Conah Walker vs. Sam Eggington | DAZN - 2 May 2026

[SeanBrennan]

I meant to add to my comment and have managed to repeat it. I’m slick with IT me…

[Spud MK2]

Great fight!!'

[SeanBrennan]

Great fight!!'

Definitely. This is one of those fights where I’ll want Sam to win so much I won’t be able to eat on the day

[skanksta]

I love it that you're so excited.

[Spud MK2]

Great fight!!'

Definitely. This is one of those fights where I’ll want Sam to win so much I won’t be able to eat on the day

I want Sam to win because I hold his trainer/manager jon pegg in such high regard.

Unfortunately i think sam
Has had to go to the well too many times

[The Law]

Great fight!!'

Definitely. This is one of those fights where I’ll want Sam to win so much I won’t be able to eat on the day

I want Sam to win because I hold his trainer/manager jon pegg in such high regard.

Unfortunately i think sam
Has had to go to the well too many times

I agree. Jon Pegg is one of the nicest and most genuine guys in boxing. I hope Sam wins

[Spud MK2]

[SeanBrennan]

Great pic

Jon Pegg is alongside Joe Gallagher my hero in the sport. None of us know how a fight will pan out but I think and hope Sam does it

[SeanBrennan]

I love it that you're so excited.

I’m pathetic mate I was sick the day Lee Swaby fought Enzo my dad watched the fight we were all rooting for Lee and when he sparked him I feinted.

Imagine if I’d been a boxer I’d have been collapsing mid-fight

[Spud MK2]

I love it that you're so excited. :yay:

I’m pathetic mate I was sick the day Lee Swaby fought Enzo my dad watched the fight we were all rooting for Lee and when he sparked him I feinted.

Imagine if I’d been a boxer I’d have been collapsing mid-fight

Sean are you sure we havnt crossed paths ...

[Ruthless-RKO]

Fight Week!!

[SeanBrennan]

I love it that you're so excited.

I’m pathetic mate I was sick the day Lee Swaby fought Enzo my dad watched the fight we were all rooting for Lee and when he sparked him I feinted.

Imagine if I’d been a boxer I’d have been collapsing mid-fight

Sean are you sure we havnt crossed paths ...

They are brilliant pics thanks for sharing Spid that’s ace.

I don’t know if we have mate I’m terrible remembering people I walked past my aunty the other month forgot who she was I’m a right liability. Hope you’re well the pics are great.

[SeanBrennan]

Fight Week!!

Can’t wait!

[Ruthless-RKO]

Conah Walker dismisses claims he is ‘younger and fresher’ than Sam Eggington

Conah Walker has no intention of disappointing fans who are anticipating fireworks when he faces Sam Eggington on Saturday.

They meet in an English Midlands derby that could catch fire and Walker – along with many others – has it pegged as a possible fight-of-the-year contender.

The 30 year old, from Wolverhampton, is ranked fifth by the WBA, and should he get through his veteran opponent he will be on the cusp of a title shot.

Walker is in the form of his life, following big wins over Harry Scarff, Liam Taylor and Pat McCormack. But the Eggington fight is one that has long appealed to him.

“I’ve been asking for Sam Eggington as long as I can remember, because it sells, for one,” Walker told BS ahead of their sold-out clash at The Halls at the University of Wolverhampton. “As you can see with how fast it sold out and the backing we’ve got behind it – and people are sort of shouting from the rooftops. So, I’ve been asking for it for a very long time and it’s come to fruition now. We was back and forth [on social media] before just saying ‘Look, we’ll try and get it sorted’ in our messages to each other.

“He tweeted, because we didn’t get the fight with Ekow [Essuman], which we wanted. He said ‘I’ve seen that Conor’s struggling for an opponent, I’ll step in’. I've retweeted, I’ve reshared it, and I’ve messaged him saying ‘Look, I’ve put your name forward as the one I want’.”

They are throwback fighters who have done the deal with a modern twist. There was little back and forth, on socials or in negotiations, and the deal was soon done. They know one another well, too.

“We’re mates,” said Walker. “We grew up around the same area. We’ve been on the scene for years. I’ve watched all his fights coming up and he’s a good man. Nothing against him, we’re just in this business to fight and make money. And we shake hands after. But as it stands, we’re going to tear each other’s face off.”

Despite their familiarity with one another, they’ve never previously shared a ring.

Walker is on fire following recent wins, while Eggington was given an uncomfortable night by Lee Cutler in his past fight in April 2025. Walker contends that if that version of Eggington shows up against him, then it will be straightforward.

“He’ll get a beatdown,” said Walker. But “The Wolf” is not anticipating that. He felt that Bournemouth’s Cutler was getting to Eggington before cuts forced the bout’s untimely stoppage.

Eggington is a battle-hardened 36-9 (20 KOs) and he has a back catalogue of thrilling fights.

Walker smiles when he is asked whether there’s a chance Eggington could get old overnight and not be what he once was.

“They’ve been saying that for the last seven years,” he responded. “Believe me, he’ll be putting everything into this camp because it’s his homecoming, too. And he knows what sort of fight it’s going to be. So I’ve got no doubt in my mind that he’s going to relight the flame and come in in the best possible shape and so will I.

“So I hope he does because we need to make a big fight for the fans. I missed out on the fight of the year just gone – it went to Conor Benn and Chris Eubank. So let’s go and get that fight of the year.”

With that in mind, Eggington is two years older at 32, and while he has had more tough fights, Walker scoffs at the notion that their mileage is very different.

“Look, he’s only two years older than me,” said Walker. “He’s only 32. It’s no different to me because, like I say, I lose any fight moving forward now, I’m back down in the pecking order. So every fight is a world-title fight for me now. I did it with [Lewis] Ritson. I took my foot off the pedal with Ritson and I paid the price. I didn’t believe I boxed as well as I could do and I come out of the fight a bit upset with myself. I’ve learned that lesson.

“You’ve got to treat every man as if he’s going to be causing you the most problems that they can. I’ve trained unbelievably hard. I’m as fit as I’ve ever been. I’m as strong as I’ve ever been. Every fight now is a world title fight.”

And that, ultimately, is what Walker wants. He’s rated by both the IBF and the WBA and with Matchroom’s backing and having previously pushed the IBF 147lbs champion Lewis Crocker all the way, Walker wants a world title.

“I believe I can be world champion,” he concluded. “I’ve done everything other than European and world now. And I believe I’m world level. And the 147 division champions, I believe I beat them all. Look, I’ve got Sam and I’ve got this homecoming to deal with, which is another thing that I’ve ticked off in my career, which I’ve always wanted to do, so this is a world title for me. This is massive. Get through Sam and then to the world we go.”

[Ruthless-RKO]

Conah Walker confident before 'fantasy fight' with Sam Eggington

Once upon a time, Conah Walker hated the sound of his morning alarm. These days, the welterweight contender bounces out of bed to start his day.

Last year, thrilling, brutal stoppage wins over Harry Scarff, Liam Taylor and Pat McCormack earned Walker the British, Commonwealth 147-pound titles to move him up the world rankings. If not for WBO heavyweight champion Fabio Wardley's exploits, the 30-year-old would have been a shoo-in for British Fighter of the Year honors.

On Saturday, Walker (17-3-1, 8 KOs) returns home to Wolverhampton. Tickets flew out for his fight with Smethwick's Sam Eggington (36-9, 20 KOs) and a loud, partisan crowd will fill the city's Civic Hall as DAZN exclusively stream what is expected to be an all-out war in the West Midlands.

Lots of fighters say that they love their work. Walker genuinely means it.

“It's my dream job. I'm a tiler by trade and I hate it,” Walker told The Ring.

“I've worked some silly hours. I've been up in the morning running, going to work all day and then getting to the gym at night. I've done it the real hard way.

“Now, I’m in Manchester. My partner's off work, I’m training with one of the best coaches in the world [Jamie Moore] and alongside some of the best lads that you'll ever meet. I'm just in awe of my lifestyle and my life.”

Walker is in an especially good mood, knowing he will be sharing the ring with a kindred spirit this weekend.

He will also do it at Eggington's preferred weight. The fight has been made just a pound inside the junior middleweight limit of 154 pounds.

For a few weeks after his dramatic December win over McCormack, it looked like Walker would secure a rematch with the last man to beat him in IBF welterweight champion Lewis Crocker. When boxing politics shelved those plans, Walker was given the opportunity to return to Wolverhampton for the first time in four years.

The search went out for a well-known, entertaining opponent. As far as Walker was concerned, the weight was bottom of his list of concerns. Longtime junior middleweight Eggington ticked both boxes.

Beating his Midlands rival won't help Walker's welterweight ranking but it will cement his position as a fan favorite and do his future negotiating powers no harm.

“Sam [Jones, Walker’s manager] was like, “Look, we'll try and get it at 152 pounds,” but I said I'm not even arsed. Get it at 154, it doesn't bother me. What's half a stone between two men?” he said.

“I've fought at light heavyweight in the amateurs so look, it's not an issue.

“Welterweight is my weight. I'll get this fight out of the way and I'll drop back down. I've still got IBF and WBA [ranking] belts in the 147-pound division so I'll drop straight back down, defend them or hopefully get a world title shot, something of some substance but this is just a fantasy fight.

“There were names on the table and I chose Sam. That was the one I wanted because it sells. It's a massive fight. He's a big name from where we're from, I’m a big name and it just made sense. Look at the numbers. It's sold out within a week of going on sale.

“It just sells, doesn't it? We don't have to do no s—t talking, we get on.”

Eggington has been one of British boxing’s most exciting fighters for the best part of a decade.

The Birmingham man’s low profile may lead those who don’t keep up with the sport's day-to-day happenings to assume Walker’s team have dragged up a recognisable but unmotivated name from the past for his homecoming but that couldn’t be further from the truth.

Eggington has been around for a long time but still just 32 as rumors suggest he is fit and on form in the gym. He has lost only two majority decisions over the past six years - to Dennis Hogan and future WBA junior middleweight world champion Abass Baraou - and will relish the idea of fighting somebody who comes looking for him.

None of that matters to Walker. Confident fighters rarely spend much time discussing what their opponents may or may not do and Walker enters fight week concentrating solely on himself.

“Listen, if he wants to go toe-to-toe, we can. I'll beat him any way he wants to fight me, it’s just on him which way he wants to get beat,” he said.

“I'm not overly arsed about how he wants to fight. If he wants to box me, then I'll just walk you down and beat you up. If he wants to stand and have it, we will. It's both our bread and butter. We both love it.

“It's just that I'm fresher and I've got less miles on the clock.

[SeanBrennan]

Nice to see a respectful press conference/ interview today with them both. No waffle. No false beef. Two fellas from West Midlands who are going to have a fight. Sam looks so much bigger than Conah and has been training like a demon for this. I think he’s going to do what he’s done many times and break Conah.

Either way I wish them both the best, hope they get paid loads and both leave the ring healthy. This is one of those fights where you can wish both the best, two good people.

I’ve followed Sam since near the beginning though and think he’s going to do it. This is no final hurrah from him, he’s 32 and he’s going to do it. And you know with Jon Pegg in his corner who is kind enough to post on here, Sam will be looked after either way.

Here’s to a great fight. So happy to see Bilal Fawaz fighting too and earning, now that man has been through more than enough for 5 life times. Works 3 jobs, refugee, inhumane childhood and early years and he’s on the main stage winning. If that man doesn’t deserve citizenship the world is crazy.

I’ll get off my soapbox now.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Sam Eggington ready for it to ‘go off’ against Conah Walker

“I think it’s a given,” said Sam Eggington, asked whether his Saturday all-Midlands contest with Conah Walker will be a Fight of the Year contender.

“It’s bound to set alight. It’s bound to. I mean, you revert back to what you know, and we both know what we are. It’s pretty obvious what we both like to do and how we both get our job done. So it’s going to revert back to what we know and it’s going to be a tear-up. What round will that be? It could be Round 1. It could be Round 4. It could be Round 8. It doesn’t matter when, but it will go off.”

Eggington-Walker has been in the offing for a while, though with Eggington a couple of years older, at 32, and having turned pro earlier, it took a while for Walker to appear on his radar.

“We knew of each other,” Eggington said of his crosstown rival.

“If I see him about, I’d ask him how things are going, what’s up next and stuff like that, but it’s just we never got into sparring or anything crazy. I don’t know him super-well, I just know him to say hello sort of thing. With the weight and the trajectory of both our careers, [fighting each other] has never really been on schedule or in our plans.”

The plan for this weekend is war.

Walker arrives in the form of his life, while the veteran Eggington has not fought since a technical decision over Lee Cutler last April in a fight that finished early because of cuts. Still, Eggington has yet to show the signs of decline some anticipate because of the number of hard fights he has amassed in his thrilling back catalogue of brutal slugfests.

Although he has respect for what Walker has done, Eggington believes people are selling him short on what he has done.

“Granted, I don’t watch a lot of boxing,” said the 32-year-old Eggington. “I’ve saw a lot of clips and half a round here and there, and he’s done well. But everything he’s done to win fights in his last two or three, I’ve made a 13-, 14-year career off, so it can only stand to be a good fight. People are saying, ‘Sam’s past it now,’ but we’ll see. We’ll see.”

The prediction that Eggington will grow old overnight has been doing the rounds for years. He grins wryly at that.

“Do you know what it is? People lose a few times and they retire, so when you lose a few times and you don’t retire and you’re still doing well, people just expect you to,” Eggington said of calling it a day. “I was talking to my son the other day, and he was talking about the boxing, and I was like, ‘When you’ve had as many fights as me and you’ve been around as long as me, you don’t get many opportunities. And he was like, ‘Why?’ I said, ‘Because people retire.’ He went, ‘Well, why do they retire?’ He didn’t say anything crazy, but it made us think – it’s the truth – why do they retire? You don’t have to, just because it’s a done thing because you’ve lost two or three or four and you retire now. If anything, I’ve broken that chain.

“If you’ve lost a few times, you can still come back and do it. I’m not here to earn dough and just walk off. I’m here to win, win well. I need people to know that, because when I get into the ring, like I said, I get more grief [from the boxing establishment] for winning fights than I do losing fights. Because when I win, people are saying, ‘Oh, Sam, he’ll be back again now, he’s had this many [fights].’ But I’m winning, so what do you expect me to do?

“Look, listen, no one knows when you get old overnight – that’s a given. But I always feel great. People are forgetting that I’m only 32. Conah’s 30. It’s only because he’s had less fights than me that people are … He’s literally 18 months younger than me. I just think people jump on the bandwagon, and [if] you’ve lost a few, you should quit, really. And that's why everyone, when they look at my record, they think, ‘Oh, Sam should be quit by now because he's had so many, he’s lost this many.’ Again, who says who should quit? Again, I’m winning. I’m top of the bill again. My last fight was a big win. The fight before that, I only lost a split decision to a kid who went on to win, defend and try and unify the division.”

That fight was against Abass Baraou, who defeated Eggington via split decision in March 2024. Baraou went on to claim the WBA 154lbs title and only lost in a unification fight with Xander Zayas via split decision in January.

“Again, with Conah, he lost against [Lewis] Crocker and he’s had a few good wins since, and people are calling for world title fights. If that’s the case, my last loss was a kid who went on to try and unify. So who’s calling for my world title fight? Do you know what I mean? Same, same. It just depends who’s blowing the smoke, that’s all.”

The Baraou fight was almost two years ago. Eggington has boxed only twice since, and the most recent one was more than a year ago against Cutler.

“It’s been frustrating,” he said of the inactivity.

“But the last two or three years have been like this.”

And although he might not appreciate that now, maybe the time between fights will do him good.

Eggington is 36-9 (20 KOs). He has been in countless Fight of the Year contenders and believes this will be another.

If this weekend is to see another, he can’t afford to “get old overnight,” and he is sure he won’t.

He thinks there are more fireworks to let off in his career.

“It’s a given,” he said.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Tiah Ayton forced to ditch phone after online hate

Teenager Tiah Ayton had to ditch her phone for a week in the wake of her most recent victory after a bombardment of hate from internet trolls.

The 19-year-old from Bristol had kicked off her career with four straight stoppage wins but was taken the distance for the first time by Catherine Tacone Ramos (9-4-1, 2 KOs) in Nottingham on February 21.

Ayton (5-0, 4 KOs) felt she learned a lot over the course of the eight two-minute rounds against a Brazilian who boasts a victory over former world champion Shannon Courtenay.

But the youngster, who is considered one of the brightest talents in the Matchroom stable, was alarmed by the response that was waiting for her when she checked her phone.

“I took a lot from that fight,” Ayton told The Ring. “I feel like I learned a lot.

“It showed me that I can’t just go in there stopping everyone all the time. I’ve actually got to box as well. I felt like getting the rounds was good.

“But on the Monday morning after, I felt bad about it. I didn’t go on my phone for a week because I had loads of hate comments and all of that.

“People were just going in on me about my performance. I couldn’t believe the hate, it was the first time I’ve had anything like that in my career.

“I have loads of nice comments but the bad ones stand out more.”

Ayton admits she was not at her best against Tacone Ramos but explained how a fight week illness nearly forced her to pull out of the contest altogether.

She said: “What people don’t know is I had tonsillitis in the week and I had to cut four kilos the night before the weigh in. All of that just took a toll on me, really.

“But now I know when I’m ill, I’m just not going to fight. I thought I could do it but I couldn’t. It’s a lesson learned.”

With that experience banked, Ayton is now heading into the sixth outing of her career and her first against a fellow Brit as she takes on Stevi Levy (15-4, 2 KOs) over eight in Wolverhampton on Saturday.

And, with her KO hot streak over, Ayton can feel there is less pressure to ensure this fight ends inside the distance.

“Not everyone will expect me to just turn up and knock everyone out now,” she said. “It’s good that it has kind of died down now and I appreciate it a little bit.

“Stevi is my first British opponent which will be good I think. She has messaged me on Instagram just saying thanks for the opportunity and that she’s always been watching me and has been since I was like 10.

“I told her I’m grateful for her too so there’s no bad blood there. But this is a good fight for me because people know who she is and a lot of people are excited about the fight because of that.

“Now I feel like I need to prove to everybody that I’m levels above most female boxers.”

[SeanBrennan]

Imagine cutting weight and being ill, bleugh. Getting hate? She’s only 19 poor sod.

[SeanBrennan]

And Sam makes a good point you’d think there’s a 20 year age gap the way some have gone on in the press.

[MPW]

And Sam makes a good point you’d think there’s a 20 year age gap the way some have gone on in the press.

Yeah, it certainly does seem that way. With less than two years in age difference between them, Eggington has 45 bouts under his belt, while Walker has 21.

Inoue-Nakatani aside, I think this one has the potential to be the fight of the weekend.

[SeanBrennan]

And Sam makes a good point you’d think there’s a 20 year age gap the way some have gone on in the press.

Yeah, it certainly does seem that way. With less than two years in age difference between them, Eggington has 45 bouts under his belt, while Walker has 21.

Inoue-Nakatani aside, I think this one has the potential to be the fight of the weekend.

I think so too. I’m pathetic I’m nervous already.

I’m 42

[SeanBrennan]

The thing I think is really funny in a good way is that Sam doesn’t watch loads of boxing or anything, he’s just really good at it and can fight for fun.

But then if I had to punch people for a living I’d not be arsed about watching it when I’m not.

[deadpan]

In the ratio of ticket money spent to entertainment provided Sam is nigh on peerless. What a fighter.

[SeanBrennan]

In the ratio of ticket money spent to entertainment provided Sam is nigh on peerless. What a fighter.

Excellent point! Proper chilled too you never hear him talking rubbish about an opponent or waffling on about I’m this I’m that. He’s the antithesis of Conor Benn