Liam Smith Next Fight
Per Source, Promoter BOXXER will stage a Saturday night fight night show on September 3rd at the Echo Arena, Liverpool. That card will be headlined by their new signing in the 154-pound division in Liam ‘Beefy Smith’. Smith has 3 fights with BOXXER and the first one is expected to be a relatively straightforward win before jumping into bigger fights next year.
Demetrius Andrade who is now represented by Dmitry Salita Promotions is one option for a major fight due to the close link between Salita and BOXXER/Sky through fighters like Claressa Shields. Chris Eubank Jr was originally supposed to be the fight for Liam Smith but he is on a one-fight deal with Matchroom/DAZN for Conor Benn and expected to remain there for the foreseeable future but if he does not, that could be an option for Smith’s second/third fight.
Also on the Liam Smith card will be the return of one of Britain’s top rising prospects in Adam Azim who will have his sixth professional contest. Natasha Jonas is from Liverpool as well and could feature on the card if she does not land a slot on the all-female card the week after. Jonas was reportedly in talks with Rankin but that fight may not happen due to competing offers.
Joshua Buatsi
According to multiple reports, The IBF yesterday ordered a world title eliminator in the light heavyweight division between its two highest ranked contenders in England’s Joshua Buatsi and Canada’s Jean Pascal for their champion Artur Beterbiev. The IBF has only had one mandatory in this division since Beterbiev claimed the title in 2017, so the Buatsi-Pascal the winner is very likely to get a shot in 2023.
If Buatsi cannot secure a fight with WBA Champion Dmitry Bivol due to the ordered mandatory against Gilberto Ramirez, this would be the next best option for Buatsi. Team Pascal doesn’t have a problem taking this fight after their win over IBF #1 Fanlong Meng on ProBox TV earlier this year. Pascal has a really strong resume over a long period of time and would be an excellent name for Buatsi on his record.
Ebanie Bridges
Per Aus-Boxing.com, the IBF has ordered a mandatory defence for Bantamweight world champion Australia’s Ebanie Bridges against the number one contender, also from Australia, Shannon O’Connell. Negotiations between the two camps will take place over the coming weeks, the fight must take place by September 26.
Ebanie Bridges was planning to have a voluntary defence in the UK in September but with both her and O’Connell being Australian, it is likely that Bridges-O’Connell takes place down under. Matchroom Boxing, the promoter for Ebanie Bridges, have an Australia show planned for September headlined by Brock Jarvis and Liam Paro, it would make sense for that show to shoot up in magnitude and have Bridges O’Connell added to it.
Smith O’maison Undercard Update
Sheffield Arena has revealed the full card for the Dalton Smith vs Sam O’maison NXT GEN on Aug 6 live on DAZN. Ticket sales are going really well for this event with a crowd expected of over 5k.
Dalton Smith Vs Sam O’Maison
Kieron Conway Vs Aro Schwartz
Aqib Fiaz Vs Shaun Cooper
Nico Leivars Vs Angel Gabriel Chavez
Junaid Boston Vs Jose Manuel Lopez Clavero
Callum Beardow Vs Robbie Chapman
Hopey Price Vs Alexander Mejia
Campbell Hatton Vs Michal Dufek
Jordan Thompson Vs Vasil Ducar
Johnny Fisher Vs Michal Reissinger
Sandy Ryan Vs Erica Anabella Farias
New Matchroom Signing
Per her SecondsOut interview, 6x National Amateur Champion Maisey Rose Courtney has just got her professional licence and is training out of the Matchroom Gym. Like every professional training out of that gym, she is expected to sign with Matchroom and DAZN and be the latest addition to their female stable.
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