Dave “White Rhino” Allen (24-7-2, 19 KO) and Arslanbek Makhmudov (20-2, 19 KO) will fight in a potentially life-changing fight for both fighters tonight in an event promoted by Matchroom at the Sheffield Arena in Sheffield, England. A vast crowd of 10,000 is expected to attend the event tonight.
Results
Bilal Fawaz (10-1-1, 3 KO) defeated Junaid Bostan (10-1-1, 8 KO) by 10-round majority decision to win the British BBBofC junior middleweight title. There was a fierce battle in which it was almost impossible to score accurately. The scores were 96-94, 96-95 for Fawaz and 95-95,
Nigerian-born Fawaz, 37, hurt Bostan in the third round with a left punch to the head. He then attacked him with punches to the arm, but was unable to get it out. In the fourth, Bostan hurt Fawaz with a powerful right hand and unloaded a storm of shots, keeping him trapped on the ropes. Somehow, Fawaz got out of the round without being stopped.
Josh Padley (17-1, 5 KO) defeated Reece Bellotti (20-7, 15 KO) by a surprisingly wide 10-round unanimous decision in a featherweight fight. Bellotti, 34, was better in action during the first six rounds, and in the sixth round he injured Padley with shots to the body.
However, Padley came back robust in the seventh set, landing some nice combinations. Bellotti seemed to lose the power of his punches in the final four rounds to allow Padley to take control. The scores were 99-92, 97-93 and 97-93. Boxing News 24 had it 6-4 for Bellotti.
Hamza Uddin (6-0, 3 KO) defeated Paul Roberts (7-7, 2 KO) in the fifth round to win the vacant British BBBofC flyweight title. Uddin, 22, dropped Roberts three times in round five. The final shot was a left to the body, sending Roberts belatedly to a knee. At this point, Robert’s corner threw in the towel. Referee Michael Alexander stopped the fight at 2:14 of the fifth round.
DAZN broadcast and walk times
Today’s event will be broadcast live on DAZN, starting at 2:00 PM ET / 11:00 AM PT. Ring walks take place approximately 4:45 PM ET / 1:45 PM PT.
Card fights
Josh Padley vs. Reece Bellotti Junaid Bostan vs. Bilal Fawaz Hamza Uddin vs. Paul Roberts Ibrheem Slymond vs. James Chereji Conner Tudsbury vs. Khalid Graidia Joe Howarth vs. Kane Baker Joe Hayden vs. Angelo Dragone
Two secondary heavyweight contenders, Allen and Makhmudov, hope to secure career-high prizes against top heavyweights. Allen, 33, has recent hope after his recent victory over Johnny Fisher.
For Allen and Makhmudov, this may be their last chance to taste the millions that other heavyweights are making, some of which is completely unconfirmed.
The 33-year-old British fighter Allen was considered a bust years ago, but a recent fifth-round TKO victory over Johnny Fisher on May 17 gave him a chance to turn his career around.
His promoters at Matchroom want him to face one of the aging top-class fighters if he beats Makhmudov tonight. It’s doubtful this will happen, but it was an excellent promotional strategy to generate interest in Allen fighting tonight.
Allen’s losses so far:
Johnny Fisher
Frazer Clarke
David Price
Tony Yoka
Luis Ortiz
Dillian Whyte
Lenroy Thomas
Keys to today’s fight
Dave Allen: He must overcome a ferocious attack from the 6-foot-1/2-inch Makhmudov, who will come out quickly and look to beat Allen with one of his powerful shots. Makhmudov’s size and strength will make things complex for Allen if he decides to trade or stand his ground.
The high guard that Allen uses could be his downfall tonight if he uses this approach. Makhmudov is good at dealing with fighters who throw themselves in front of him. Allen will have to fight because he can’t sit idly behind a high card and hope to block everything that comes his way from the massive Russian.
Arslanbek Makhmudov: He needs to attack Allen early, strike around his high guard to hit the side of his head and stun him. When Allen gets off balance, Makhmudov has to hit him with chopping shots as strenuous as he can to take him down. If Allen decides to stay on the outside to stay out of trouble for the first four rounds, Makhmudov will have to take him down and force him to defend.
Bob Smith wrote for Boxing News 24 since 2008, making him one of the site’s longest-serving contributors. With over a decade of experience, he has established himself as a senior boxing writer who accurately covers the global fight scene.
Bob’s work includes fight reports, news and features featuring world champions and emerging fighters alike, giving fans a clear picture of the sport’s past and present. Known for his consistency, accuracy and deep understanding of boxing, Bob remains a trusted voice for readers who want to stay up to date with global martial arts news.
Oleksandr Usyk has shared his reaction to Anthony Joshua‘s dramatic knockout victory against Kristian Prenga.
Usyk nearly suffered his own shock defeat in May when he was pushed to the limit by kickboxing star Rico Verhoevenand two months on it was nrw teammate Joshua’s turn to come close to a massive upset loss that would have stunned the heavyweight division.
The Brit was dropped twice by massive underdog Prenga in the opening round of their clash in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, but ‘AJ’ managed to recover and record a big knockdown of his own in the second round that resulted in the stoppage victory.
Joshua and Usyk now train together, having famously had two battles for the unified world heavyweight title in 2021 and 2022, and the Ukrainian has had his say on his stablemate’s victory over Prenga.
Speaking to TalkSporttwo-time undisputed champion Usyk praised Joshua, insisting ‘AJ is back’ before predicting that Joshua will now claim a knockout win over long-term rival Tyson Fury in his next bout.
“Anthony Joshua is next undisputed champion. First round it’s a test but AJ is back.
It’s boxing, [the] big upper cut is good, it’s a knockdown. AJ [come] back and win.
“Greedy Belly [Fury] will speak now and say weak chin, Greedy Belly get out. AJ wins [against Fury], [he will] knock him out.”
Fury was victorious on Friday as he earned a seventh round retirement win against Mariusz Wach in Thailand, paving the way for the showdown against Joshua later this year.
Jake Paul was the last man to fight Anthony Joshua and he has now revealed his verdict on AJ’s chaotic victory over Kristian Prenga.
Joshua went up against Prenga in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturdayin a clash that was expected to be a comfortable win for the former world heavyweight champion in order to set up the long overdue battle against Tyson Fury.
Any hopes of seeing that clash were nearly ended after AJ was dropped twice in the opening round of the bout, though he was able to recover and claim the second round knockout to come out on top and prevent a stunning shock upset from taking place.
Saturday’s outing saw Joshua back in the ring for the first time since his sixth round triumph over YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul back in Decemberand now ‘The Problem Child’ himself has shared his reaction to his former rival’s victory over Prenga.
Posting on social mediaPaul praised AJ for earning the win, after returning to action following the tragic car crash he was involved in at the end of last year which took the lives of his two close friends.
“Happy for Joshua with that win after all he’s been through. Remembering Sina and Latz with this one.”
Happy for Joshua with that win after all he’s been through.
Remembering Sina and Latz with this one.
— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) July 25, 2026
The win for Joshua should now tee up for meeting with Fury later this year, after ‘The Gypsy King’ held up his end of the bargain by also securing a win in his warm-up bout on Friday, securing a seventh round retirement win against Mariusz Wach.
Anthony Joshua may have earned a knockout win over Kristian Prenga but the fight certainly didn’t unfold as most people expected.
Joshua was facing the Albanian in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, and it looked like a massive upset could be on the cards when he was dropped twice in the opening round.
‘AJ’ was able to recover and went on to secure a second round knockout victory to prevent the shock lossseemingly paving the way for the battle against Tyson Fury later this year.
One man who was ringside to witness the battle was former cruiserweight world champion Tony Bellewand he praised Joshua’s ability to turn things around in the fight after describing it as ‘chaos’.
“We predicted round two but I don’t think we foresaw that. That was chaos. He doesn’t see the uppercut coming and finds himself on the floor without knowing how he got there.
“The second one he did see it coming and he was able to clench down on the jaw. He got up and then the experience that he has he used tonight because he tied him up. Against Andy Ruiz he didn’t know what he was doing and didn’t know how to do that, but tonight he did.
“He showed once again there is no quit. To be that hurt in the first round and get up, that’s the recoveries of power. People talk about your chin, but it’s not, it’s the level of fitness that gets you up from the floor.
“When Joshua gets a fighter hurt he’s the best finisher in the division. Whenever he hurts someone they’re gone. I haven’t seen him drop anybody and they survive, only Andy Ruiz. He’s a ruthless finisher.”
The clash between Joshua and Fury is now expected to be announced soon for later this year, after Fury won his own interim fight on Friday by defeating Mariusz Wach.
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