Jessica McCaskill will defend her WBA welterweight title against Lauren Price on May 11 in Cardiff, with Price seeking to become Wales’ first professional world boxing champion.

The fight will air on Peacock in the U.S. and Sky Sports in the U.K. McCaskilla’s Ring Magazine championship is also on the line.

It was previously reported that McCaskill would travel to Croatia to defend her WBC and WBA titles against Ivana Habazin on April 20, but that is obviously not happening now as it was certainly a better cash offer. Matchroom Boxing recently took over promotional control of the fight, with upstart Piranha Promotions losing the rights after winning the bid.

Matchroom was the second highest bidder. Piranha offered $201,000 to Matchroom’s $91,000, meaning McCaskill wasn’t going to make much money from the Habazin fight at all, and significantly less than Matchroom’s offer.

The McCaskill vs. Price fight is a Boxxer card, and the fight announcement does not include the WBC title on the line, which likely means McCaskill has been or will be stripped of that belt for taking this fight instead of fighting Habazin.

From a boxing fan’s point of view, it’s a better and fresher fight, so it’s a win on our part.

Price, 29, is 6-0 (1 KO) since turning professional in June 2022 after winning middleweight gold for Team Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics. She was also a gold medalist at the 2019 World Championships and the 2019 European Games, and has been a high-level amateur for around a decade.

She has boldly demonstrated her desire to become a world champion sooner rather than later as a professional and now she has the chance, which she is joyful will come in Cardiff.

“The fact that it’s happening in Cardiff is amazing. I haven’t boxed there since I started, which was a good few years ago,” said Price. “I can’t wait to perform in front of my friends, family and the Welsh fans who have been so supportive throughout my career. It’s sure to be an incredible night. To beat the current Welsh champion and retain my world titles here will be an incredible feeling!”

“Jessica McCaskill is the current champion. She’s vigorous, experienced and mighty but I’ll be 100% ready for whatever tonight brings. I believe in my ability. I’m backing myself and as I said before I can’t wait to bring those championship titles back to Wales and hopefully that will lead to more massive nights in Wales again in the near future.”

The 39-year-old McCaskill (12-3-1, 5 KOs) is one of boxing’s most enduring competitors, but many felt like she caught up in her last fight, in which she suffered a controversial draw in her unification bout with Sandy Ryan.

McCaskill, a former undisputed champion at 147 who lost that recognition when she dropped to 140 to challenge and lose to Chantelle Cameron in 2022, McCaskill is known for her aggressive fighting style and she took the opportunity to challenge the stereotype of British fighting style.

“I don’t know much about Price, but when it comes to fighters from the UK, you usually expect a lot of backing up and holding on,” she said. “I don’t know if that’s going to happen, but coming to Wales means Price is going to want to put on a good show. That’s what I want because I’m going to do the same thing. I’m here to steal all her fans. I’m going to show her what it takes to be champion and the belts are going to come back to America with me.”

According to reports, a rematch between MMA and UFC stars Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal will take place in the ring when they meet on June 1 in the main event of the pay-per-view boxing event. MMA fightAriel Helwani broke the news on The MMA Hour.

The show will stream on PPV via Fanmio for a price of $79.99, although you can get an early bird discount to $49.99 if you pre-order by April 12.

Diaz, 38, and Masvidal, 39, fought at UFC 244 in slow 2019, with Masvidal winning after three rounds via doctor stoppage.

Both have recently dabbled on the fringes of the boxing world. Diaz lost a 10-round boxing match to Jake Paul last August in Dallas, and Masvidal has been a fixture at Gamebred Boxing’s promotions, including one that saw 54-year-old Roy Jones Jr. lose a fight to Anthony Pettis in April 2023.

Masvidal last fought in April 2023, submitting a decision to Gilbert Burns at UFC 287. His MMA record is 35-17 and 1-0 in boxing, having participated in a licensed fight as far back as 2005, which is a majority four-round decision win in Miami.

Diaz is 0-1 in boxing and 21-13 in MMA. Both fighters are known for their fan-friendly styles and both have huge followings, which should ensure that the event does well at the box office. It won’t really be trying to tap into the “pure” boxing fan base, and that’s a good thing, because Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol is on pay-per-view June 1, albeit from Saudi Arabia, so the event will be over before that one begins.

The fight will take place at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, California and will last 10 rounds in the lightweight heavyweight division.

Dillian Whyte claims Francis Ngannou was getting too comfortable and complacent ahead of his fight with Anthony Joshua. Interview with Sky SportsWhyte reacted to Ngannou’s knockout loss and comments that Ngannou did not take Joshua as seriously as he needed to given his performance against Tyson Fury.

“I think that fight gave him false confidence to the point where when he got hit strenuous, he stayed in the pocket and didn’t try to move his head or hold on or anything,” Whyte said. “He fell and stood in the same place. He didn’t move his head, fell down, stood in the same place and basically waited for the third right hand.

The end result was not surprising to Whyte, who says he knew from the beginning that Joshua could handle the business based on his experience and power. Until the end, Whyte believes he would have done the same to Ngannou if he had tried to get this fight earlier.

“I tried to fight Ngannou four years ago,” he said. “I definitely would have knocked him out. I said I would fight him in boxing and MMA. I always believed I could knock him out because I had no boxing skills.

Whyte (29-3, 19 KOs) is currently scheduled to face Christian Hammer this weekend in Castlebar, Ireland, and says he is excited about both the fight and the opportunities that lie ahead. Whyte still has world title aspirations and wants to get his name back in the mix with the top heavyweights.