Boxing
Muhammad Ali’s grandson begins an alliance to keep the Ali Act intact
Published
2 months agoon
Nico Ali Walsh, grandson of the tardy Muhammad Ali, announced Thursday that he has formed an alliance with several key members of the boxing community to preserve the current version of the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Reform Act.
The group – known as the Ali Act Preservation Alliance – was formed in response to TKO Group’s efforts to pass the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act. The bill recently cleared major landmarks after the House of Representatives passed it on a voice vote in March and now heads to the Senate.
“The Alliance exists for one purpose only: to protect the best interests of fighters who risk everything in the ring, fighting for a chance at a better life for themselves and their families,” reads a press release from The Alliance.
The alliance seeks to ensure there is no monopoly in boxing, considers the proposed law “anti-worker” and opposes the creation of Unified Boxing Organizations (UBO), “which has its own rankings, matchmaking and awards its own championship belts, while being a promoter controlling all aspects of the business.”
Zuffa Boxing would be a major beneficiary of the passage of the bill, which would allow the fledgling boxing promotion to operate in a similar fashion to the UFC with its own world titles, weight classes and rankings.
“The Ali Act Preservation Alliance believes it speaks on behalf of the stakeholders of boxing and all combat sports in calling on the United States Senate to reject the so-called ‘Boxing Rebirth Act’ and see it for what it is: a unsafe and unjust exception to the law that protects fighters, and named after boxing’s greatest hero, Muhammad Ali, who fought in sports and throughout society for justice and civil rights,” the alliance said in a statement.
The group includes 25-year-old Walsh, Golden Boy Promotions CEO Oscar De La Hoya, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman and retired mixed martial arts fighter Carlos Newton.
“If we can’t stop it, we have to at least educate people about what’s going on,” Walsh told ESPN on Friday. “They kept telling everyone that they are not changing a single word of the current Ali Act and that they are supplementing it. But if you add to something, you are actually changing it.
“If people at least know what their true intentions are, they will be able to fight back.”
Walsh, who serves as AAPA’s president and spokesman, said he plans to travel to Washington with De La Hoya in the coming weeks to speak on the Senate floor and make his case for why the Renaissance Act should not be passed.
The grandson of Muhammad Ali is an busy boxer (13-2-1, 5 KOs) with a bachelor’s degree in business and entrepreneurship from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and believes that the TKO Group’s goal is not to present itself as an alternative to boxers, but to monopolize the industry like the UFC does for mixed martial arts.
“People don’t understand what this bill is,” Walsh said. “They won’t say their real intention is to monopolize the sport, but if they control matchmaking, contracts, rankings and world titles, that will be the beginning of a monopoly. It won’t happen immediately, but in ten years everything could change.”
“It’s a bait-and-switch tactic. They say boxers have a choice, but ultimately they won’t have one, and we want to stop that.”
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Boxing
Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn exchange threats despite confusion in the fight
Published
2 hours agoon
June 11, 2026
Instead, Ryan focused directly on his British rival.
“I’m screaming at Conor Benn like he stole something. Don’t be fooled by the headlines,” Garcia said on the show X.
Benn wasted no time in responding, turning Ryan’s choice of words into his own warning.
“I’m about to steal your title and there’s nothing you can do about it,Benn said.
Both have been linked to a potential clash later this year, and Benn will become a solemn option for Ryan’s next fight. However, negotiations became increasingly complicated after Golden Boy accused Zuffa Boxing of interfering with Ryan’s contractual relationship with the promotional company.
Oscar De La Hoya has publicly maintained that Golden Boy has the final say on Ryan’s next move, while expressing his willingness to work with Dana White and Zuffa if an agreement can be reached.
For the fighters themselves, the appetite for the fight remains unchanged.
Ryan has repeatedly rejected suggestions that Benn poses a solemn threat, while Benn took the opportunity to challenge one of boxing’s biggest names. Their latest exchange provided another insight into the confidence both men bring to a fight that continues to attract robust interest on both sides of the Atlantic.
There may still be legal and promotional hurdles to clear before any official announcement can be made, but Ryan and Benn have made one thing clear: Neither of them is willing to budge an inch in the battle for public opinion before the opening bell even rings.
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 significant fights, division development and the most discussed stories in sports.
Boxing
Former world champion claims he signed a contract for a rematch with Gervonta Davis but they ‘chose not to do it’: ‘Let’s be clear about that’
Published
4 hours agoon
June 11, 2026
Gervonta Davis is expected to return to action later this year, but one former opponent has revealed that he signed a contract for a rematch with “Tank”, but the three-division world champion changed his mind.
Davis hasn’t won a fight in almost two years, and his last fight was against former WBA super featherweight world champion Lamont Roach Jnr in March 2025, where he defended both his WBA lightweight crown and his undefeated record, being fortunate to avoid a draw.
Since then, external issues have kept Davis away from the ring, and his inactivity resulted in the Baltimore knockout fighter being demoted from WBA champion to “champion on hiatus.”
To regain his full world title, Davis will need to defeat 21-year-old mandatory challenger Floyd “Kid Austin” Schofield, a fight that has been ordered by the World Boxing Association.
I’m talking to Fighting the noiseRoach’s recent opponent has now revealed he has signed a contract with Davis for a rematch following their draw, blaming the 31-year-old for missing out on a second fight.
“Obviously this is the rematch I want. They decided not to do the rematch so everyone knows. We were ready, we signed the contract, we did everything we could to make the rematch happen – the other side didn’t. So let’s get it straight.”
“Other than that, I’m not too worried about it. I’m not shying away from a rematch with Gervonta Davis. I did what I had to do that night in the ring, I should have gotten the victory, but it is what it is, life goes on, man, and I’m going to move on to bigger and better things.”
Roach will fight for the vacant WBC lightweight title against William Zepeda on Saturday, August 1. A victory in this fight could result in an intriguing unification and a rematch with Davis if the latter manages to defeat Schofield in the fall.
Boxing
Zuffa Boxing 09 confirms Berlanga vs. Butler and Hitchins vs. Salas, which will take place on July 26 at Madison Square Garden
Published
6 hours agoon
June 11, 2026
Zuffa Boxing on Tuesday announced its Novel York debut on July 26, confirming a double main event for the Infosys Theater card at Madison Square Garden, which until now has only been presented in the form of reports and a trailer. Brooklyn’s Edgar Berlanga and Richardson Hitchins will headline separate fights on an eight-fight card, with Berlanga facing Montreal’s Steven Butler and Hitchins moving up to welterweight against Mexico’s Ricardo Salas.
The Zuffa Boxing 09-branded event will take place in the smaller of Madison Square Garden’s two main venues, the building where they have hosted boxing championships for decades, through the Felt Forum and Hulu Theater eras. The promotion set a date and location for the end of May with a poster and promotional tape that did not feature any competitors. Tuesday’s post marks the first official reveal of any matchups on the show. The main card starts at 9:00 PM ET / 6:00 PM PT.
Berlanga comes home against a live punch
Berlanga (23-2, 18 KO) makes his Zuffa Boxing debut in a 10-round super middleweight fight, about a year after his last appearance. The 29-year-old Puerto Rican, who started his career with 16 consecutive first-round knockouts, has not fought since July 2025, when Hamzah Sheeraz stopped him in the fifth round. This result followed his decision loss to Canelo Alvarez in September 2024. Zuffa signed Berlanga and Hitchins in April, and the promotion viewed Berlanga’s arrival as a chance to reset his position at 168 pounds.
The opponent is the real test for returning home. Steven Butler (38-5-1, 32 KO), a 30-year-old veteran from Montreal, has had a four-fight knockout streak since moving up to super middleweight. The Canadian has shared the ring with elite names in a career that began in 2014, and he arrives in Novel York with a record that makes a fight for a rematch risky rather than ceremonial.
Hitchins moves up to welterweight
Hitchins (20-0, 8 KO) is the more prominent name on the roster, and the fight against Salas marks his own Zuffa debut, a 12-round welterweight bout. The undefeated former super lightweight champion will fight at 147 pounds for the first time in his career. The 28-year-old Brooklyn native won the title via split decision over Liam Paro in behind schedule 2024 and successfully defended with an eighth-round knockout of George Kambosos Jr. at the same Infosys Theater in June last year, which means July 26 will be a return to the arena where he last fought.
Salas (24-2-2, 18 KO), a 27-year-old from Mexico, has earned the job thanks to his recent form. He scored a spectacular knockout of Jesus Saracho in the Zuffa Boxing 04 co-main event in March, allowing him to capitalize on his high knockout rate in the biggest opportunity of his career.
How to watch and tickets
The full card streams live on Paramount+ at no additional cost to subscribers in the US, Latin America, Brazil and Canada, and the event is broadcast on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland. Tickets go on sale Friday, June 19 at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT via Ticketmaster, preceded by a UFC Fight Club pre-sale on Wednesday, June 17 and an additional exclusive pre-sale on Thursday, June 18.
Zuffa has not revealed the rest of the eight-fight card and additional fights are expected in the coming weeks. Reports leading up to the announcement also linked veteran Sergei Derevyanchenko to the July 26 date, although he was not among Tuesday’s confirmed fights.
The Novel York card is the clearest signal yet of how quickly the TKO-backed promotion intends to enter a market long controlled by Matchroom, Top Rank and Premier Boxing Champions. Building the debut around two recognizable hometown stars rather than prospects is a deliberate statement of intent. More information about the players can be found in the official documents on the website BoxRec.
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