BBBofC British lightweight champion Louie O’Doherty improved to 12-0 (3 KO) with a unanimous decision victory over Ahmed “No Mercy” Hatim, retaining his British title and adding the vacant Commonwealth lightweight title.

Hatim had it moments earlier, rocking O’Doherty with a right hand in the second round, but O’Doherty gradually took control with sharper combinations and a faster work rate. As the rounds progressed, the fight became increasingly physical, with O’Doherty landing consistently and Hatim struggling to keep up. O’Doherty closed the final rounds strongly, including a dominant tenth and a busy twelfth round in which Hatim was forced to hold out multiple times. The scores were 119-109 and 118-110 twice.

In a joint film, Michael Gomez Jr. improved his record to 23-2 (8 KO) after a sixth-round victory over Lee McGregor in a hard-fought lightweight fight.

The fight was action-packed from the first round, with both fighters trading aggressively. Gomez hurt McGregor several times during the fight and dropped him with a right hand slow in the third round. McGregor continued to fight despite swelling around his eye and blood from his nose, but Gomez’s pressure eventually became too much. In the sixth round, McGregor’s corner threw in the towel after another sustained attack.

Welterweight Joe Hayden improved to 23-0 (3 KO) after a fifth-round victory over Ryan Frost in a six-round fight. Hayden was in control throughout and fired shots to the body in the third and fifth rounds before referee Michael Alexander stopped the fight.

2024 Olympic gold medalist Asadkhuja Muydinkhujaev improved to 2-0 (1 KO) with a six-round victory over replacement Alexis Torres. Muydinkhujaev controlled the fight with his jab and left hand, hurting Torres several times while winning on the scorecards.

Ted Jackson stopped Mike Byles in the first round after he scored a knockdown early in the fight and forced referee Michael Alexander to intervene. Jackson improved to 7-0 (2 KO).

Brad Casey also remained undefeated, improving to 5-0 (2 KO) after stopping Renars Rusin in the second round. Casey hurt Rusin with a right hand before referee Howard Foster stepped in to stop the fight.

Leighton Birchall remained undefeated after four rounds in a featherweight fight with Leonardo Baez.

Kian Hamilton improved to 2-0 with a four-round victory over Les Urry. Hamilton landed several sturdy body shots during the fight and closed the fight well as Urry spent most of the final round in survival mode.

John Tom Varey improved to 2-0 with a four-round decision over veteran journeyman Stephen Jackson. Varey controlled the action throughout, changing positions and repeatedly forcing Jackson into the ropes, looking for a late-fight stoppage.

Carl Fail improved his record to 12-0 (4 KO) after an eight-round victory over Luis Montelongo. Fail controlled the fight with his jabs and bodywork, hurting Montelongo several times during the fight, making the score 80-72.

Tonight at Doncaster, coach Jamie Moore threw in the towel in the third round to prevent Dave Allen from taking further punishment due to the ponderous hand of Filip Hrgovic.

Allen was a significant underdog on paper and when the opening bell rang, events unfolded exactly as many expected, even despite the vocal cheering from the home team at Eco-Power Stadium.

Hrgovic overtook the Briton from the very beginning and he didn’t budge until the towel came in and Allen lunged wildly and landed little in return. While he looked disappointed in the moment, the hometown hero said after the fight that he had implicit trust in his coaches, Moore and Nigel Travis.

“These two have been with me through it all. I love them to death. If Jamie and Nige say enough is enough. Thank you for taking care of me. If Jamie and Nige think keeping is the right choice, then it is the right choice.”

Allen made no excuses for his defeat, saying Hrgovic was simply too good for him, and thanked his fans for their support nonetheless.

Few will argue with Moore’s decision, especially considering Hrgovic’s reputation as one of the division’s most tough heavyweights makes the chances of Allen firing one decisive shot increasingly slim. His decision, which would not have been simple for a vocal audience, allowed his fighter to drop down one level and fight another day.

Moore’s decision comes amid ongoing debate over whether Ben Davison and team should have pulled Fabio Wardley out of his grueling fight with Daniel Dubois earlier before the referee stopped play in the eleventh round. Tonight, Allen’s team didn’t want to leave anything to chance.

“Canelo Álvarez will return to the ring on September 12 in Riyad to face WBC super middleweight champion Christian Mbilli,” said Turki Alalshikh.

The fight comes a year after Canelo lost to Terence Crawford in Las Vegas – a Netflix event that reportedly attracted more than 41 million viewers. Before this loss, Canelo had spent years at the top of the division, recording nine successful super middleweight title defenses during his undisputed title run.

Mbilli becomes the undefeated WBC champion after winning the interim belt against Maciej Sulecki, before being elevated to full champion in January. The French-Cameroonian fighter has been systematically climbing the rankings and now he is fighting for the title with one of the biggest names in boxing.

“After so many years in this sport, my motivation is still the same: to challenge myself, represent Mexico and continue to build my legacy,” Canelo said. “Mbilli is undefeated and a great fighter, and I respect that.”

Canelo also made it clear that his preparation remains unchanged despite the stage and opponent.

“My focus is always on preparing, performing and giving the fans another great night of boxing,” Canelo said. “On September 12 in Riyad, we start a modern chapter with the same discipline, ambition and vision that have accompanied me throughout my career.”

Mbilli took into account the scale of the opportunity and the interest surrounding the match-up.

“My last fight was the fight of the year,” Mbilli said. “In September against Canelo Alvarez, it will be the fight of the decade.”

“And when the fight is over, the world will witness my historic victory,” he added.

A press conference is scheduled for May 23 in Cairo, where both fighters are expected to meet publicly face-to-face for the first time since their official fight.

The announcement ends weeks of speculation about Canelo’s next opponent and gives Mbilli the biggest fight of his career against one of the biggest names in the sport.