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Wardley vs Clarke
Wardley vs Clarke
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Date31 Mar 2024
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VenueThe O2 arena
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AvailabilityOn sale now
Event Details
Unbeaten heavyweight rivals Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke collide in a ‘Bad Blood’ showdown for the British and Commonwealth Titles on Sunday 31 March at The O2 in London, live on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland, and Peacock in the USA.
Reigning champion Wardley (17-0, 16 KOs) is on an incredible 16-fight KO streak, which has seen him steamroll his way through the domestic division. The 29-year-old from Ipswich looked at his devastating best last time out when dismantling David Adeleye on the Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou undercard on October 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Tokyo 2020 Olympic Bronze Medallist Clarke (8-0, 6 KOs) is just eight fights into his promising professional career. Last year, ‘Big Fraze’ banked ten valuable rounds against former world title challenger Mariusz Wach before retiring domestic rival David Allen in the sixth-round to continue his unbeaten run.
Riley (10-0, 6 KOs) returns to action following a shut-out points win over Nathan Quarless to capture the English Cruiserweight Title last September at York Hall. The talented Tottenham man has set his sights on the big fights in a stacked domestic division and can expect his toughest career test when he faces London rival Lawal.
Lawal (17-1, 11 KOs) will be looking to get back to winning ways having lost his British Cruiserweight Title to Isaac Chamberlain in October. The heavy-handed fighter from Shepherd’s Bush has the chance for redemption as he gets straight back into the domestic mix with another high-profile contest against undefeated opposition.
Whittaker (6-0, 5 KOs) has become a viral sensation with clips of his flamboyant showboating during his stoppage win over Khalid Graidia on February 3rd generating millions of views and global interest on social media.
Tipped for superstardom, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Silver Medallist will look to capitalise on his new-found attention by delivering another show stealing performance following his win over Graidia on the Buatsi-Azeez card in Wembley.
There’s no love lost between Marku and Kongo, who had to be pulled apart following an explosive press conference altercation last year. It will be a clash of styles as the ‘Albanian King’ and ‘2 Slick’ meet in the capital to settle their long-standing feud in a fascinating ten round contest.
Marku, the unbeaten former IBF International Champion, made short work of his last opponent, stopping Dylan Moran inside 60 seconds on the undercard of the Liam Smith vs Chris Eubank Jr rematch on September 2nd in Manchester. The 31-year-old will be raring to go following this speedy stoppage win and is expected to bring an army of Albanian supporters with him to London.
Kongo returns following a narrow points defeat to Ekow Essuman for the British, Commonwealth, IBF European and WBC International Silver Welterweight Titles on January 21st last year. The Bermondsey man thought he did another to edge the contest but found himself of the wrong end of a majority decision at Manchester’s AO Arena.
Babic (11-1, 10 KOs) returns to The O2 where he has previously recorded wins over Morgan Dessaux, former World Title challenger Eric Molina and Adam Balski. The popular Croatian heavyweight has built a cult following in the UK where he has amassed a series of impressive KO wins. His unbeaten run was cut short when challenging Lukasz Rozanski for the WBC Bridgerweight World Title in Poland last April. The 33-year-old will be looking to get back to winning ways when faces Newcastle’s Steve ‘Drago’ Robinson (6-2, 4 KOs) as part of a huge night of boxing in the capital.
Simpson (13-0, 9 KOs) was ringside to watch Zak Chelli capture the British Super Middleweight Title from Jack Cullen at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool in January. The Barnsley man is mandatory challenger for the British Title but before he has his crack at the Lonsdale belt, the 27-year-old will look to extend his unbeaten streak as he returns to London following a unanimous points win over Jose de Jesus Macias at York Hall in September.
Additional Ticket Information
Unbeaten heavyweight rivals Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke collide in a ‘Bad Blood’ showdown for the British and Commonwealth Titles on Sunday 31 March at The O2 in London, live on Sky Sports in the UK and Ireland, and Peacock in the USA. Ticket information coming soon.
Reigning champion Wardley (17-0, 16 KOs) is on an incredible 16-fight KO streak, which has seen him steamroll his way through the domestic division. The 29-year-old from Ipswich looked at his devastating best last time out when dismantling David Adeleye on the Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou undercard on October 28 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Tokyo 2020 Olympic Bronze Medallist Clarke (8-0, 6 KOs) is just eight fights into his promising professional career. Last year, ‘Big Fraze’ banked ten valuable rounds against former world title challenger Mariusz Wach before retiring domestic rival David Allen in the sixth-round to continue his unbeaten run.
Wardley and Clarke have been on a collision course as both men look to establish themselves as the number one heavyweight in Britain. Their simmering rivalry reached boiling point following a cancelled purse bid last year.
Clarke was ordered as mandatory challenger for Wardley’s Lonsdale belt in April but was later withdrawn from purse bids. The fallout sparked a series of tense exchanges between the warring heavyweights and has added serious spite to their Bank Holiday Super Sunday showdown.
Fabio Wardley said: “I’m absolutely buzzing to be headlining what will be a massive show at The O2, I’ve fought there a lot before so it’s like a home away from home for me. As a seasoned former Olympian, Frazer Clarke is definitely the most well-schooled boxer I’ll have ever faced, but there’s some lessons you can’t learn in school… And I've got more than enough firepower in my arsenal to lay him flat on his back, just like all my other opponents.”
Frazer Clarke said: “Finally, the fight that I wanted and the fight that the British public wanted. The talking is over, it’s here. Headlining The O2 for the British and Commonwealth Titles is something I’ve dreamed of. I’m ready to take out Fabio Wardley and bring the titles back to Burton upon Trent. There’s been a lot of back and forth but now we can settle it like men.”
“The Bad Blood needs to be settled,” said BOXXER founder and CEO Ben Shalom. “We’re more committed than ever to making the biggest domestic fights for British fight fans and I’m excited for BOXXER to deliver a British heavyweight classic on 31 March at The O2. After the outrage last year, this fight has been one that has been really important to make, with fight fans desperate to see it. I'm really happy to deliver the opportunity to Frazer Clarke against Fabio Wardley who is a dangerous man and a great champion.”
Wardley vs Clarke will top an action-packed fight card in the capital with undercard fights to be announced soon. Having faced off in the ring before Joshua Buatsi and Dan Azeez’s light heavyweight final eliminator, Wardley and Clarke will come face-to-face again at a launch press conference on Wednesday 7 February in London.
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Date31 Mar 2024
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VenueThe O2 arena
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AvailabilityOn sale now