Boxing
Tyson Fury dominates Arslanbek Makhmudov, Anthony Joshua calls out
Published
4 months agoon
LONDON – Tyson Fury shook off ring rust on his return and won a unanimous points decision over Arslanbek Makhmudov on Saturday, potentially setting up a long-awaited clash with Anthony Joshua.
The former world heavyweight champion completed his latest retirement and 16-month hiatus by dominating Russia’s Makhmudov to scores of 120-108, 120-108 and 119-109 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium under the watchful eye of Fury’s British rival Joshua, seated at ringside among a crowd of around 60,000.
Fury (35-2-1, 24 KO), 37, from the Isle of Man, boxed patiently after the punch to mount an effective rather than spectacular comeback, showing he still has keen boxing and good footwork. Makhmudov (21-3, 19 KO) was an obliging opponent as he marched forward recklessly at times, inviting Fury to beat him.
It was a return to winning ways for Fury after consecutive defeats on points in world title fights against Oleksandr Usyk in his previous two appearances.
Following his first victory in England since defending his WBC title against Derek Chisora in December 2022, Fury turned his attention to Joshua. Fury encourages his compatriot to fight him next, and not former WBC champion Deontay Wilder (40), who recently defeated another veteran Chisora on points.
Speaking to Joshua, who filmed the fight on his mobile phone after the victory, Fury said: “Next I want to give you the fight you’ve all been waiting for. I want you, Anthony Joshua, let’s give the fight fans what they want, the Battle of Britain. I, the Gypsy King, challenge you, Anthony Joshua, to fight me next. Do you accept the challenge? Don’t run away from me this time, let’s dance.”
Joshua declined Fury’s invitation to join him in the ring and said there was no deal for them to fight.
“There are negotiations going on. I’ve sat at this table with him many times,” Joshua told Netflix.
“I’m not going to sit here and say, ‘Yes, I’m going to fight him’. I’m not here to gain strength. I’m here to fight. Contracts will be sent. We’ll go through the minutiae and probably, more than that, we’ll be seen in the ring next. But I’m not here to start getting in the ring and screaming in someone’s face.”
Despite Joshua’s refusal to confirm the fight, Netflix posted on social media that it would take place this fall.
Dublin’s 80,000-seat Croke Park stadium has emerged as an option to host the megafight in September should former world champion Joshua, 36, decide to withdraw from the interim warm-up fight.
Various attempts have been made to arrange a Fury vs. Joshua fight over the past six years without success, with discussions most recently being put on hold after Joshua was involved in a car crash that killed two of his friends in Nigeria in December. While it probably won’t be as large as when they were both world champions and first agreed to fight in June 2020, it would still be the biggest fight in 2026.
Joshua, who is currently training with former conqueror Usyk, may want to have a warm-up fight this summer for his fight with Fury, which would push their fight to tardy 2026.
Before his knockout victory over YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in December, Joshua suffered a fifth-round knockout loss to Daniel Dubois in an IBF world heavyweight title fight in September 2024. His last victory over an established heavyweight (not counting Paul and former UFC champion Francis Ngannou) was against Otto Wallin in December 2023.
If this was Fury’s last fight before Joshua, he showed that his jab and footwork are as classy as ever, although Makhmudov did manage to land a few demanding right hands. Fury, who reigned twice as world champion (2015 and 2020-2024), entered the ring in the blue colors of former welterweight and junior world champion Ricky Hatton, who died last September at the age of 46.
Fury had to deal with an aggressive start from Makhmudov, who came forward, landing wild punches, some of which landed. Fury landed a nice flurry of punches early in the second round, but Makhmudov soon attacked again, trying to disrupt his rhythm.
Fury, who had Steward SugarHill in his corner after saying he had been training in Thailand for the past four months, landed some good counter punches tardy in Round 2 when Makhmudov missed another large right hand, giving him the round win.
Makhmudov, 36, who lives in Montreal before facing Fury, had suffered two stoppage losses in his previous five fights and was left open by missing a right hand.
Fury found more opportunities in Round 3, but was caught with a weighty left hook early in the fourth, which encouraged Makhmudov to go into attack mode. Fury then caught the Russian with several counter punches later in round 4 and took control after his jab in round 5.
Fury’s jab and footwork seemed to have somewhat incapacitated Makhmudov midway through the round as he landed a series of unanswered jabs in round 6. Makhmudov remained a threat, however, and landed two large right hands in round 7. Fury staggered Makhmudov with a sweet left hook in round 8 and a left uppercut in round 9.
In Round 11, Fury uncorked several elegant left uppercuts, and in Round 12 he repeatedly landed shots, but they lacked enough power to hurt his opponent and prevent the judges from having to make a decision.
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Boxing
Pierce OLeary vs. Mark Chamberlain Live Results: Updates and Highlights
Published
2 days agoon
August 1, 2026
LIVE COVERAGE
World Boxing News provides live results and updates from Dublin as Pierce O’Leary faces Mark Chamberlain at super lightweight.
Queensberry Promotions returns to the 3Arena with an action-packed card headed by the unbeaten Irish star O’Leary, who meets former British champion Chamberlain in the main event.
The undercard also features Gary Cully, Reece Bellotti, Sean McComb, Steven Cairns, Ben Fail and several unbeaten Irish prospects.
Pierce O’Leary vs Mark Chamberlain Results
Times are Local – IST
17:46
Gary Cully stopped Lee Reeves in the tenth round to improve to 20-2.
Cully overcame a fifth-round point deduction for repeatedly losing his gumshield before dropping Reeves twice in the final round to force the stoppage.
The victory marked Cully’s 11th knockout win as a professional.
17:01
Sean McComb returned with a comfortable six-round points victory over Miguel Antin.
McComb won every round on the referee’s scorecard, claiming a 60-54 decision to improve his record to 22-2.
16:31
Machlan Arthur improved to 2-0 with his second straight knockout by stopping Ryan Frost in the fourth round.
Arthur dropped Frost twice in the final session before the referee waved the contest off at 1:05 of round four.
Remaining Bouts
• Pierce O’Leary vs Mark Chamberlain – IBO World Super Lightweight Title (12)
• Royston Barney-Smith vs Reece Bellotti – Vacant IBO Inter-Continental Super Featherweight Title (10)
• Gary Cully vs Lee Reeves – Super Lightweight (10)
• Steven Cairns vs Senan Kelly – Super Lightweight (10)
• Ben Fail vs Craig O’Brien – Super Welterweight (10)
• Bobbi Flood vs Tariq Davis – Super Welterweight (6)
• Adam Olaniyan vs Jonathan Claudio Sauco – Heavyweight (4)
• John Joe Carrigan vs Sean Murray – Super Welterweight (4)
• Sami Hamed vs Bela Istvan Orban – Super Welterweight (4)

Preview
Pierce O’Leary tops a major night of boxing in Dublin as the unbeaten Irishman takes on Mark Chamberlain for the IBO World super lightweight title.
O’Leary enters the contest looking to continue his rise through the rankings against the experienced Chamberlain, who aims to return to winning ways after a draw in his third outing since suffering the lone defeat of his professional career.
The chief support sees Royston Barney-Smith meet Reece Bellotti for the vacant IBO Inter-Continental super featherweight title.
Gary Cully also returns in an intriguing domestic clash with fellow unbeaten Irishman Lee Reeves, while Steven Cairns faces Senan Kelly in another all-Irish encounter.
Sean McComb, Ben Fail, Bobbi Flood, Adam Olaniyan, Machlan Arthur, John Joe Carrigan and Sami Hamed also feature on the Queensberry Promotions card.
Updates will be added below as the action unfolds in Dublin, 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.
Boxing
Barry McGuigan: Ryan Garcia Faces a Dangerman in Conor Benn at 147 lbs
Published
2 days agoon
August 1, 2026
Hall of Famer Barry McGuigan has named one half of the main event between Ryan Garcia and Conor Benn as the “dangerman” at 147lbs.
The two welterweights will collide at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on September 12, with Garcia making a first defence of his WBC world title.
He claimed the belt by dethroning Mario Barrios with a unanimous decision victory in February, which followed his surprising points loss to Rolando Romero in May 2025.
Interestingly enough, this defeat came shortly after his year-long doping ban, which he served on account of testing positive for ostarine ahead of his majority decision victory over Devin Haney.
The result of their showdown was then ruled a no-contest, with Garcia subsequently moving up to welterweight after failing to keep below the 140lb limit.
It now seems the 27-year-old is competing at a more natural weight while Benn, who tested positive for clomifene in 2022, has not made 147lbs since his second-round finish over Chris van Heerden that same year.
Speaking with talkSPORTIrish boxing icon McGuigan suggested that this – as well as the 29-year-old’s technical flaws – could prove a major factor against Garcia.
“[Benn’s] got that genetic code from his dad, and he’s got that explosiveness and everything else. But he is predictable – you can see when he’s going to throw.
“You ask yourself: is Garcia just a little bit too sharp for him? A little bit too cute. I think Garcia’s finally found the weight he’s most suitable [for]. I think he’s a dangerman at 147[lbs].
“Maybe Conor Benn has left it a little too late to make 147[lbs] again. I think that could be his Achilles’ heel. I make Garcia a slight favourite but would never write off Conor Benn – he’s got that fighting heart.”
Benn comes off a unanimous decision victory over Regis Prograis in April, which followed his two middleweight encounters with Chris Eubank Jr last year.
Boxing
Devin Haney Updates Fight Strategy After Keyshawn Davis Withdraws from Title Shot
Published
2 days agoon
August 1, 2026
Devin Haney’s immediate future has been thrown into uncertainty after Keyshawn Davis pulled out of their mandated contest on Friday.
The pair had been ordered to collide for Haney’s WBO world title, with Davis having been named as the sanctioning body’s mandatory challenger at 147lbs.
Multiple reports then suggested that the 27-year-old was offered $3m by Top Rank, his promoter, only for ‘The Businessman’ to reject what would have been a career-high payday.
Subsequently, their bout went to a purse bit hearing, where Top Rank trumped Teofimo Lopez’s Takeover Promotions with a sum of $8,550,000.
This therefore gave Bob Arum’s outfit the promotional rights and, as per the usual 75/25 split in favour of the defending champion, Davis would have been entitled to a share of $2,137,500.
Since Thursday’s auction, though, Davis has excluded himself from the fight and left Haney without an obvious opponent for his first welterweight title defence.
Taking to social mediaWBO president Gustavo Olivieri explained that his organisation must now provide their champion with a solution.
“The WBO hereby confirms receipt of written notice from counsel on behalf of Keyshawn Davis advising that he will NOT accept the 25% purse split adjudicated pursuant to the official WBO purse bid proceedings and, accordingly, will NOT participate in the WBO welterweight mandatory championship contest against Devin Haney.
“In light of the foregoing, the WBO Championship Committee and Ratings Committee will convene to proceed in accordance with the WBO world championship rules and regulations. The applicable ruling will be rendered and published in due course.”
Re: WBO Welterweight Participant Keyshawn Davis
The World Boxing Organization (WBO) hereby confirms receipt of written notice from counsel on behalf of Mr. Keyshawn Davis advising that he will NOT accept the 25% purse split adjudicated pursuant to the official WBO purse bid…
— Gustavo Olivieri, Esq. (@OlivieriLaw) July 31, 2026
At this stage, it remains to be seen whether Haney will be immediately ordered to face a new mandatory challenger or, given the situation, have the opportunity to make a voluntary defence.
Either way, the 27-year-old has not fought since dethroning Brian Norman Jr in November and is surely eager to return to action.
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