BoxRec

Richard Riakporhe vs Fabio Turchi set for March 26 in London

Richard Riakporhe and Fabio Turchi will look to take a big step toward a possible world title fight when the cruiserweights meet in a Sky Sports main event on March 26 in London.

Riakporhe (13-0, 9 KO) and Turchi (20-1, 14 KO) can get into good position with the WBC with a win in the bout. Ilunga Junior Makabu holds the WBC belt at the moment, and just made a mandatory defense on Jan. 29 against Thabiso Mchunu.

Riakporhe, 32, last fought in November, scoring a fifth round stoppage win over veteran Olanrewaju Durodola. The 28-year-old Turchi has won three straight since an upset loss to Tommy McCarthy in 2019. He won a stay-busy fight in December in his last outing, which means he’s at least got a recent training camp and shouldn’t come in with rust.

Another interesting cruiserweight bout is also set for the show between unbeatens Mikael Lawal (15-0, 9 KO) and Deion Jumah (13-0, 7 KO). Super middleweight Zak Chelli will also be in action, plus welterweight Chris Kongo, and lightweight Caroline Dubois in her second pro bout after her pro debut on Feb. 5.

Will be same day as Martinez-Warrington rematch on DAZN.

Mikael Lawal vs Deion Jumah

Caroline Dubois
Zak Chelli
Chris Kongo

I like the Lawal/Jumah fight. Not too bothered by the main event.

maverick23 wrote: ↑16 Feb 2022, 11:56 I like the Lawal/Jumah fight. Not too bothered by the main event.

I’ll be watching DAZN.

It's all about the WBC ratings. Easy fight for Richard. Not very inspiring but the right move.

Press Release

Richard Riakporhe’s dream of becoming World Cruiserweight Champion takes a step closer when he headlines BOXXER Fight Night: London at the OVO Wembley Arena, London on Saturday, March 26.

Victory for Riakporhe (13-0, 9 KO’s) will put him in prime position to secure a world title shot later this year and put him within touching distance of achieving his greatest ambition.

Standing in his way is former WBC International Cruiserweight Champion Fabio Turchi (20-1, 14 KO’s). The heavy-handed Italian, who has secured 66% of his wins by way of stoppage, is also set on becoming world champion and is headed to London intent on shattering Riakporhe’s dreams in front of his home crowd.

Cruiserweight contenders are also set to collide in the chief support slot when Mikael Lawal (15-0, 9 KO’s) faces former English Cruiserweight Champion Deion Jumah (13-0, 7 KO’s) in what promises to be an explosive encounter to determine which is them can lay claim to top spot in the domestic rankings.

Having commenced her professional career with a polished shutout decision win in Cardiff this past weekend, Caroline Dubois (1-0) will have her second professional outing on this card. Younger sister of Daniel Dubois, Caroline won numerous plaudits as a 37-3 amateur and has the potential to become one of the faces of the women’s sport worldwide.

Last time super-middleweight prospect Zak Chelli (10-1-1, 5 KO’s) was in the BOXXER ring, he impressed by blasting his way through a four-man, one-night tournament. Having followed that with an emphatic TKO win in the middle of last year, Chelli brings an all-action reputation to the ring as he commences his campaign for title belts in Wembley.

Former WBO Global Welterweight Champion Chris ‘2 Slick’ Kongo (12-1, 7 KO’s) aims to get back into world title contention this year and signed a multi-fight promotional deal with BOXXER earlier this year in pursuit of that aim.

Trained by renowned coach Ben Davison, who counts Undisputed World Super-Lightweight Champion Josh Taylor among his stable, Kongo will be kicking off his world title campaign on this card.

Ben Davison will also be in the corner of London heavyweight Jeamie TKV, another of his prospects, who is making his professional debut having signed an exclusive long-term agreement with BOXXER last month.

The Tottenham-based TKV, whose highly-decorated amateur career included tenure as the Southern Area Heavyweight Champion and English Heavyweight Champion plus a silver medal at the 2019 African Games, turned to Davison for professional training following the success Davison had as trainer of World Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury.

Opening the card, 18-year-old Team England amateur standout Jimmy Lee - winner of eight national titles and a European gold medal - makes his professional debut in a lightweight contest after ending his amateur career with a 96% win ration (47-3).

47-3? That’s a hell of an amateur record isn’t it?

jameswilson wrote: ↑16 Feb 2022, 15:00 47-3? That’s a hell of an amateur record isn’t it?

Yep but their percentages need work.

Lee is another travelling boy, like Price, McCann, the Frankhams and many others. And theres loads more coming through. Lee is extremely well schooled.

I don't mind the main event, and a stoppage would look good if RR can get one.

Lawal-Jumah is really interesting.

I don't even mind the clash of cards too much - it's so easy to watch one after the other these days, it's not like the VHS needs to be set up and as long as they don't give spoilers on the rival card, it's all good (tbf, don't think that has happened for years).

Announced earlier that Dan Azeez has signed with Boxxer and will be defending his British title on this show.

Good signing for himself and Boxxer as I thought he looked great in his last fight.

They haven’t announced his opponent though so can’t imagine it’ll be anyone decent given we’re 2 weeks out.

It makes sense now why Azeez was added.

Turchi’s out and so is Lawal. Jumah has been elevated to fight Riakporhe in the main event which is a pretty good fight.

maverick23 wrote: ↑09 Mar 2022, 08:44 It makes sense now why Azeez was added.

Turchi’s out and so is Lawal. Jumah has been elevated to fight Riakporhe in the main event which is a pretty good fight.

Right so Deion Jumah is fighting Riakporhe?

Richard Riakporhe to face fellow Londoner Deion Jumah in British cruiserweight showdown on March 26

Richard Riakporhe and Deion Jumah to put undefeated records on line following the withdrawals of their original opponents; watch the BOXXER fight night live on Sky Sports on March 26

Richard Riakporhe will face fellow Londoner Deion Jumah in a key clash for the British cruiserweight division on March 26 at Wembley Arena.

Previously scheduled to face different opponents on the March 26 BOXXER card, which will be shown live on Sky Sports, the London cruiserweight rivals are now on collision course following the withdrawal of Fabio Turchi and Mikael Lawal due to injuries sustained in training.

Two undefeated records are on the line, with a win for Riakporhe - who has claimed nine of his 13 victories via knockout - crucial to keeping him on track for world title contention in 2022.

"It's going to be a good fight because he's hungry and he's got a big opportunity now and he wants to dethrone me, but the midnight train is going to run straight through him," Riakporhe told Sky Sports News.

"The show had to go on. Me and my team are not the ones to let the boxing fans down, so we took up the challenge.

"I'm just one of those fighters, I'll fight anybody. I just love the game. I've beaten four people domestically in the top 10 already, and he'll be the fifth on the 26th.

"I think it's going to be a cracker of a fight. The fans are in for a treat."

A win at Wembley Arena would be a career breakout for Jumah, who holds a 14-0 record, and open the door to big opportunities.

"I'd actually been watching Riakporhe online a couple of weeks ago," Jumah said.

"We have all the tools needed to pick Richard apart and stop him - and this is what's happening on the 26th. I've seen loads of weaknesses in him and loads of flaws.

"Fans will see why I've been the most avoided fighter on these shores for so long. They will see that some fighters just need their opportunity. They'll see why I've been saying I'm the best cruiserweight in the country for so many years. This is my time now."

BOXXER founder and chief executive Ben Shalom said: "With Richard Riakporhe on track to secure a world title shot this year, this fight is a huge opportunity for Deion Jumah to step in and steal that momentum for himself. A win here would be huge for Jumah and there's a lot on the line for Riakporhe, so I don't expect either to take a backwards step."

Sky Sports Head of Boxing Development Adam Smith, said: "Richard Riakporhe is really gathering momentum as he climbs the cruiserweight ladder and now his brilliant story takes a twist. With Fabio Turchi out, in steps the undefeated and dangerous British southpaw Deion Jumah for a really intriguing fight night live on Sky Sports on March 26th."

i remember jumah being signed straight at the start of his career by sauerland, saw him on a german show, then his career died down hard. time to really show what he's got here, my guess is that rick overwhelms him eventually

these awesome am records like 47-3 are mainly guys from the juniors arent they. who was that tall guy at super middleweight who turned pro last year, 44-4 as an am or something, then looked totally weak and lucky to win his debut. im sure jimmy's very tasty but hyping those types of records can lead to some disappointment when you ppl actually see the guys pro

margaret thatcher wrote: ↑09 Mar 2022, 10:10 i remember jumah being signed straight at the start of his career by sauerland, saw him on a german show, then his career died down hard. time to really show what he's got here, my guess is that rick overwhelms him eventually

I remember that too. There’s been a few Brits over the years that signed with Sauerland and it didn’t really seem to help their careers. Not sure what happened with Jumah.

I think Riakporhe wins but we should find out how good Jumah actually is.

margaret thatcher wrote: ↑09 Mar 2022, 10:24 these awesome am records like 47-3 are mainly guys from the juniors arent they. who was that tall guy at super middleweight who turned pro last year, 44-4 as an am or something, then looked totally weak and lucky to win his debut. im sure he's very tasty but those types of records make dudes seem more impressive than they are

John Hedges. He looked crap on his debut but I think it’s partly down to him still growing (pretty sure he’s a couple of inches taller now than he was on debut). They’ve said they’ll not make him make a particular weight limit for the fight in the short term but they need to take things super slow with him until he’s stopped growing and is able to get some man strength.

ah yep, that's the guy

dude was already one lanky mofo, so could end up being a heavy or something in the end

jeeez, they got that percentage wrong out of a record with exactly 50 fights too, how hard is it to figure out what 47 doubled is.

Press Release | Dan Azeez Inks Long-Term Promotional Pact With BOXXER

British Light Heavyweight Champion ‘Super’ Dan Azeez (15-0, 10 KO’s) has signed an exclusive long-term promotional deal with BOXXER and will defend his title at OVO Wembley Arena on Saturday, March 26, live on Sky Sports.

The undefeated London man will be making his first defence of the belt he won in November with a career-best performance which resulted in a seventh-round stoppage of former champion Hosea Burton.

Having won the Southern Area title and English title in 2019, November’s win entered Azeez into the record books in November as the first British boxer in the light-heavyweight division to have won the trio of domestic titles.

Azeez boxed for Essex University while studying a Finance & Accounting degree and turned professional in 2017 after an exemplary amateur career in which he captured the Haringey Box Cup, Odivelas Box Cup and reached the National Finals of the South of England ABAs.

With 10 of his 15 wins by way of knockout, he has a growing reputation as a boxer who marries a cerebral boxing game with raw power and aggression, capable of boxing tactically or engaging in close-range firefights as required.

"I'm delighted to be signing with BOXXER and fighting on Sky Sports. I believe I’ve earned my place to showcase my skills on this great platform. I'm looking forward to defending my British title on March 26 as I continue my journey to reach the pinnacle of the sport and become a world champion," said Azeez.

BOXXER Founder and CEO Ben Shalom said “Dan Azeez has fought the hard way to the top of the pyramid through Southern Area, English and British titles. He is an inspiring personality with a great boxing style. We are delighted to secure his signing after his last outing against Hosea Burton, where he became one of the most talked about light heavyweights in the country.”

Press Release | Shannon Ryan, Managed By Joshua, Makes Pro Debut on March 26

Prospect Shannon Ryan will make her professional debut on Saturday 26th March on the BOXXER Fight Night at the OVO Arena Wembley, live and exclusive on Sky Sports.

Ryan said “I am excited to be working with a supportive team (258MGT) that will help me establish myself within the boxing industry, the goal is to inspire and motivate the next generation.”

Managed by former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua under his banner 258 Management, the Watford hot shot is well versed in combat sports with an extensive career starting in kickboxing when she was five years old, winning multiple international tournaments and culminating in two WAKO titles and recognised as the world’s best at her weight. Ryan was then given a place on the Team GB Taekwondo squad.

Ben Shalom, BOXXER founder and CEO, said, “I’m looking forward to seeing Shannon’s pro debut on March 26 and she is another great female talent to watch out for.”

Searching for a new challenge, Ryan then channeled her focus towards using her fists and found boxing where as an amateur she excelled in winning the 2019 Women’s Winter Box Cup and 2018 Alliance Boxing Champion while winning silver at the 2020 London Championships.

Now Ryan is set for professional ranks and the dream of becoming a world hampion. She will be trained by Gevon Archilbald and will compete in the super flyweight division.

Freddie Cunningham, Managing Director at 258 MGT, said, “Shannon has been working really hard in the background and we are pleased to be able to get her this opportunity on Sky and we are confident she will grab it with both hands.”

Don't know why media work outs are today.