12 rounds for the EBU European featherweight title at the top of the Queensberry Promotions card.

Luke McCormack faces Kay Prospere for the vacant British super lightweight title, while Bradley Goldsmith takes on Amir Abubaker for the IBF International middleweight title.

WBN provides results and updates from every bout as they happen.

Results

All times are local BST.

23:11

Gerome Warburton defeated Nathan Heaney for the second time running as the middleweight put an exclamation mark on his first victory.

Heaney walks away from the sport having been an entertainer through a long carer, without reaching the heights of a world title.

22:04

Liam Davies improved to 19-1 after Nathaniel Collins retired at the end of the seventh round due to a cut over his right eye. Collins had also been dropped in the opening round as Davies successfully defended the European featherweight title.

21:22

Bradley Goldsmith improved to 17-1 with a seventh-round stoppage of Amir Abubaker to retain his IBF International middleweight title. Abubaker went down in the fourth and three times in the seventh before the finish at 2:42.

20:10

Lewis Richardson improved to 3-0 with a shutout six-round points victory over Ivan Trofimovich, earning a 60-54 decision.

19:56

Luke McCormack moved to 6-0 and claimed the vacant British super lightweight title with a tenth-round knockout of Kay Prospere, who was counted out after a right uppercut at 1:28.

18:55

Michael Hussain moved to 5-0 with a four-round points victory over Nabil Ahmed, earning a 39-38 decision.

18:11

Nelson Birchall moved to 12-0 with a third-round stoppage of Lewis Morris, who went down before the finish came at 1:12. Lasha Guruli also remained unbeaten at 5-0 after edging Hughie Wilson 77-75 over eight rounds.

17:22

Early action saw John Tom Varey and Reese Lynch claim four-round victories to move to 3-0 and 5-0 respectively.