[dramatic rock music playing]
[narrator] London.
It remembers the nights, the lights,
the fights, the echoes
long after the final bell.
-[bell ringing]
-Let's get this party started!
[narrator] And tonight, well,
new memories will be forged.
Two battles, four giants.
First, it's Conor Benn.
He's got fast hands, fierce intent.
Put that in your pipe and smoke it.
How about that?
[narrator] A fighter
who refuses to inherit.
Why don't you drive me
Down that rough and twisted road
[narrator] He's determined
to carve out his own path.
[commentator 1] Unbelievable scenes!
[narrator] And in his way, Regis Prograis.
He's a former world champion.
He knows the price of greatness.
-He's got raw power.
-[commentator 2] The quick jab.
[narrator] Relentless purpose.
[commentator 3] Punching on the outside,
just incredible performance.
[narrator] No,
but this is only the prelude.
[commentator 4] Makhmudov!
[narrator] Arslanbek Makhmudov
looms with silent precision.
He's the knockout artist.
He's a force of fear and devastation.
[commentator 5] One of the hardest punches
in the division.
[narrator] Hunting his 20th KO.
[commentator 6] He does what he does.
It is trouble.
-[narrator] His opponent is Tyson Fury.
-The Gypsy King.
-[laughs]
-[narrator] Forged in chaos
I'm in a circus.
[laughs]
months in shadow.
Now, he's in search of redemption.
[Tyson] You're fighting
the best British heavyweight
there's ever been.
[narrator] Back into the fire.
He's coming back into the fight.
You're getting smashed to pieces, sausage.
[narrator] This is no ordinary night,
let me tell you.
This is where titans collide.
This is where legacies
are tested and rewritten.
Tonight, London holds its breath
as we herald the clash of the giants.
-Let's go, baby! Let's go! [laughs]
-[music concludes]
[epic music playing]
[Elle] Welcome in, as we are streaming
worldwide on Netflix Live
from London, England.
This is the very first
Netflix Live event on British soil,
and it's all happening
inside the iconic home
of Tottenham Hotspur,
a crowd in excess of 50,000
set to pack this stadium,
promising an absolutely electric night
here in North London.
A massive stage for a seismic night
of boxing presented by Domino's.
So this is Clash of the Giants.
Four fights with real stakes.
Headlined, of course, by the return
of the Gypsy King, Tyson Fury,
taking on
the heavy-handed knockout threat,
Arslanbek Makhmudov.
In the co-main,
Conor "the Destroyer" Benn
coming off that statement win
over Chris Eubank Jr.,
steps in with former two-time
world champion Regis "Rougarou" Prograis.
We've got the British heavyweight title
on the line tonight
as Jeamie Tshikeva defends
against the dangerous
Richard "the Midnight Train" Riakporhe.
But we'll open tonight with Olympic
bronze medallist Frazer Clarke
going toe-to-toe
with Australia's Justis Huni.
So wherever you're watching from,
please settle in.
We've got a great night of boxing ahead
as we're live around the world
in over 190 countries on Netflix.
Hello and a very warm welcome
inside the home of the Spurs.
I am Elle Duncan and I've heard
that in London you wait forever
for one bus to come and then, like,
three show up at the same time.
It's the same exact thing
with Hall of Famers as well.
Look at this desk with me today.
Women's boxing trailblazer
multi-division champ Layla Ali
alongside two of British boxing's
absolute finest.
We've got the heavyweight legend in
Lennox Lewis
and super middleweight standout
in Carl Frotch.
So glad to have all of you here with us.
While we know it's a new era
of British boxing being on Netflix,
it's a familiar headline.
Tyson Fury unretires, comes out
and is fighting again.
Layla, he said he was enjoying retirement.
He was living his best life.
He's only coming back
because boxing needs him.
Well, hey, in his head,
-that's what the case is.
-[Elle laughs]
I don't believe any of that.
Tyson Fury loves boxing
just as much as it loves him.
And you know what?
He does elevate the sport
because he's charismatic.
He's one of the best heavyweights ever.
And, you know, I think he just loves it
so much it's hard to let it go.
I think he's back for both reasons.
He loves boxing and he misses boxing.
And he's bored.
-[all laugh]
-[Elle] He's bored.
Hanging with the kids and family.
So boring. [laughs]
Listen, I'm so glad he's back.
Like you said, he's charismatic.
His character's massive. He's great fun.
He's an overall net positive for boxing.
But I do worry, why is he back?
What's he doing it for?
I feel like there's something missing.
When he's at home relaxing
with his seven kids
and his wife, he's got the itch.
Don't forget, he finished his career
on two losses.
No shame against Oleksandr Usyk to lose.
I feel like he needs to finish on a win.
This could go terribly wrong
for him tonight
if he's not firing on all cylinders.
And with the big layoff,
we're waiting to see.
Yeah, this is a 16-month layoff.
This is even close to his longest layoff.
He's spent three years out of the ring,
but he was 28 years old back then.
So, what are real expectations
for a 37 year-old fighter
that's back in the ring after 16 months?
Hey, we got 60 year olds
fighting now, right?
So we're like, hey, 37, that's nothing.
You know, I really think
it comes down to his mindset,
you know, how hard he's been training.
He tells us it's his best
training camp ever, but as a fighter,
of course we're going to say that.
We don't really know
what's going to happen
until he gets in that ring, and it's all
going to show very soon here.
Yeah, he's been doing this a while,
he's been retiring
and coming back, retiring and coming back.
Going up in pounds and losing the pounds,
so he knows how to do it,
he knows how to come back,
he knows what he needs to do
and he's done it before.
I think the good news is
when he when he retired
or he was forced out of boxing,
when he beat Klitschko
all them years ago, he came back 26 stone
he was really badly out of shape,
mentally in a bad place.
This time he looks like he's in shape
he looks fit, but he is 37
and he's not thrown a punch
in the actual live events
underneath the lights
with the pressure for a long time.
And we're going to find out tonight,
actually, if he if he should be in there.
Yeah. At the weigh in,
he was his second lowest weight
that he's ever been in his career,
says he feels great.
Full circle moment to last time
Tyson Fury fought on British soil
was right here at Tottenham back in 2022.
So obviously a huge night is building.
Here in London, outdoors,
under the lights
at the home of Tottenham Hotspur.
And we are not easing into this night.
Our first fight is two men
with something to prove.
Backs against the wall. No room for error.
Live action right around the corner.
[Ella] And we are back here live
from Tottenham, England.
The first of our live fights is imminent
with Australian heavyweight
hopeful Justis Huni,
who is making his way
to the ring right
now to face Frazer Clarke.
So let's hand things over
to the team calling this fight
and all the action tonight led
by Mauro Ranallo.
-[Mauro] Thank you very much, Elle.
-[dramatic music playing]
[Mauro] And happy birthday
to you tomorrow.
I'm very excited to be
calling the action tonight
with a couple of luminaries.
Undefeated two-division champion
and Hall of Famer Andre Ward
and former two-division champion,
including in the one
that is front
and center here tonight,
the heavyweight, of course,
he is David "the Haymaker" Haye.
And David, you've had a chance
to fight three times outdoors
in your illustrious career.
What were those experiences like?
Well, the first time
was very interesting.
It was at the Playboy Mansion.
Hugh Hefner had a boxing event
in his garden.
Forty-five-second knockout victory.
Second time was in Hamburg, Germany,
against Wladimir Klitschko.
A rainy night.
And then Derek Chisora
in 2012,
at Upton Park, not too far from here.
Another rainy night.
It's looking good up there.
There's no clouds, so I'm
feeling happy about that.
But that oxygen you get
when you're out in the open air,
it feels kind of primitive.
It feels like you're
on a b*ttlefield.
[Mauro] And Justice Huni,
the Australian heavyweight,
about to enter the ring.
And Andre, your whole career
was one big highlight, my man.
Yet, you never made it
across the pond
to fight in an outdoor stadium
like this.
Any regrets about that?
Yes, Mauro, that's
the one that got away.
Me and Karl Farage
couldn't sort it out
in negotiations, so I
never made it here.
He's still here,
he's with us tonight.
There's still time!
Yeah, you know how that goes
with two fighters.
But this excitement that you have
in a stadium like this,
I called Tyson Fury's fight
a few years ago.
And, it's just different.
-You have to deal with the elements.
-[upbeat music playing]
Seventy thousand people.
That's a whole other ball game.
But this excitement is why Tyson Fury
has been excited all week.
Not just because he's back,
but he gets
to fight in front
of these fans.
They're excited about what could be.
I'm excited about what
he has tonight.
And the stage is set.
It's going to be a great event.
[Mauro] And so much on the line
as we see Frazer Clarke
making his way to the ring.
The Olympic bronze medallist who is
all for three when it comes
to the British heavyweight title,
but coming off a loss,
looking to get back
on the winning track
against Justice Huni, who is
coming off his first defeat.
So let's look
at the numbers that matter
in our opening contest
in the heavyweight division.
You have Frazer Clarke, who's
seven years older than Huni.
He is two inches taller,
and just comes
in heavier than the Australian.
Again, both of them looking
to bounce back on this,
the biggest stage in boxing,
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
as we begin to go live
around the world on Netflix.
And with the official introductions,
here
is Thomas Treiber.
Ladies and gentlemen,
live worldwide on Netflix,
welcome to Clash
of the Giants.
Fury versus Makhmudov
from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
in London, England.
Brought to you
by Ring Magazine and Netflix.
We get things started
with ten rounds scheduled
in the heavyweight division.
sanctioned by the British Boxing Board
of Control,
steward in charge, Guy Williamson.
The judges are Mark Bates,
Lee Every, and Kieran McCann.
Our referee in charge
will be Reece Carter.
Introducing first fighting out
of the blue corner, he comes
to the ring wearing blue,
orange, and white,
and weighed in officially
at two hundred forty
six point fourteen pounds.
Coming to us
from Brisbane, Queensland,
Australia, he brings
a professional record consisting
of twelve wins,
just one defeat,
seven of his twelve wins come
by way of knockout.
Ladies and gentlemen, please
welcome the former
Australian champion
and former WBO
global heavyweight champion,
Justice Huni!
And his opponent across the ring,
fighting out of the red corner,
he comes to the
ring wearing black with purple
and weighed in officially
at two hundred fifty
nine point twelve pounds.
Hailing from Burton-on-Trent,
Staffordshire,
England, he had
a stellar amateur career, proudly
representing Great Britain
at the 2020 Olympics,
winning a bronze medal.
And now as a professional,
has a record of nine wins,
two defeats, one draw,
seven of his nine wins come
by way of knockout.
Ladies and gentlemen, here
is Frazer "Big Fraze" Clarke.
Can we lose the tops, please?
Lose the tops, please.
Okay, Frazer.
Right, gentlemen,
we've already spoken.
You know what I expect.
Keep it clean, listen to me,
and defend yourself at all times.
Good luck, lads.
Shake hands.
We are set for ten rounds
in the heavyweight division.
[Mauro] Frazer Clarke, named
after heavyweight legend,
Smokin' Joe Frazer.
Just as Huni turned twenty-seven
a week ago,
entering his physical prime.
both of them looking to get back
on the winning track,
and Huni returning to action
after the tragic passing
of his trainer, Kerry Puig,
who suffered a heart attack
in the gym at age forty-eight.
He's now working with Josh Arnold,
while Clarke is working
with Joe Gallagher,
and Clarke comes
in ten pounds lighter
than when he lost
to Jeamie TKV,
and Gallagher says he will be fitter,
faster, and he feels
that his power is still a force
to be reckoned with.
[David] He already looks sharper
than he ordinarily does.
He's got a nice
sharp demeanour about him.
He's not wasting any shots.
And I think the Gallagher connection,
the fact
that he's already coming ten
pounds lighter means
he's been doing more work.
[Mauro] For Huni Andre, he gave current
heavyweight champion Fabio Wardley
all he can handle
for nine rounds.
And then in that fateful tenth round,
Wardley landed
the right cross.
And just like that,
Huni tasted his first loss
by knockout.
[Andre] Just from one punch both fighters
tonight ironically enough
are shaking off the ghosts
of Fabio Wardley and Huni
had a great performance
until he didn't
and tonight both fighters
are trying to bounce back
I like what Huni
has so far he's very fast very
expl*sive very compact but Clarke
also looks good himself
[Mauro] Yeah, Clarke's lone draw came
against Wardley before being knocked out
in the first round and so David,
what are your early assessments
from these two heavyweights midway
through the first?
[David] Very cagey.
You know, Huni coming off a knockout loss,
you know, with Wardley.
It was a one-punch knockout loss,
so there was no damage done.
But if you look at Clarke
when he fought Wardley, Clarke
had a life-and-death battle
to a draw,
and then he got knocked out
in one round
with serious damage done
to his jaw.
You know, there was a dent
in the side
of his head
after that knockdown.
It was a gruesome, gruesome knockout.
So there's some mileage, there's
some mileage with Clarke,
where Huni has literally
just had one punch.
One punch is all it was.
So I assume the freshness
will be with the
Twenty-seven-year-old.
As you said, he's in his prime.
He took the fight against Wardley
on very short notice and gave
a great account of himself.
He's had plenty of notice here,
so we should see
the very best of Huni.
[Mauro] And, Andre,
we should see a lot of body work.
40% of Clarke's landed punches
coming in tonight are body shots.
37% for Huni.
The CompuBox heavyweight average
is just 29%.
[Andre] You know I love fighters
who go to the body and who commit there.
That's Money in the Bank
that you're gonna need
as this fight progresses.
So when you hit return,
you wanna have something in that account.
[David] Huni is throwing
some beautiful slip,
left hook to the body,
left hook to the head. He's loading up.
He's fast enough
to bait Clarke to throw a jab.
He's baiting him to throw a jab
'cause he knows he's faster than Clarke.
-And he David, he tried it again there.
-[bell ringing]
Very, very impressed with Huni
in that first round.
[upbeat music playing]
[Josh] Can you press two more?
You seeing much?
Body.
But we've got to be smart
with the approach, yeah?
You can't just go
in with no feint on the entry.
Yeah? You've got to feint.
He's biting on the feints.
Be smart.
And we've got to come back to guard.
[Andre] Good work from Huni
in this first round.
Everything was hard,
like David Haye mentioned.
He's looking for the knockout shot.
He was knocked out in his last fight,
but he also knows
that Clarke was also knocked out
from Fabio Wardley.
This is the heavyweight division, folks.
All those punches
have bad intentions on them.
[David] I really like the fact
that Huni is setting his attacks off
the off slipping Clarke's punches
he knows he's faster than Clarke
and he's used that as part of his tactics.
[Mauro] Round number two, these two were
sparring partners in Sheffield in 2019.
They also almost met in the Olympics
where Clarke of course won a bronze medal.
Huni qualified but had to pull out
due to a hand injury.
Nice triple jab,
two jabs to the face, one to the body,
so that Huni jab
is really firing out like a piston.
[Andre] Both fighters look
very good right now within themselves.
Huni is more busier
with his offense and his punches,
but I think this is Clarke
trying to employ his new style
and the new training methods
of his trainer,
and all the adjustments
that he's been making,
so he seems more patient
and under control.
[David] It seems like
it's a little distance problem
with Clarke, with his jab.
His jab seems like two
or three inches off target,
whereas Huni seems that little bit closer.
Maybe Huni's got very long arms
for his height.
[Mauro] Yeah, Huni's left hand
has been an effective weapon,
both as a jab and a hook
so far in this fight.
A minute elapsed here
in the second round, and again,
they continue to stay
in the centre of the ring,
where Huni seems to just
be beating Clarke to the punch.
-Beautiful curling left hook.
-[Andre] Yes, he is.
He's beating him to the punch
because he's the faster fighter.
And he may be the more expl*sive fighter,
and he seems more sure of himself.
And that's what
I'm keeping an eye on right now.
Frazer Clarke doesn't look scared,
but he's not quite sure of himself.
Huni, on the other hand,
is very sure of himself.
[David] Clarke is kind of
being put into his shell slightly
because Huni has that additional speed.
But that's what Clarke is trying,
and that left hook,
that counter left hook to the body
from Huni has landed four or five times
in this round already.
And those body shots slow you down.
[Mauro] Another body shot by Huni.
Clarke trying to batter his ears
with those wide shots as they
Clarke leaning in on Huni,
trying to sap the energy early here
as the battle of the big boys,
the first of three heavyweight encounters
coming your way tonight
from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
in North London.
Under a minute now,
remaining in the second.
And again, Huni invests to the body
before that overhand
right connects upstairs.
[Andre] The thing about this division,
as you know, David Haye,
is that You just get the sense
that any second something is gonna happen.
And being the heavyweight division,
it very well could happen.
-One punch and this fight can be over.
-[David] It really can.
If you look at Huni's jab to the body,
he's landed it to the pit of the stomach,
and he's really
offsetting Clarke's rhythm.
Clarke stopped jabbing for the moment.
'Cause when he has jabbed,
he's been countered.
That's Huni's plan.
Huni's plan is to stop Clarke
doing what he wants to do.
[Andre] Clarke just missed
a right-hand counter right there.
[David] It's hard to counter
when your opponent's faster than you.
[Mauro] Nice lead right-hand by Huni.
[bell ringing]
[upbeat music playing]
[Mauro] A woman adventuring
in the wilderness
is ensnared in a dangerous game
with a deadly predator
starring Charlize Theron
and Taron Egerton, Apex premieres
on Netflix April 24.
And these two heavyweights
hope to be apex predators in the division.
A good start to our first heavyweight tilt
as both Huni and Clarke
get it on.
[Andre] Yeah, good exchanges
from both fighters.
They both landed body shots right there.
Huni raised up slightly,
though Clarke missed the left hook.
But both of these fighters
are looking for home run shots
because they know
that the other has been stopped,
ironically, by the same opponent.
There's a lot
at stake for both guys tonight.
[Mauro] And look who's in the house,
none other than Anthony Joshua,
last seen on Netflix
taking care of Jake Paul,
has suffered some personal tragedy.
And our condolences and sympathies
are with AJ,
but, of course, he's watching
with vested interest.
Because if things go according to plan
for the Gypsy King in the main event,
we could see the biggest fight
in British boxing history.
[Andre] Listen, I wanna see it.
They've been talking about that fight
for a long time,
and given where both guys are
in their career,
it may come later than many want it,
but not too late
if Tyson Fury can take care
of his business tonight.
[Mauro] And taking care
of business right now,
Frazer Clarke and Justis Huni.
Thirty seconds gone in the third round
and Clarke moving forward.
[David] It's a very healthy pace, this is.
They're throwing big shots.
They're both looking, as Andre said,
for the home run from day one.
And I love that. I love that.
There's not much
of a feeling out process here.
Both fighters believe in their potential.
They believe in their chins.
And they're giving the fans
what they want.
[Andre] So far, I like Frazer Clarke
at this lighter weight.
He seems to be more defensively sound.
He can get out of the way of punches
he typically would get hit by,
and he's quicker to the target
with his offense.
[Mauro] Yes, here in his
13th professional fight,
the second lowest weight of his career,
uppercut on the inside by Huni.
Huni, another right uppercut
on the inside, Lance.
Some great hand speed displayed by Huni.
[David] Tremendous hand speed,
inside work.
He's owning it on the inside
and the outside at this stage.
Going into round three now.
The middle ground, that's where Clarke
should be trying something,
doubling the jab up,
trying to mix things up.
[Mauro] Oh, there, Clarke goes to the body
with a two-punch combination
and a sweeping right hand upstairs
before clinching with Huni.
[Andre] I like that work right there
from Frazer Clarke.
[Mauro] Just over a minute left
in the third schedule for Tana,
slashing right hand,
another right hand by Huni.
[Andre] Big left hook right there
for Huni that missed.
[Mauro] Left upper cut
on the inside lands for Huni.
[Andre] That one landed.
[Mauro] Another counter right hand
by Huni,
so beginning to time Clarke, David,
[David] Huni's really getting
into his rhythm here,
he's getting into his flow
he's starting to counter
and turn his body through the shots.
Clarke hasn't made any adjustments yet.
He's done the same thing
from round one to round three.
He hasn't tried to take a walk,
tried to shake things off.
He's just trying to do the same thing
over and over again.
And Huni seems to have
figured him out at this stage.
[Mauro] Double jab by Huni.
That jab has been a master stroke, Andre.
[Andre] Yes, it has been. And again,
it's coming off very, very quick.
Half hook, half uppercut right there.
That just landed from Huni.
It's just rare that you see a heavyweight
with this kind of hand speed.
-[David] Reminds me of myself.
-[commentators laughing]
[Mauro] And there was Huni
ripping a left hook to the body again.
[bell ringing]
[Mauro] We are through three rounds
of our first heavyweight encounter here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The only non-heavyweight matchup
coming your way
is going to be taking place
in the co-featuring.
Earlier, we saw the arrivals
of none other than
the Destroyer, Conor Benn,
fresh off his biggest win
as he and Chris Eubank Jr.,
split their duology,
the Benn family,
finally prevailing over the Eubanks
and of course walking into this stadium
with a one fight reported
15-million-dollar deal,
courtesy of Zuffa Boxing.
So he'll want
to shine bright like a diamond.
Meanwhile Regis Prograis,
hey, he's already shined twice.
as a 140-pound champion,
making his way up in weight.
He had a talk
with none other than Terence Crawford.
Crawford told him, "The more you fight
at your natural weight,
the better punch resistance
and durability you will have".
Prograis says, "Hey, I know
I'm being brought in as the B-side",
looking for his first win
in three appearances in England.
It's Benn versus Prograis at 1:50,
coming up in our co-feature.
Right now, it's the fourth round
and the double jab
splitting the high guard
of Clarke by Huni.
[David] If Huni can maintain this pace
and the speed of his shots,
at the moment he hasn't really caught
anything flush, anything big.
He seems to be very, very much
in control at this stage.
Well, Clarke needs
to try something different.
He needs to change his hand position.
[David] Trying to do the same thing
over and over again,
expecting something different to happen.
It can happen
but Huni, at this stage,
is very much in control.
[Andre] I think
this is one of the questions
that the boxing world
is asking about Clarke.
Does he have anything else
that he can do?
Or is this the best that he had?
This may be his ceiling,
and he's just gotta try
to be the best
that he can with doing this.
Because thus far throughout his career,
we haven't seen him go deep into a bag
and show many different looks.
But we're on the lookout for Knight
if he has some new wrinkles.
[David] Olympic bronze medallist.
We expect big things,
at least European level,
world title challenges.
He's challenged for the British title.
-[Andre] Three times.
-[David] Three occasions.
He got a draw,
he got knocked out, you know.
[Mauro] And then he was beaten by TKD,
who's going to defend the title
in our next matchup
against Richard Riakporhe.
And right now, Clarke just leaning
on Huni, trying to sap his energy,
trying to slow him down as Huni rips
that lead left hook and a right hook.
Oh, but then he had his head snapped back
by that uppercut from Clarke.
[David] And then Clarke clinches,
he had some success with the uppercut,
-and then he clinches.
-[Mauro] Three punch combination by Huni,
Clarke fires back.
A minute left in the fourth.
[David] This is good work from Clarke.
Clarke's finally found his space
at the moment
for those two uppercuts he's landed.
He should try to do this some more.
[Mauro] Well,
coming into this fight, Andre,
Clarke brought size, strength,
physicality, two-fisted power,
excellent body punching and pressure.
While Huni, we know already
he has the faster hands,
the quicker feet,
better technical skills,
and evolving ring IQ.
[Andre] And he's putting that all
on display tonight.
And I think
that maybe the slight difference
is what we're seeing between Clarke
and Huni is a bit of an IQ.
Clarke is boxing well, he's in good shape.
I like what he's doing.
He's fighting a really good fight.
Good shot right there.
I think he hurt Huni.
[Mauro] I think he hurt Huni
with that Huni clinch,
and Huni had just
landed another nice left hook to the body,
but Clarke seems
to have momentarily bothered Huni,
and here comes Clarke
now with Huni on the ropes.
-[David] This is great stuff from Clarke.
-[Mauro] Looking for his eighth knockout.
-Huni desperately trying to fight it off.
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] Wow, what a sequence
to end the round.
[David] Great round from Clarke.
That's the first time
he's had some success
in this fight so far.
It was right about 30 seconds
at the end of the round.
He needs to build upon that now.
Let's hope the hard work he put in there
with Gallagher
is gonna work out perfectly.
-[Josh] Fight this for me. Are you good?
-Yeah.
[thrilling music playing]
[Andre] That combination right there
from Clarke is what hurt Huni.
You can always tell
when a fighter gets hurt
because they'll grab a hold
and they'll clinch
as Huni should have did.
You don't fight when you're hurt.
And you see Clarke trying to close
the show and maybe finish the fight.
He was unable to,
and Huni was saved by the bell.
But I wanna keep a close eye on Huni,
and also how Clarke approaches
this next round, especially early.
[David] Clarke needed something.
He was getting nothing there.
[Joe] quick as you can, off him again,
and wobble him, all right?
Okay? Yeah? You know you can hurt him now.
-Don't let this go.
-[Andre] Exactly.
[Mauro] Joe Gallagher letting him know,
"You know you can hurt him now",
so Frazer Clarke going to try to build
on the momentum of round four
as we begin round number five,
and Huni lands a nice right hand
before firing off the jail.
[David] Psychologically, after clearly
losing the first three rounds,
that fourth round, having that success,
Gallagher telling him,
"You know you can hurt him now".
That's a little spark of energy
he'll have now.
He'll be able to build upon that.
[Mauro] Gallagher wants Clarke, of course,
to keep his chin down
as Huni splits the guard.
[Andre] I like the fact
that Clarke has not come out crazy
in this fifth round.
He's going back to the fundamentals
and basics of boxing,
which is why he was able
to hurt Huni in the first place.
And he can get Huni in that same position
if he keeps doing what he's doing.
-[Mauro] Body shot by Clarke.
-[David] Nice body shot.
Clarke needs to throw more body shots.
-He's been
-[Mauro] Yes, he's known for his body work
both of them have above average body work.
As Huni backed up to the ropes
and Clarke in front of him,
Huni throws the right hand over the top.
[Andre] These guys
are pretty evenly matched,
even though I think Huni,
up to the point where he got hurt,
was winning the fight,
or at least had an edge
in terms of momentum.
But this is gonna boil down
to adjustments being made,
and the conditioning down the stretch.
[Mauro] Very much
like the main event question
surrounding Tyson Fury.
And by the way, 15 years ago,
Frazer Clarke was Tyson Fury's bodyguard.
But the same question
for Clarke coming into this fight.
How much is left?
And he's showing there's still a lot left.
[David] Up until this point,
he had a tough first three rounds.
Fourth round,
he was able to turn the tide.
Here we go, this round's very even.
If his condition is right,
he should be able to,
using his size advantage,
his natural size and strength, be able
Another nice uppercut
landed there from Clarke.
He should be able
to stop turning the tide.
[Mauro] Look who's shown up.
The plot thickens.
Eddie Hearn,
the former promoter of Conor Benn.
And if you've been
following the headlines,
you know what's been going on.
After so many years,
Benn leaving Matchroom for Zuffa Boxing.
It's good to see Eddie Hearn
in the house.
That's Huni going to work
on the body, Andre.
[Andre] Yeah, Huni's doing a great job.
He just landed two good body shots,
and now you see Clarke holding on.
Respect to Eddie Hearn, to your point.
Probably a bitter, bitter, bitter, bitter,
not even a sweet situation,
just a bitter situation
all the way around.
[Mauro] Well, especially after supporting
Benn through his old rock suspensions.
[Andre] They both helped each other,
just a tough situation.
But there could be big business on hand
with Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury.
So Eddie's gonna show up
for the business.
[David] Body shot,
sliding a little low there.
Checking if Clarke's okay.
[Mauro] Landed it on the peninsula
south of the equator, Mr Haye.
They go again to the body,
Huni ripping off
that left hook to the body
and Clarke hitting him
with the jab upstairs.
[bell ringing]
[Mauro] Well, it's a big night of boxing
here at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
but on May 16th, the most recognizable
and dangerous fighters
in mixed martial arts
will be making their mark
live only on Netflix.
That's right,
the blockbuster triple headliner features
Ronda Rousey versus Gina Carano,
a fight years in the making.
Nate Diaz versus Mike Perry,
which should provide us
with plenty of violence,
alongside former UFC Heavyweight Champion
Francis Ngannou
against Felipe Lins.
It's the biggest night of MMA.
You will not want to miss it.
May 16th, only on Netflix.
[Joe] or a left hook
after every right hand.
Don't leave the right hand
out there, all right? Okay?
They're trying to chop the tree
on your head now.
Every time you come round,
you've got to come back
like you did the round before.
Catch, right hook,
and put a left hook.
Do you understand? Yeah? Yeah?
But you've got
to get your jab back going first.
You lost that round, all right?
It's after five.
I'm going three, two. All right?
[Mauro] As we begin the next round,
what do you make
of Joe Callagher's corner advice,
David, the first fight
with Frazer Clarke?
[David] I think he's spot on.
You know, you've got to throw
your left hook after the right hand.
Letting him know it's a tight fight,
he needs to win the round.
[Mauro] And unofficial scores,
your David Hayes scorecard,
you have it a tight fight
with Huni up by one.
[David] The first three rounds
were pretty clear to me,
and that last round
was pretty close, but
I definitely felt
Clarke did the cleaner work.
After the midway point
of the fight, Andre,
what are your biggest takeaways?
[Andre] Well, again,
this fight is even with Huni
maybe with a slight edge,
depending on how you see it.
I'm looking for separation.
I'm looking to see all the new work.
that Clarke has done
with Joe Gallagher.
And if he can find a way to start
pulling ahead,
and I'm looking for the same thing
from Huni.
These guys are in a must-win situation,
so somebody has to find a route
to get them some separation
from the other.
[Maure] And you wonder when those
liver shots by Huni are going to begin
to exact their toll on Clarke.
[Andre] Well, he's gotta throw more
body shots, and so does Clarke.
You know, fighters,
even veteran fighters,
sometimes they get away from it.
They just start to do what
we call head hunting in boxing.
And I get it,
you want the knockout blow,
but you can also get a knockout
with a body shot.
And, David, we are seeing sustained
body attack from Huni,
really putting together
a nice couple of left hooks
and looking at the punch stats.
Huni throwing more, landing more,
and a lot of it has
to do with that left hand.
[David] It really does.
And I tell you what,
the conditioning of Clarke,
you know, the strength
and conditioning team
have really done a good job
because he's kept the pace up.
The shots that he's taken,
he's held them so far.
And as you said, the body as*ault
from Huni has been vicious
and it hasn't seemed to faze him.
He hasn't had to take a step back.
He's a very, very resilient, tough man.
I've heard this for many years
from people sparring with him.
They said he's very,
very tough and strong.
So if he can have that conditioning
as well, he just needs
to let his hands go a bit more
and try and move that head.
His head seems a little static
as he's punching,
allowing him to get caught.
[Andre] The left hook to the body.
Whenever Huni throws, it lands clean
and it freezes Clarke.
He's landing head shots right there.
He's gotta keep going
to that left hook to the body
of Huni against Clarke
because it's working.
[Mauro] And he momentarily rattled him
with that left hook upstairs,
but thirty seconds now left
in the sixth.
Again, Clarke leaning
on the younger Huni,
who celebrated his 27th birthday
a week ago.
[David] That was a good right hook.
A little bit of a leg shake there
from Huni.
[Andre] Clarke has to give himself
some space
so he can land another big shot.
[David] Clarke's conditioning,
as I said, tip-top.
He wouldn't have been able to fight
at this pace in his last few fights.
If you watch his last few fights,
he didn't have this engine.
[Mauro] Well, we have the heavyweights
front and center here tonight,
and Josh Denzel caught up with one
of the heavyweights of rock and roll.
[rock music playing]
We're here with rock star royalty,
Ronnie Wood.
Now, we're here
at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
You're no stranger to big nights,
open-air stadiums, but this is boxing.
This is a little bit different, isn't it?
Yeah. Front seat, mate. I like it, yeah?
Front row.
Front row, you're going to be live
and direct in the action.
Are you here
for Tyson Fury or Makhmudov?
Well, I'm just going
to hear the squelch of contact,
which I really love,
and good luck to both of them,
but I think Tyson might just,
you know, keep his word.
[Mauro] I know it's only rock and roll
but I like it round seven, yes,
Rolling Stone royalty Ronnie Wood
in the house and so many more stars
will be convening here
at this cathedral of footy
and turning into a second home
for British boxing.
The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
and we continue with round seven,
scheduled for ten
in the heavyweight division.
Both these heavyweights
coming off defeat,
the first loss for Huni,
and he suffered a more personal loss
in his training department,
but really showing up here,
not only showing
that he's mentally ready, but ready to
-deliver his gameplay.
-[Andre] Yeah, Huni is fighting
with a heavy heart but an inspired heart
he's doing very well
and so is Frazer Clarke
but again both these guys got
stopped by the same fighter
both of these fighters are
in similar places
in their careers
this fight may come down
to a heart thing, a grit thing
biting down on the mouth guard
and saying it's not about X's and O's
I just want it more than you
and I want to see which fighter
that's going to be.
[David] Clarke, up until this point,
has been pressing
the action consistently.
The fact he lost
the first three rounds
on my unofficial scorecard
and won round four
to round six shows
that he's got that will to win,
he's got that drive,
and he's really doing what he can
to turn the tide.
[Mauro] Mouthpiece needs to be cleaned
and put back.
In the mouth of Justis Huni,
getting a bit of a respite as,
to David's point, Andre,
Clarke keeps coming forward now.
[Andre] Gotta come forward,
but he's gotta be effective with it.
And he's done well, but again,
I can't say it enough.
There has to be some separation
because when a fight is this close,
what happens is
both fighters think they won.
One fighter walks away disappointed,
feeling like they got a raw deal,
and you don't want
that if you're either fighter tonight.
[David] Good two-way action here
in the seventh
as both ripping heavy shots
to the body
as we are just past the midway point,
and this could become
Nice left hook to the body by Clarke,
and Huni just misses
with a right uppercut.
[Andre] Yeah, sometimes it's an XO thing,
and it determines what matters
about who has
the better game plan,
throws the better punches,
and sometimes it's a wheel thing, baby.
And I think this is gonna come down
to a wheel thing
in these last few rounds.
[David] Who wants it most?
Who literally, who can drown the longest?
[Mauro] Wills, skills, and thrills.
That's what the heavyweight division
is all about.
Final minute of the seventh
as they clinch again.
Referee Reece Carter gonna
give him a chance to break.
So the lighter weight for Clarke seems
to behove him,
as he has Huni on the back foot here
with 40 seconds left.
[Andre] This is as good as
I've seen Clarke as a professional.
[Mauro] I know it's all about the fighter.
He's only had the one training camp
with Joe Gallagher.
Is Gallagher that good?
[Andre] I think it's Gallagher.
I think it's the mindset around training.
He looks very fit.
You see some abs in that stomach,
at least trying to pop out.
His legs look very strong.
He just overall, he's lighter
and he looks quicker, looks good overall.
My abs have been trying
to pop out for 50 years.
No luck.
Ten seconds left here in the seventh.
Hey, I might not win for best abs,
I will always win for most abs.
[Andre] Hey, they're there,
you just can't see them.
[David] I've been impressed
with his conditioning
and holding his form
together when he's fatigued.
[Josh] Big breaths, big breaths.
Two more.
One more hold at the top.
Good boy. Good boy. All right.
We've got to be smart, right?
You're giving him too much time
and are letting him get off.
-Yeah?
-Yeah.
[Josh] We can't allow him to get off.
Right?
You're just giving him too much time.
So touch him.
Move.
But don't allow him to set his feet.
Right?
That's the only time
he's having
success is when
he sets his feet.
So just like Joe Gallagher
and Frazer Clarke are together
for the first time,
so is the case for Justis Huni
and his chief second, Josh Arnold.
And while it's true
that Huni's KO percentage is
inferior to Clarke's, Huni
has experienced a power surge
of sorts as his last three wins
have come inside the distance,
and we are now
into round number eight.
I agreed with Huni's coach there
telling him to move his feet
he's the small man
he's given away significant size
and weight he doesn't need
to be standing there
against the ropes taking shots
he should be a little lighter
on his feet coming
into range on his own terms
land he's fast enough to land
when he wants he's no need
to stand toe-to-toes trading
clipping right hand
over the top by Huni In spots,
Huni looks amazing.
He really does
put his shots together well.
He then stands
in range and allows Clarke
to land clubbing shots
around the side of his head,
which slows him down.
It reduces his speed.
Huni backing Clarke up
and again, always leading
with the left hand of the body.
Yeah, that's not
where Clarke wants to be.
He's gotta be more disciplined
in those moments.
He drifted back to the ropes,
his back was to the rope.
Yes, it was.
And another left right upstairs
on the double
right uppercut.
Man, Clarke can take a shot.
This fight has been back and forth,
ebbs and flows
for the duration
of these eight rounds.
Remember, he was knocked out
in the first of the rematch
with Fabio Wardley,
but showing
a stout beard here tonight
against Justis Huni.
This is what Huni's coach
was saying.
He was saying to move your feet.
Soon as against the ropes,
he started loosening up
and started landing big shots.
So he listens to his coach,
and you can see the benefits.
We almost saw the end
of Rocky III there,
where they're all
through the big punch
at the same time when we saw
Apollo Green and Rocky there.
Just over a minute left, and in fact,
it was watching Rocky II
that got Frazer Clarke
interested in boxing.
Here you go, Larry Hill.
A minute left here in the eighth.
And now Clarke unloading on Hootie,
Hootie ducks underneath.
Huni doesn't need to be that close.
He's fast enough
to keep a distance
between him
and his opponent.
And by working in close,
he's given away a lot
of his advantage,
which is his speed,
his good footwork,
and his good counterpunching.
Nice again, the curling left hook.
Yes, Clarke looking
a little fatigued right now.
You see him holding on,
and Huni's taking
full advantage, landing
two three-punch combinations
and heavy shots
to the body.
Just tried to sneak one in there.
[Mauro] Uppercut
and the left hook by Huni,
and it doesn't even
faze Clarke, it seems.
Thirty-four-year-old Frazer Clarke,
known as The Eraser,
and Huni trying
to erase him,
but Clarke standing his ground.
[David] Huni's kind of got his second wind
here, a little
extra snap and bounce
in his whole demeanour.
Big round for Huni, that one.
Landed some of the best punches
of the fight.
There wasn't much
of a reaction
from Clarke,
but the shots landed.
[Joe] Okay?
Two rounds left, all right?
Okay?
Listen, I've got you two
behind, all right?
Big reps.
You need these two rounds, Frazer.
You need them.
Honest to God, you need them.
He's just coming on with big shots.
You're holding.
He's nicking.
You're going big shots.
Well, let your hands go.
But you keep leading
with that right hand.
You can't lead
with the right hand, son.
He's coming on sitting left hook.
Right hand, left hook.
And jab, right hook.
You landed it lovely there.
Boom, boom.
For the next time, jab right uppercut
and bring it over, son.
You've been
in Manchester
for four months,
three months.
Alright, I need to see a bit of grit,
a bit of desire,
a bit of determination.
You won this, sacrificed everything,
you only got six minutes to do it.
That doesn't mean go out
like a headless chicken,
but reset round one,
chin down, good basics, alright?
Do you hear me?
a punch to hurt, not a punch
to survive, alright?
[Mauro] It's so good to hear
someone who knows what they're
talking about and using
the correct temperament.
[David] Great pep talk.
Don't go out there
like a headless chicken swinging,
using that as an excuse.
Go out there and do what
you know you can do.
[Mauro] Penultimate round
scheduled for ten,
and according to David Hayes'
unofficial scorecard,
it is dead even.
So this one
is a close encounter
of the heavyweight kind,
with Huni
and Clarke standing right
in front of each other.
Nice left hook again to the body
and Clarke keeps moving forward.
Is his poker face pretty good?
[Andre] He feels every one of those shots.
He's just got a good poker face.
Fighters are chameleons.
This is how we survive in the ring.
But trust me,
Clarke feels the body shots
and the head shots alike.
And he's dropped off
Clarke the last two rounds
from a conditioning standpoint.
He trailed a little bit
in that last round,
and so far in this round,
Huni still has the energy,
more energy than Clarke,
throwing more punches
and the harder shots.
[Mauro] Yeah, Clarke,
an Olympic bronze medallist,
has sparred many
Oh, right hand!
Rocked his head there by Huni,
and Clarke has
sparred many rounds
with Olympic gold medallists,
and former heavyweight champion
Anthony Joshua is with us tonight.
[Andre] So this was the heart thing
and the grit thing
that I was talking about.
Both fighters are fatigued,
but Clarke has
to take himself back
to the knockout loss.
He has to take himself back
to his decision loss.
Remember how you felt Sunday morning.
Remember what the headlines read.
You don't want
to go through that again.
He's got to find it.
Oh, good shot.
Left hook right uppercut
on the inside,
and yet it does not
deter Clarke, David.
[David] Clarke's got to dig deep.
You can't say there's anything wrong
with Clarke's chin,
because who needs
a big puncher?
-And Clarke
-[Mauro] Tungsten steel chin!
[David] It really is.
His body's rock solid,
his chin's rock solid.
Huni's landed so many clean,
concussive punches,
and every one has bounced off.
[Mauro] Nice defence there by Huni,
a little bobbing and weaving,
a quick duck under,
and again they clinch.
And I think the clinch benefits
the bigger man, Clarke.
[Andre]
Huni is in a good groove right now.
He needs to stay right here and try
to finish the fight like this.
[David] Very tight fight
both both fighters need to look
to keep these last couple
of rounds clean landing
crisp shots, really trying
to mark their their stake
on that round with the judges.
[Mauro] Huni weighed
in at pounds Clarke came
in the second lightest
of his career at 259.
And these heavyweights
showing their conditioning
and showing off
that all-important will
that Andre's alluded to,
because with just fifteen seconds
left in the night,
this is going
to become a gut check
for these two heavyweights.
[David] You can't say anything
about these fighters' heart,
desire, and will.
Both fighters have taken huge shots,
and their punch output
has maintained consistent.
They're not looking for rests.
They're both looking to win.
Big breaths.
Big breaths.
Hold at the top for me.
[Josh] Focus on me. Focus on me.
Yeah. One more. Top.
[Andre] See, good work
Good work here from Huni.
A lot of the same stuff
he's been doing all night long.
Straight shots that are hard.
Shots up the middle that are hard.
I don't think I've seen Huni
throw a light punch thus far.
Every punch has bad intentions.
Clarke has also had his moments,
but these are some of the big moments
from Huni in these last few rounds.
[Joe speaks indistinctly] All right?
Don't forget the uppercut.
He'll come out first 30 seconds.
All right? Keep time.
Then you've got to go to work.
Now when you hear that clapper,
you go for gold, all right?
Tune in. You'll got three minutes
to save your career, son. Go and do it.
[David] Joe knows it's tight,
he knows it's a tight fight.
[Mauro] Tenth and final round, David,
between Frazer "The Eraser" Clarke
and Justis Huni.
And according to our unofficial scorecard,
let's take a look first
at the Punch Dance,
which stats that favour Huni
by a significant amount.
And yet, let's take a look
at David Hayes' unofficial scorecard.
And they are as close as conjoined twins.
[David] I've got it all
on this last round.
I couldn't split them in that last one.
They both know, I think in their heart,
they have to win this last round
to really give themselves
the best chance of victory.
Who can hold it together?
Who can land the eye-catching shots
to the judges?
[Mauro] Andre, do you agree
with the scorecard?
Do you have it like David,
or do you favour one or the other?
[Andre] I may have Huni up
by by maybe two rounds.
Maybe two rounds, but it's But it's
Maybe it's it's a fight
that Clarke has to
Clarke has to go for a knockout here
because you just don't know.
You don't know
what the judges are looking at.
So, you have to assume you're down,
and you have to assume
with this kind of fight, if you're Clarke,
that you need a knockout.
I think Huni just needs
to keep doing what he's doing,
and he should secure a victory.
[Mauro] Both heavyweights
on a night where the heavyweights
are the headline, wanting to move up
the proverbial ladder.
And here in Britain,
where the heavyweight action is intense.
Both of these fighters would love
an opportunity for bigger fights
and bigger paydays,
and they continue to compete, both of them
giving it all they got.
[indistinct chatter]
[Andre] Huni Huni's winning
Huni winning the round so far
with his With his slickness.
I believe he's
The way he's fighting now,
moving around, countering,
I believe he should fight like this
all the time.
He can holds his feet and gives away
a lot of his advantages 'cause he's
'Cause he's a very elusive fighter.
Look at him up against the ropes,
slipping and sliding.
-It's not easy to do that.
-[Mauro] Especially as a heavyweight.
[David] Yeah, as a heavyweight,
not many could do it.
And he can,
but he seems to give away a lot
of unnecessary punches,
trying to block up close.
[Andre] Both fighters have passed
the gut check tonight,
both fighters have looked better
than they did in their last fights.
They both put on a good performance
but Huni's put on a better performance
[Mauro] And now, looking to put
on a show to close the fight
[Andre] To close the fight
just a little bit more will,
a little bit more gut and desire
[Mauro] And and speaking of a gut check,
he's checking Clarke's guts
with those punches for the body.
[Andre] He's asking Clarke
"How bad do you want it?"
and thus far Huni has answered
the question that he does.
[David] I think that so far in this round,
Huni's shown
I had it even going I had it in this
I had it even done into this last round
-[bell ringing]
-and Huni, yep, I've got him winning
-Huni winning this one.
-[crowd applauding, cheering]
-[Mauro] Competitive ten-round
-[dramatic music playing]
heavyweight encounter
from Frazer Clarke and Justis Huni,
two athletes who need the win
to get back on the winning track,
and two fighters who fought
like their careers were on the line.
We will get the official decision
-right after this.
-[music concludes]
[Mauro] Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
turns a fight into a full-scale event,
and we have just witnessed
our first of three
heavyweight fights tonight.
Will Frazer Clarke or Justis Huni return
to the win column as we wait?
The longer we wait,
the more it's an indication
that the three judges
are tabulating their scores,
and it very well could be very much
the close encounter
that David Haye saw it,
being with him giving Huni
the edge in that tenth round,
and Andre Ward giving Huni
two to three round advantage,
but a terrific start to the night
of fights here live on Netflix,
and we are ready
to find out the winner's name.
For that, we go back into the ring,
and Thomas Treiber.
[bell ringing]
Ladies and gentlemen,
after ten rounds of boxing,
we go to the judges' scorecards.
Judge Kieran McCann scores it
95 to 95, even a draw.
And both judges, Lee Every
and Mark Bates, are in agreement.
They both scored the same.
Ninety-six to 94,
both for your winner by majority decision.
Justis Huni.
[Mauro] Well, David Haye,
you've got an eye
for, uh, judging fights, my friend,
because a majority decision win
for Justis Huni, as he celebrates
his 27th birthday a week late
with the gift of victory
as he improves to 13 and one.
But Frazer Clarke showing
"That you know what?"
He might not be done after all.
A terrific start to the action here.
And speaking of of birthdays,
as I mentioned at the outset,
our own Elle Duncan celebrating
her birthday tomorrow with her family.
But we get to celebrate
with you tonight, Elle.
[Elle] One hundred percent.
And a celebratory move for Justis Huni
in his corner. What a win.
Said he was doing this
for his trainer, Keri Fui,
who you guys just mentioned,
passed away in November.
So, he is back on top and feeling good.
But we're gonna stay
at the heavyweight coming up
-for a compelling All-British showdown.
-[upbeat dramatic music playing]
[Elle] The Lonsdale Belt on the line.
Jeamie TKV making the first defence
of his crown against Richard Riakporhe,
right here at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
in North London, the home of Spurs.
Tonight, though, it belongs to boxing.
Tyson Fury once said he wants
nights like this to be an event,
something you don't just watch, you feel.
And right now you can feel the energy,
and maybe that's because the Gypsy King
is officially in the building.
Arriving a short while ago,
returning after almost 16 months away
from the ring.
Familiar territory for Fury, too.
He's boxed here before,
defeating fellow Brit Derek Chisora
in the final chapter of their trilogy,
but that was back in 2022.
Standing across from Fury tonight.
A very different kind of problem.
The heavy-handed Arslanbek Makhmudov.
Seventeen KOs, all inside three rounds.
So, the danger's real,
and it shows up early,
and if Fury's got big plans ahead,
this is the kind of fight that can get
in the way very fast.
Much more on our main event
coming up here on Netflix.
But we do have one heavyweight fight down,
and we're on to our second.
TKV, Richard Riakporhe,
for the heavyweight title here in
The British heavyweight title, rather.
And you know, Lennox Lewis,
this is something that you want.
How important is it earlier in your career
to win something like this?
[Lennox] Oh, it's it's very important.
You've gotta have goals
and that was my first goal
to win the heavyweight champion,
and be the heavyweight champion
of England.
And, um, you know, it's a It's a
One of the belts that you have to get
throughout your journey,
and then the next is the Europeans,
and then the next is the world.
Carl is is itching to say
he also won a British title.
I did. I won the British title outright,
which means you've got
-to defend it three times.
-[Elle] Yeah.
But you gain so much experience
from winning that title and defending it.
A couple of twelve-rounders
against maybe ex-world title challengers,
and you need that
before you step in the ring
with elite fighters to be able
to go the distance
and answer some questions.
Tick the boxes before you step up.
Yeah, the for the boxing curious at home,
in order to keep outright that belt,
you have to defend
the Lonsdale Belt three times.
This will be TKV's first defence
of that belt.
Uh, but TKV himself proved, we're looking
at Richard Riakporhe right now,
but he proved with the upset
over Frazer Clarke
to get that title that he belongs here.
Now, he's facing Riakporhe,
who's moved up to heavyweight.
This will be his third bout
at the heavyweight.
He says he's a cheat code now
at this weight.
So, what wins tonight, Laila?
Proven toughness at this level
or a fighter
who believes that they've unlocked
the best version of themselves?
Well, we have to see. The only way I know
for sure is if I'm in there.
-[Elle] Right.
-Right.
But I would say that I think
Riakporhe definitely is more polished,
has more experience,
but he's moving up in weight.
And TKV has already proven
that he can handle that physicality.
So, I think it's just gonna come down
to You know what I mean?
-I don't know what's gonna come down.
-Right.
We just gotta see it happen, really.
Yeah, I mean, what do you ultimately think
this will come down to?
Because we all have been joking
all week long.
The idea that Riakporhe was ever able
-to make cruiserweight is insane
-[dramatic instrumental music playing]
and he said that himself.
He wouldn't eat for days.
How do you think he's going
to unlock at this weight?
I think he's a natural heavyweight.
Um, and up at this weight,
I think he'd be more comfortable.
You look at his body,
he looks like an absolute machine.
-How did he ever make cruiserweight?
-[Elle chuckles]
And, uh, we're gonna find out now
if he can actually do
any damage with the elites.
This is a great step-up
for him, British title,
and hopefully he can He can show us.
I'm not writing off TKV
by any stretch of the imagination,
but Riakporhe's dangerous.
If he closes this fight, gets it closed,
makes it messy, I think he'll dominate.
[Elle] You you mentioned
that you're you're, you know,
you're not gonna
You're gonna give TKV his credit.
When he beat Frazer Clarke,
he was a five to one underdog
and he wins the title.
He is an underdog here again tonight.
Do you think Lennox,
people are underestimating him?
Yeah, I think I think
he's proven himself already.
So, they are under underestimating him.
Give him a chance, see what he can do.
And this is a
This is a space for him to do it.
We know, Laila, that Riakporhe has 15 KOs
out of his 19 wins.
Do you think that power will be
the biggest factor tonight in this match?
[Laila] We just have to see, you know,
because you can have power,
but you've gotta be able to land the shot.
If you have power and you're not landing
the shots, it really doesn't matter.
So, it all comes down
to how Riakporhe can take shots as well.
[Elle] Yeah, Riakporhe
actually knocked out
Tommy Welch in the second round
here just last November.
So, it looks like we are all set
to go here tomorrow
with a closer look at the physical
and statistical matchup between these two.
[Mauro] All right, Elle,
thank you very much.
Yes, time for the Tale of the Tape
for these behemoths.
Jeamie Tshikeva, a.k.a. TKV,
is four years younger, one inch shorter.
There's a 28 pound weight difference
with Tshikeva enjoying that edge,
while Riakporhe,
he has a one inch reach advantage.
So, things are pretty even
except for the weight.
We'll have to wait
and see how it all plays out
as Tshikeva's maiden voyage
as British heavyweight champion,
the 52nd British heavyweight champion
since 1909.
With the official introduction.
Ladies and gentlemen,
live worldwide on Netflix.
We continue with 12 rounds scheduled,
and it will be
for the British heavyweight championship.
Brought to you
by Ring Magazine and Netflix.
Sanctioned by the British Boxing Board
of Control,
steward in charge, Guy Williamson.
The judges are Mark Bates,
Reece Carter, and Kieran McCann.
-Our referee in charge will be Lee Every.
-[bell ringing]
[Thomas] Introducing first,
the challenger.
Fighting out of the blue corner,
he comes to the ring
wearing black with white
and weighed in officially
at 234.12 pounds.
Hailing from Walworth, London, England,
he has a professional record
of 19 wins, just one defeat.
Fifteen of his 19 wins come
by way of knockout.
Ladies and gentlemen, here is the former
British cruiserweight champion
and former world title challenger
-Richard "The Midnight Train" Riakporhe.
-[crowd applauding, cheering]
[bell ringing]
[Thomas] And his opponent across the ring
in this championship contest,
he is the defending champion
fighting out of the red corner.
He comes to the ring
wearing black with blue and white
and weighed in officially at 262.7 pounds.
Hailing from right here,
-Tottenham, London, England.
-[crowd cheering]
[Thomas] He has a professional record
of nine wins, two defeats,
five of his nine wins come
by way of knockout.
Ladies and gentlemen,
tonight in his first title defence,
here is the reigning
and defending
British heavyweight champion
-Jeamie "TKV" Tshikeva
-[crowd cheering, applauding]
-[bell ringing]
-[indistinct chatter]
Okay, lads, when I say "Stop,"
you stop boxing.
When I say "Break," take a step back.
Keep your hands up,
protect yourself at all times.
Good luck to you both. Good luck.
[Mauro] British heavyweight title
on the line.
TKV won it in his 11th fight.
Only Horace Notice has won it
in fewer fights, doing so in ten,
while Richard Riakporhe,
his second consecutive appearance
in Tottenham,
where he scored a second-round knockout
of the previously unbeaten
Tommy Welch last November.
Riakporhe dropped him three times
with red right hands.
Shout out Nick Cave.
Shout out Peaky Blinders.
-[Thomas] Seconds out. Round one.
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] And for Riakporhe,
this is his third fight with Billy Nelson,
all at heavyweight, where we mentioned
he's two and O, two knockouts.
Nelson expects another KO tonight.
He says the challenger,
that being Riakporhe,
is too fast,
too clever, and too powerful.
[Andre] Well, we're getting ready
to find out.
I love how everybody has a plan.
[Mauro] Until what? Until what?
[Andre] Until they get hit in the mouth
or things start to go south.
And we're going to see.
And that's why I love the sport
of boxing because
What's on paper doesn't fight.
The fighters have to fight to see it
all play out, and it's going
to play out right
before our eyes.
[Mauro] And for TKV David, a homecoming.
He grew up just a few streets away
from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
went to school
across the road
from this estimable edifice,
and he says it doesn't
get better than this.
But then again,
with the hometown advantage
come
hometown stressors.
[David] You can look at it two ways,
but I think he's really soaking this up.
He's fighting someone
he knows already.
He sparred with him before,
a long time ago.
But when I talked to him
at the weigh-in, he said
to me, I asked, I tried
to get some information.
I said, how was it when you sparred?
He gave me no information.
I asked Riakporhe the same thing.
[Andre] I know you sparred. How did it go?
Neither wanted to say what happened.
[Mauro] The right uppercut landed
Riakporhe, but then he takes TKV down.
That was a vicious right uppercut
-that landed.
-[Andre] Well, that was actually a jab,
a straight jab from Riakporhe
that stunned Tshikeva
and then the uppercut,
and then the takedown.
I think Tshikeva's still a bit hurt,
and Riakporhe knows it.
Let's see what he does.
[David] TKV definitely felt
that right uppercut.
[Mauro] It's From a visual standpoint,
it's Anthony Joshua
and Andy Ruiz Jr., what
It's a similar thing,
but looks can be deceiving.
[David] Just ask AJ
-how that fight went for him.
-[Mauro] Right.
-Come on.
-[David] You know but
It looks like TKV
is the one coming up
from cruiserweight to heavyweight,
and Riakporhe is the natural heavyweight.
[Mauro] Riakporhe has won
seven straight via knockout,
looking to become
a two-weight British champion
after previously winning the British title
at cruiserweight in 2019.
He split two fights
with Chris Billum-Smith,
including a loss
when he challenged Billum-Smith
for the cruiserweight title.
But Riakporhe off to a good start
here tonight, Andre.
[Andre] Just landed a good body shot,
came over the top with an overhand right.
Tshikeva should keep his attention.
That's why you see him
with both guards up,
backing up and not punching.
-[Mauro] Right hand.
-[Andre] And Riakporhe knows it,
which is why he's slowly putting
on more pressure.
[David] I had a conversation
with Ruben Tabares,
Riakporhe's strength
and conditioning coach.
And I said to him,
"Has he got 12-Rounds in him?"
And Ruben said, "Yes, he has."
"I've been really pushing him,
really getting work in his cardio."
He said he's got a big frame
and he carries out
106 kilograms really well.
So Ruben used to train me to make sure
I had 12 Rounds of action in me,
no matter what, and 12 rounds
of good quality expl*sive function.
And if Ruben says
he's got his got his conditioning right,
-It could be very bad for TKV.
-[Mauro] Oh, nice
-[bell ringing]
-combination at the bell by Riakporhe,
and, well, we are inside
a spectacular setting for Fight Night.
And let's take a look
at who's getting comfortable
ahead of tonight's main event.
Ah, look at this.
They brought their whole dining room,
including the thrones,
to the stadium.
It's Tyson Fury's wife, Paris,
and daughter, Venezuela
as they make themselves at home.
A big hello from the Fury family,
relaxing, as Tyson would say, "dossing."
It's finally time to put the kettle
on and catch up
with the whole Fury family
in their reality series
that takes you behind the headlines
into their chaotic day-to-day life,
At Home With The Furys is back
with season two tomorrow, on Netflix.
What a treat.
[Andre] Riakporhe,
because he has a size advantage
You see that uppercut right there.
-That hurt Tshikeva
-[bell ringing]
and the takedown
was just Tshikeva trying to survive
and getting the feet caught up.
[David] That should give Riakporhe
a lot of confidence, the fact that
in his first British title
heavyweight contest,
he's able to really establish himself
as the more dominant
of the two fighters, the champion.
It doesn't look like
TKV is the champion in it at the moment.
[Andre] Muscles don't win fights,
but what you just saw
Riakporhe do on the inside,
that's when it comes in handy,
that physical strength
when you both are locked up
and you can manhandle the opponent,
you can wear him down and send a subtle,
not-so-subtle message
that "I'm the stronger fighter."
[Mauro] Yeah, TKV's dad, Makasi,
must have been disappointed
with that takedown by Riakporhe
because his son excelled at wrestling.
And as a wrestling background,
and of course, coming up
in the main event, we had our slingback,
Makhmudov, who once wrestled the bear
and then put Tyson Fury in a bear hug
at the final press conference
before playfully picking him up.
But like Terence Crawford,
he had a wrestling background.
It can help in the clinch.
[Andre] It can help because clinching
and knowing how to
A little bit of blood
there on TKV.
[Mauro] Yeah, there's some blood
on the forehead of TKV
and a sharp jab
right through the guard by Riakporhe.
[Andre] I think it's the nose, fellas.
The nose is badly bloodied
and it's splattering all over
the face of Tshikeva.
-It's that straight ramrod jab.
-[Mauro] Yeah.
-[Andre] It really is pushing it home.
-[crowd cheering]
[Mauro] And the fans sensing
TKV might be in trouble here in the
Referee holding a
brief tte--tte
[Andre] I get it. There's some clinching
-[Mauro] Yeah.
-but it's momentum in the fight.
I don't know why
a speech needs to be had right now.
-[Mauro chuckles] Right.
-[David] It was so unnecessary that.
[Mauro] The jab of Riakporhe
doing its job,
although TKV closes the distance,
clinching and digging away,
now using his forearm to frame Riakporhe.
[David] The referee could have
actually said something about the elbow
-[Mauro chuckles] Right.
-not the clinch.
[Mauro] Well, ask Tim Tszyu about elbows.
Walked right into
Sebastian Fandora's elbow
in what was one
of the more bloodier fights
we've seen in recent history.
[Andre] Riakporhe does
have a pulverizing jab.
He's landing it flush, but then he
presses it into the face of Tshikeva.
This is a very tactical, slow beatdown.
It doesn't look like
Riakporhe is doing much,
but every shot is precise,
and every shot is hard,
and you're seeing the damage
add up already at the end
of the second round.
[Mauro] Yeah, TKV trying to go downstairs,
but gets countered immediately
by Riakporhe, but as long as they clinch,
it gives TKV an opportunity to recover.
The bigger man
not in the same physical shape
as Riakporhe, but again,
those muscles need oxygen.
[crowd cheering]
[Andre] That's sneaky right,
that Riakporhe just tried there,
but just missed the tempo of Tshikeva.
[David] I like the fact Riakporhe
isn't taking any unnecessary shots.
There have been very few shots
that he's walked onto.
You know, he's trying
to keep his distance,
he's trying to fight smart,
conserve his energy.
-This is a 12-Round contest
-[bell ringing]
at a weight he's not fought
at yet at this level.
[Mauro] We are here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Let's check in with Anna Woolhouse,
who's standing by with the Gypsy King.
Tyson, really lovely to see you.
The big night is finally here.
Sixteen months out the ring,
coming back of your fifth retirement.
Can you believe it? It's four years
since you fought here.
I bet you're itching,
itching to get back in that ring tonight.
It's not been like
it's been a fight week, really.
It's been so relaxed and calm.
And all day, even today,
last night, no jitters, no like,
"Ooh, I'm fighting tomorrow,"
and all that.
Got a good night's sleep.
I've rested all day
and it's starting to get real now.
I'm in the changing rooms.
It's starting to get like fight time.
How much of a threat
are you seeing, Makhmudov?
Could he be a potential banana skin,
do you think, for you?
Anybody's a potential banana skin
in this division.
It's heavyweight boxing.
It only takes one punch, as we know.
But if I can go out there
and do what I do best,
then the best of Tyson Fury beats
the best of Makhmudov any day.
-[bell ringing]
-[Mauro] Tyson Fury,
Arslanbek, Makhmudov, the main event.
But right now, we're watching
the British heavyweight title
being contested.
The champion, TKV.
Tough sledding against the challenger
Richard Riakporhe.
And, of course, when it comes to boxing,
it all begins with the jab.
And Riakporhe doing a good job there,
landing 15 of 39
compared to nine of 42 for TKV.
By the way, TKV coming into this fight,
44% of his landed punches
were body shots
compared to only 22% for Riakporhe.
The CompuBox average
for heavyweight is 29%.
So, oh, TKV just got rocked there.
with another right from Riakporhe.
[Andre] That right uppercut
has been on the money
for Riakporhe these first two,
two and a half rounds,
and Tshikeva's gotta get going.
He's jabbing,
but he's gotta start hitting Riakporhe
with something
that at least gets some respect
or makes Riakporhe think twice
before he throws his offense,
but so far he hasn't shown any resistance.
[David] There's been no adjustments
from TKV at the moment.
[Mauro] Oh, right hand right on the button
for Riakporhe, and TKV, the wrestler,
continues to make
this a Greco-Roman match,
and the referee has seen enough,
it looks like.
Meanwhile, Arslanbek Makhmudov
taking in the ambience,
the atmosphere of this estimable edifice
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
A quick peek before he retreats
to the dressing room
to prepare for the biggest fight
of his life.
Action resumes here
with just over a minute and a half
remaining in round three.
A sluggish start for TKV,
but Richard Riakporhe putting it on him.
[David] He really is. Riakporhe's
fighting like he's the champion in here,
and TKV's the challenger.
I haven't seen anything
with TKV to show
that he's establishing himself here
as the heavyweight champion.
He needs to change what he's doing.
[Mauro] Referee has had issues
with the clinch. We see it continue,
Andre, and it seems
to be initiated by TKV.
[Andre] Yeah,
I think it's a bit excessive,
but it's also not anything
that I think should be
the focal point of this fight.
I think the referee just needs
to remember that there's
heavyweights in there. They clinch.
Get in there, earn your money,
push them apart, and tell them to fight.
It's okay to give a verbal warning
without stopping the action,
but I don't think
it's been anything excessive
that You know,
for the action to be stopped.
[Mauro] Riakporhe, who again,
in his last fight,
dropped his opponent three times
with right hands.
He is looking to do the same here,
looking to detonate a mighty right
at the expense of TKV.
[Andre] I'd like to see Riakporhe throw
a three-four punch combination.
He's throwing a good jab,
uppercut, right uppercut,
or a good jab, straight right hand.
Bring that left hook
and another right hand behind it,
and that may be the recipe
to get Tshikeva out of there.
[David] It's becoming a bit
of a clinch fest at the moment.
I'd like him to stand off
and let a few combinations go.
As Andre said,
it would be a prettier fight to watch.
-[Mauro] Riakporhe trying to do
-[bell ringing]
that as we come
to the end of the round.
And yes, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II
stars in the expl*sive new action series,
Man on Fire, which premieres on Netflix
on April 30th. You're not gonna want
to miss this intense new show,
as the fans here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
and around the world, well,
they would like this fight to catch fire.
[David] Yeah, we all would, at the moment.
It's early stages though.
We knew this was going to happen
in the first couple of rounds, yeah?
We knew this was gonna happen
first couple of rounds, yeah?
Now, you start listening
and start putting it all together now.
Make sure you get
that consistency right, yeah?
When you lose sight,
no cuttings for the opponent.
Okay, deep breath.
You've got this. Good work.
Yeah, you're gonna take over, mate.
You're gonna take over.
-Relaxed and in discipline.
-[TKV] Okay.
All right, you've got this, Jeam.
Just stay switched on.
-[Thomas] Round four.
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] Well, according to TKV's corner
he's gonna take over
and it's round four so as you mentioned,
David, still early goings
but a much better start for TKV trying
to establish the jab on him.
[Andre] Yeah, he's doing
what he has to do in the first 15 seconds
but it has to be sustained
and it has to be
for the duration of a round
or his opponent's not gonna respect him.
[David] Maybe that was TKV's plan,
to make it ugly, make it clinchy,
make it messy,
to try to drain Riakporhe's energy,
then from round four
get a point taken off.
[Andre] The ref isn't having any more
of the messiness.
He's taking control of that right now.
[David] I don't know what he did there
to get that point taken off.
[Mauro] He was using his head
the wrong way, according to the referee.
So this British Heavyweight title fight
and again hey here's the
All right, so he's unhappy
with him leading with his head.
[grunts] The pocket rocket
he saw cruising he'd seen enough.
[David] I missed that one live,
I missed that one live.
[Andre] I think there's space
and opportunity
for both fighters to do more,
for both fighters to seize this moment
and try to get this fight over with.
These are both heavyweights.
They got enough power,
and it's a big stage on the main card.
I think it's time for both of them
to step it up.
[Mauro] I agree with you, Andre.
The numbers
You have Riakporhe landing more,
TKV throwing more,
but Riakporhe has been
the better looking fighter
in terms of technique.
But for a British heavyweight title fight,
it does leave a little bit
to be desired right now.
[David] I'd like to see a left hook
at the end of both of their right hands.
[Andre] Good shot right there
from Tshikeva.
[David] He could have put a left hook
to the end of it, it wouldn't have hurt.
[Mauro] Yeah, TKV began Go ahead, Andre.
[Andre] That right hand froze
Riakporhe right in his tracks,
but Tshikeva did not follow up.
[Mauro] And they exchanged body jabs.
TKV started boxing
at the relatively advanced age of 19.
He's also educated with a degree
in marketing, communications,
and advertising from Kingston University.
Needs to show a little better ring IQ
in his maiden voyage
as British heavyweight champion.
-A rare one-two from TKV, David.
-[David] Yeah.
When he puts his punches together,
he looks great.
He just got to do it more often.
And I was intrigued with his corners.
They seem very comfortable where he is.
Maybe part of the plan
was just to drag it out
and try to tire, Riakporhe,
and then take over late.
Remember, it's a 12-round fight. There's
there's a long, long way to go.
[Mauro] Right hand lead by Riakporhe.
[Andre] Took the words
right out of my mouth.
The right hand
is the punch for Riakporhe.
If I'm Riakporhe,
I'm throwing a heavy dose
-of left hands to blind Tshikeva
-[Mauro] Yeah.
and I'm going
right hand crazy within myself.
But I'm letting the right hand go
over the top, underneath,
to the body, back to the head,
so I am getting this right.
[Mauro] Oh, Riakporhe
just delivering heavy blows
with the left and the right,
and then TKV stops him
in his tracks with a clinch.
[David] TKV looks
quite comfortable in there.
It's not a crazy pace,
-but he doesn't seem like he's gassed out.
-[bell ringing]
[David] Both fighters seem
like they're in good condition.
No one's really showing any signs
of a bit of weariness.
[Mauro] So, while we have
the British Heavyweight Championship
hanging in the balance, a former
two-time world champion at 140 pounds,
Regis Prograis getting his hands
wrapped and final preparation
for his fight at a contract weight of 150,
trying to get this fight
at 147 with a rehydration clause,
Conor Benn
being the A-side said, "No, thank you,
I'm making my way back to welterweight,"
we're doing this fight at 150
and there is the destroyer
coming off the biggest win of his career
against arch-rival Chris Eubank Jr.,
this will be his third straight fight here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
and of course, Benn making headlines
for leaving Matchroom Boxing
and signing a one-fight lucrative deal
with Zuffa Boxing.
Speaking of Matchroom,
Eddie Hearn indeed is here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
And there is Anthony Joshua.
Will Eddie Hearn visit Conor Benn
-in the dressing room?
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] Has Benn invited him to do?
There's soap opera, there's drama,
there's everything going on
in the heavyweight division these days.
And of course the 150-pound contract win.
And here, speaking of heavyweights,
we begin round at number five
and Riakporhe just looking
to go behind the jab
while Tshikeva trying to disrupt him.
[Andre] And Riakporhe got
such a beautiful jab,
and it's so powerful. I'm not sure
why he's not throwing it more.
I'd like to see a lot more left hands
from Riakporhe, and then come
behind that left hand
with the big right hand.
Make Tshikeva get out of the way.
Make him make the adjustment.
[Mauro] Well, for Riakporhe,
he told us he's an aggressive,
entertainment-focused fighter
whose style is built
around offensive intent
and finishing opponents.
His main asset has been his power,
and on cue,
TKV feels the power
and gets knocked down.
-[crowd cheering]
-[Andre] Crisp right hand.
I'm not sure if TKV is gonna
[Mauro] Riakporhe seeking
his eighth consecutive finish
has dropped the defending
British Heavyweight Champion
and, Andre, now working behind the jab.
[Andre] As he should to get the same shot
that just hurt Tshikeva
in there again
to get the fight over with.
-He's looking for it.
-[Mauro] The defending champion,
in a dire situation,
eats another solid right hand
and clinches, and you wonder how much more
the referee's gonna take
of this clinching from TKV,
because Riakporhe is on the doorstep.
Left hand on the body,
TKV shelling up on the ropes,
avoiding some of those shots.
And again, the wrestling match breaks out
between the former wrestler,
TKV, and Riakporhe.
[Andre]
I don't think Riakporhe needs to do that.
I know why he did it.
He wanted to get Tshikeva off of him,
but he can just pull his arm out,
take a half step back,
and unleash the right hand.
[David] He's gotta be very careful
not to unload unnecessarily.
He needs to pick his shots.
He's in a position
where he's got plenty of time.
He can really line it up,
like he did just then.
[Mauro] Oh! That right hand and the left,
the damaging weapons.
Riakporhe pinging off on the champion.
TKV trying to The referee intervenes and
[David] I didn't like that stoppage there.
[Mauro] I don't know if I liked
that stoppage as well.
[David] I think it was terrible,
terrible, terrible stoppage.
He pushed him off him. He kind of undid
Riakporhe, as far as I'm aware,
was gonna knock him out, and very soon.
[Mauro] And he should have been
given the opportunity to do so, right?
[David] He's fighting the champion.
The champion shouldn't get
stopped like that.
[Andre]
I don't think it was a terrible stoppage.
I think it was maybe
a punch or two maybe too soon.
And I think the velocity
in which those punches
were hitting the gloves
and grazing off of Tshikeva,
it made the referee concerned.
You saw him almost jump in,
and then he jumped in,
so he's probably a punch or two too soon,
but he stopped the inevitable
from happening.
[David] He almost jumped in,
and TKV responded like he'd jumped in,
and he hadn't jumped in.
And it was a bit
of a discombobulated finish.
[Mauro] Coming into this fight, Riakporhe,
let's listen in if we can,
as Riakporhe
is in front of the champion
trying to console him
and give him his props.
But Riakporhe says
some people may underestimate
how seriously he trains
because of his public image.
Including fashion and media appearances,
he has worked as a model,
and he's friends
with none other than Madonna,
who has appeared
at boxing events over the years.
But Richard Riakporhe,
with his eighth consecutive knockout,
is the new British heavyweight champion.
-[crowd chanting]
-[dramatic music playing]
[Mauro] The Lonsdale Belt,
the heavyweight championship of Britain,
going back to 1909.
Well, tonight we have crowned
the 53rd champion in its history.
The Midnight Train ran right
over Jeamie TKV, Riakporhe.
And here is the replays
of his performance here tonight
as Riakporhe TKO's TKV.
And you knew I was gonna do that.
[Andre] I like that. I like that.
But he did it with the right hand,
and that's the shot
that we knew
was gonna be the money shot.
That's a heavy shot, even from a guy
who's not a heavyweight.
But Riakporhe is a heavyweight.
Look where it lands.
Boom, right there on the side of the ear.
That shakes your brain,
throws off your equilibrium,
which is why you got the reaction
that you just saw from him.
And then Riakporhe came in there
and finished it
just the way he was supposed to.
He's got a lot to like.
I want to see more from him.
I want to see more jabs, and for him
to trust his offense earlier in fights,
because he's got the skill set to do it.
[David] There was
If you look at the shots,
how many of them landed flush
on the champion?
Remember, TKV is the champion.
These are glancing blows,
catching the arms.
I think it kind of didn't give Riakporhe
the opportunity to finish it
like he would have wanted to finish it.
[Mauro] I can agree with both you guys.
But it's always better to have a
stop the punch too soon
than a punch too late.
-And you're right.
-[David] He wasn't in a situation
He was against the ropes.
His legs weren't gone.
He was going to lose, in my opinion.
[Andre] Last point on that.
But the referee, it's in real time.
To his credit, he's watching in real time.
So
-[David] We're watching a slow-mo here.
-[Andre] Exactly.
-[David laughs]
-[Mauro] Exactly, all right,
let's make it official now
with Thomas Treiber.
[bell ringing]
Ladies and gentlemen,
here is the official time.
Two minutes, 12 seconds
of round number five.
Our referee in charge, Lee Every,
steps in to stop the contest,
therefore, your winner
by way of technical knockout
and new British heavyweight champion,
Richard "The Midnight Train" Riakporhe.
[Mauro] Riakporhe,
the new British heavyweight champion.
As a heavyweight, he is three and 0
with three knockouts,
his eighth consecutive stoppage win,
and his trainer Billy Nelson
was a prophet, he expected a KO,
and a KO he got, and there is
that esteemed Lonsdale Belt.
And Richard Riakporhe,
a student of history,
he knows how important that belt is,
and he's now a two-time British champion
at heavyweight and cruiserweight.
And let's now go to Anna Woolhouse.
[Anna] He certainly is.
Richard Riakporhe, "The Midnight Train",
has stopped at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
and picked up another British title.
Two-time British champion.
How does that sound?
It sounds amazing. It sounds amazing.
I want to, first of all,
give a big shout to my team.
They were there putting in the work for me
and just working behind the scenes.
I appreciate you all.
And I want to dedicate this fight
to my dad and to my brother Patrick.
They've always been strong men,
guiding me,
always advising me in the right way
to pursue the path of greatness.
And I just want to thank them.
I love you both.
Beautiful words.
It was a fantastic fight.
And there were question marks of,
with the power,
coming up from cruiserweight,
whether it would carry up to heavyweight.
How much have you silenced
those questions?
To be honest,
I was arguably the hardest puncher
at cruiserweight division.
So obviously if I'm moving up
and packing on more muscle mass,
as you can see,
you know what's coming next.
It's going to be more power,
more power and more knockouts.
So I'm three three and 0
at the heavyweight division,
all knockouts.
And more is coming, I'm telling you.
Well, you campaigned and challenged
for a world title at cruiserweight.
What's the plan now for you?
So the plan is to carry on
knocking these guys out.
I want a challenge for the world title,
the heavyweight world title.
I'm going to keep my eye
on this matchup coming soon.
Wardley versus Daniel Dubois.
I would love to fight the winner.
I would love to fight the winner.
And if I don't get that one,
then I like Johnny Fisher.
-I think, Johnny Fisher, I heard
-[Anna] You can send a message.
He's out in the crowd over there.
Johnny Fisher,
we both got trained by the same coach
once upon a time, Mark Tibbs.
Love you, Mark Tibbs.
And him and his dad,
I love what they do.
I love how they k*ll
the social media game.
And they always wanted
to become British champions.
So I want to offer them the opportunity
to fight for this belt.
I'd love to do that next
if you lot want to.
It's here for you.
We'll try and get an answer
for you later on this evening.
Just a quick word
before we let you go.
Fighting here at Tottenham Hotspur,
in front of incredible fans,
and also stealing the limelight
on the big stage.
Yeah, it's amazing. It's amazing.
I want to give a shout out
to my Palace fans.
Every single time I come out,
you hear the song, Dave Clark Five.
That's just for me
to show my gratitude to them.
They've supported me all the way
through my career.
And we just want to carry on building,
carry on entertaining the fans.
I don't like watching long fights.
I don't like all this technical stuff.
I'm a fighter
and I like to knock them out.
And I know you fans
like to see the knockout.
So I'm going to keep on training
to knock people out.
[Anna] Well, you did just that.
Congratulations, Richard,
the new British champion at heavyweight.
Thank you for your support, guys.
[Mauro] At the age of 15,
Riakporhe was stabbed in the chest
outside a house party
requiring emergency surgery
to drain his lungs of blood.
Twenty-one years ago,
the blood, sweat, and tears
have made him
the new British heavyweight champion.
Now, let's go to Josh Denzel standing by
with His Excellency, Turki Alalshikh.
That is right. I am ringside here
with His Excellency, Turki Alalshikh.
And Your Excellency,
it feels like every major moment
and step that boxing takes
has your fingerprints on it.
If we think of some incredible events,
a world-first boxing fight
in Times Square.
We think of incredible record,
sell-out events at Wembley.
We think of this,
the first British fight card
to be broadcast on Netflix.
-The amazing event in Giza.
-No, it is the second.
AJ have the record. He have it before.
Right? With Jake Paul.
That is the record-setting event
at Wembley.
Incredible. What is more to come?
'Cause I know you always have
some incredible ideas for this sport.
You know what is the amazing now?
The amazing is the fans, the British fans.
This is the amazing.
This is what give us the motivation
to do more and more.
Today
we have a big surprise.
I think I hope we announce
the biggest fight
in the history of England.
Wow. So this is news here.
We are going to announce potentially
the biggest fight
in the history of England.
That's incredible. And you're a man
who does so much in boxing.
You even managed to bring out
your good friend Tyson Fury
from retirement.
How great is it to have him back
in the sport at the very, very top?
He's the most incredible fighters
in the boxing now with the charisma.
The most important things,
we need someone now
to kidnap Eddie Hearn
to finish and announce
the big fight today, inshallah.
Wow, we all hope.
Eddie Hearn is stood right next to us.
This could be an incredible night
for all those boxing fans
watching on Netflix around the world.
And just from us here,
I know we've got a huge night
of boxing still to come.
The most important things,
I want to thank Netflix.
This is the second big event
we do with them.
Thanks, Bela, Larry, Gabe,
all the people inside Netflix.
They are very professional.
And we have five or six
big surprises with Netflix
in this year and next year, inshallah.
And also, I need to thank my brother,
who's making this job easy for me,
dealing with this situation,
Dr. Rakan and Nick Khan from TKO.
An incredible team
bringing you the best fights,
six huge events potentially,
and one of the biggest fights
that Britain has ever seen.
We cannot wait.
And just on behalf of boxing,
we would like to thank you,
Your Excellency,
for the amazing nights
that we've given you.
We want to see AJ this year in Wembley.
There you have it.
His Excellency has spoken.
Guys, back to you.
[Elle] And there it is.
Breaking news here
from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
His Excellency saying
what everybody wants.
We want to see Anthony Joshua
taking on Tyson Fury.
You see Anthony Joshua there
in the building.
Just your thoughts.
This is a fight
that has been talked about,
that has been prayed for and hoped for
for so many years.
And if Tyson Fury
can hold up his end of the bargain
and take down Arslanbek Makhmudov,
we may get that.
And you just heard His Excellency say
at Wembley, your thoughts?
[Carl] Listen, it's a fight that,
if it comes, it will be great, fantastic.
It will fill Wembley Stadium.
It will be a massive, massive occasion.
And it's a fight
that not just the British fans,
the British fans
really do want to see this,
but the world will want to see it as well.
But it's too late for me.
I just feel the fight's come too late.
It's still a massive fight, but
-Why do you think it's come too late?
-Fury's been beat twice.
He's past his best.
Anthony Joshua's been badly knocked out,
beaten a couple of times, and
You want to see these guys fight
in the prime.
When Manny Pacquiao fought
Floyd Mayweather, it was too late.
But it happens. Boxing's all about timing.
It's still a fight I want to watch.
I'll still get excited about it.
But for me,
it should have already happened.
Yeah, you're right.
It should have already happened.
But this is the fight
that the fans want to see.
-The world wants to see this fight.
-Absolutely.
And it would be a shame
if they don't see it.
It's just like me and Tyson.
I couldn't retire until I boxed Tyson.
And we got that fight out of the way.
Now everybody knows who the champ was.
[Carl] How would you have got on
with a prime Mike Tyson, though?
-Don't answer that. [laughs]
-[Lennox] Yeah, you know.
[Elle] Doesn't matter.
He'll never have to find out.
But again, you say that you wish
that it would have happened
a little bit earlier, Laila,
but this is a fight
that everyone wants to see,
and it would be the biggest
in the history of British boxing. Why?
[Laila] I think it's, you know,
two great champions, you know,
regardless of where they're at
in their careers,
but I will say that,
you know, we know that Anthony Joshua
has been through a lot
-[Elle] Yeah.
-and he has to be ready physically,
mentally, spiritually, you know,
after everything he's been through.
So I hope that he gets
to where he needs to get,
-and we can make it happen.
-[Elle] We can make it happen.
[Laila] Yeah.
[Lennox] Yeah, I don't know
if he's going to be mentally ready.
I don't know if you can say
having a fight with Jake Paul
and then stepping into a fight
with Tyson is the right way to go.
Maybe he needs a warm-up fight.
[Elle] I was just going to say, I mean,
a tune-up fight against Jake Paul,
with no disrespect to Jake Paul,
doesn't feel like what you need
to get ready for Tyson Fury.
Carl, would you like to see him
potentially get a little tune-up
before he faces Tyson?
[Carl] I would like
to see him get a tune-up,
yeah, but it's difficult
who to pick for an opponent
because he got badly knocked out
in his fight against Daniel Dubois,
who's a big puncher,
so there's no big loss for that,
even though it's mentally very scarring.
But who does he fight?
Because it's dangerous.
He's had that tragedy with his two friends
that lost their lives.
Awful what's happened. Mentally,
where is he? Where's his headspace?
I need to see him in a level,
a certain level.
Maybe somebody like a Frazer Clarke,
just so he can put a performance on
and see what he can now do.
But the AJ-Tyson Fury fight,
if it happens, it's massive.
We'll be excited for it.
[Lennox] Yeah, it is questionable
about his headspace,
where his headspace is.
You know, just to go in there,
all of a sudden go in there
and against a world champion boxer.
And really, he's just come out
of a fight with Jake Paul.
It's not a proper preparation
for a big fight like that.
But you can understand,
Laila, it's a gamble, right?
Because if you give him a tune-up
and it doesn't go the way that AJ plans,
then it takes
all the wind out of the sails
of the fight of Tyson Fury.
So how do you navigate that?
Yeah, you know what?
That's what I was saying
in the very beginning.
And the thing is, is we don't really know.
I mean, I know that AJ
is still going through a lot, right?
He lost two people
that he loved and cared about.
But he's out here
and he's, I think, a lot like Tyson Fury.
He needs boxing. You know what I'm saying?
So, it might just fuel him.
That tragedy might just fuel him
to fight harder for his boys.
So who knows?
It absolutely can fuel him.
We'll certainly see.
But again, the breaking news here
from His Excellency,
we are looking for this Tyson Fury fight
taking on Anthony Joshua.
But that's for another day.
We're gonna shift gears right now
to the co-main event,
where we've got one fighter
who's building momentum in his career
and the other trying to remind everyone
exactly who he is, not was.
-[dramatic music playing]
-[clock ticking]
[Conor] God's opened doors
that no man can open
and shut the doors no man can close.
[Regis] God always had
something extra on me.
[Conor] He has paved the way for me
to be here where I am today.
[crowd cheering]
[Regis] My grandma, she told me this
a long time ago when I was young.
She said,
"You're just gonna be special one day."
"You're gonna be blessed."
And it just all came true.
[crowd cheering]
At first, my goal was
just to be something
like the best fighter in New Orleans.
Now, I'm the only two-time world champion
in the history of New Orleans.
[Conor] As soon as Regis was mentioned,
I said, "Yeah, no problem."
Bring him to me, and we'll fight.
No messing around.
When I step in the ring,
I'm fighting for me in the Hall of Fame.
If people don't know, I'm gonna show
the world who Regis Prograis is.
[Conor] What is Conor Benn about?
Conor Benn is a dangerous, spiteful,
ferocious, tenacious fighter.
And my second name's Benn,
and everyone knows
what the Benns bring to the table.
That's sheer entertainment,
that's sheer excitement,
and value for money.
I think that
he does have a family legacy,
and I think that he's overhyped.
I think that he's been overhyped.
[dramatic music continues]
I didn't have a father
who boxed or nobody.
I didn't have the family name.
I became a two-time champion
from, like, the hard way.
I didn't have nobody guiding me.
I don't think I can hurt him
by punching him in the face.
Let me at him. Let me at him now.
Let me get in there.
I wanna get in there now.
[Regis] If you're not fearful,
you're either two things,
you're either lying or you're crazy.
That's all.
[Conor] As soon as I smell
a little bit of vulnerability,
I'll pounce on my prey.
If I see an opportunity,
I'm gonna sh**t my shot.
And when I sh**t, I don't miss.
-[upbeat music playing]
-This fight is mere moments away,
but you've got a Conor Benn,
who is coming off the biggest one
of his career against Chris Eubank Jr.
at this very arena.
Meanwhile, you hear Regis Prograis
in that little thing right there
mention his father,
The Great Nigel Benn, great British boxer.
He's thrown around the term "nepo baby".
I'm looking at you Laila Ali,
because certainly you understand
a little bit of that
being the daughter of Muhammad Ali.
Does that fuel you when people think
that you've only gotten what you've got
because of your family name?
You know what?
That's such low hanging fruit.
You know, I've heard
so many fighters say that before.
Whatever you have to tell yourself
when you look in the mirror,
but at the end of the day,
having that last name,
you know, it's not just a name.
He has that same DNA.
He has that same fight, you know?
That fight in him that his father had,
you know, running through his veins.
And he's done the hard work.
You know, Conor Benn has created
a name for himself
outside of his father's shadow.
And, you know, we're about
to see it all unfold here tonight.
Yeah, and a big part of that was
because his win over Chris Eubank,
a rematch from his first loss
to Chris Eubank Jr. last year as well.
He described that fight as "chaotic".
Lennox, what did you make
of what you saw from him,
his maturity as a boxer
in that second bout?
Yeah, he looked at the first fight
and said to himself
he wants to get better.
And he actually went out there
and got some coaches,
sparred with some people,
important people,
and got better.
So, this is a man on a mission.
He wants to look good
and he wants to do good doing it
look good doing it.
So, he did a good job.
So, you know, he's got a lot of
pride, and his family pride,
so he went out there and he wanted to win.
You could tell, and he worked hard for it.
Lennox, let me just come in there,
because I don't wanna rain
on Conor Benn's parade,
but when he rematched Chris Eubank Jr.,
in the rematch, it was a very bad form,
bad performance from Chris Eubank Jr.
He was so weight-drained and poor.
Did that flatter Conor Benn?
Did that make Conor Benn look better
than what he is?
Because he's not tested actually
at world level.
We know that Chris Eubank Jr.'s
been beaten two or three times
at a fringe world level.
Lost to George Groves.
He lost to Billy Joe Saunders early on.
He got absolutely flattened
by Liam Smith in Britain.
And then he does this
and Conor Benn beats him.
What's his test fight?
He beat Chris Algieri.
He's not proven.
And Regis Prograis
is a proven two-time world champion.
Okay, at a lower weight,
but for me,
he's still got something to prove.
He's got the name Benn,
but would you say he's ready
for a world title shot?
Someone like a Ryan Garcia.
[Lennox] Well, you know,
he has to prove that chance.
He has to prove that he's ready for that.
I think this is the fight
that's gonna prove it for him.
If he wins this fight in a good way,
then we can say that.
[Carl] Fair enough.
[Elle] You know, the weight is in
his favour, that being Conor Benn today.
We've got some images coming up
from the weigh-in
where they exchanged a few words.
And Regis Prograis reminded Conor Benn,
"I've been here before."
"I have two titles.
You've not been here before."
But when you talk about Regis Prograis,
a guy who wanted to have this bout
at 147, 148, 149,
a rehydration clause, they said no.
And then you think about Conor Benn
who's coming down in weight,
who does this benefit more?
[Laila] We just have to see,
because Conor Benn has come down.
-He looks a little depleted.
-[Elle] Yeah.
[Laila] But we don't know.
We don't know until we see what happens.
But that is something
that's on our minds, right,
how is he gonna perform tonight?
And then Regis
is coming up in weight, right?
So And he's a little older.
He looks You know,
I've heard people say that
it looks like his legs
aren't all there, you know,
but he is a southpaw, you know?
And he's been in there
at this level before
whereas Conor Benn hasn't, so
Yeah. Well, Carl, you mentioned
how Conor looks, having cut weight.
Yeah, I'm interested to see
how he performs at this weight.
He's looking slim around the shoulders,
around the neck.
He definitely looks like a man
that's weight-drained,
and Regis Prograis's happy at this weight.
Regis Prograis, eight years older.
I've heard in boxing
that's not necessarily a good thing,
but he also has eight more fights
than Conor Benn,
and 52 more rounds
of professional experience
than Conor Benn as well.
It all comes down to this
as we get you ready for a huge night
and it continues here
from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
[dramatic music playing]
[Elle] Welcome back to London
and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
as the night continues.
Our co-main event is imminent.
-Conor Benn taking on Regis Prograis.
-[dramatic music playing]
[Elle] For now, we send it down
to the ring and our master of ceremonies,
Michael Buffer.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is now time
for our special attraction here
at the Clash of Giants.
-Fight fans, are you ready?
-[crowd cheering]
Coming to the ring from the United States,
Regis "Rougarou" Prograis!
[cheerful instrumental music playing]
[Mauro] Prograis' nickname, "Rougarou",
defined as a legendary
werewolf-like creature
in Cajun and Creole diaspora,
that prowls the swamps, sugar cane fields,
and woodlands of Acadiana
and Greater New Orleans,
the city of Prograis' birth.
This marks Prograis'
first appearance in Tottenham,
his third fight on English soil
where he is 0 for two.
He's coming off a victory
over former 130-pound
titlist Joseph Diaz Jr.
But the larger recent trend
remains troubling.
Back to back losses
to Devin Haney and Jack Catterall,
with knockdowns in both,
reinforcing the growing questions
around durability
-as he moves up in weight.
-[soulful music playing]
[Mauro] He told us
he believes the higher weight
will improve his durability
and punching strength,
particularly because he sees his body
as better able to absorb shots
when not depleted.
His core theory is that
he is moving up stronger
while Benn is coming down weaker,
and that this will matter more
than public perception suggests.
A two-time champion
at 140 pounds, at the age of 37.
Much like Tyson Fury in the main event,
Regis Prograis wants to show
he is not done.
[Andre] Well, you don't get
these opportunities forever.
And sometimes
You know, at some point in time,
it's gonna be your last opportunity,
and Regis Prograis
does not want that to be tonight.
So, he's fighting for not just money,
not just for legacy,
but he's fighting to keep the door open
for his career.
The stage is big,
and it's bright tonight.
[David] He believes in himself.
I talked to him yesterday
at the weigh-in.
I said to him
"Can you still do this?" He said, "Yes."
He said, "These guys don't understand
what I've got."
"They don't understand."
He mentioned the southpaw stance.
He said he doesn't have He doesn't
He can't deal with a southpaw.
We'll find out tonight. We really will.
[Mauro] As we mentioned,
a two-time champion at 140 pounds,
five title fights,
he's beaten four current
or former world champions.
Rsum much more impressive
than Conor Benn,
but Benn comes in as the A-side,
as this fight will be contested
at 150 pounds.
And now
making his entrance to the ring,
Conor "The Destroyer" Benn!
[crowd cheering]
[soft sentimental music playing]
[Mauro] It's a family affair
for the Benns.
The Destroyer, Conor.
The Dark Destroyer, Nigel.
They finally prevailed over
their arch rivals, the Eubanks.
And Conor Benn told us that this camp
was one of the toughest of his career.
Not a rebuild, but a refinement.
The emphasis has been
on performing under fatigue.
Brutal sparring,
high-volume conditioning,
and sharpening technique
when the body is already under stress.
-[bell tolling sound effect]
-[Mauro] More importantly,
Conor Benn told us
that this is about evolution.
Benn is no longer relying purely
on aggression and physicality.
The focus is cleaner timing,
tighter defence,
more efficient power punching,
and a broader tactical toolkit
built to solve
the veteran craft angles
and adjustments of Regis Prograis.
[moody R&B music playing]
[Mauro] Having left Matchroom Boxing
to sign a one-fight deal
with Super Boxing,
reportedly for 15 million dollars,
Benn, about to make
the most important walk of his career.
[Andre] No matter how much money
is on the line tonight
for Conor Benn,
or how much he's gonna make,
he's got momentum,
and he's got to show up
and show up big tonight.
He's got a weight advantage.
He's the younger fighter.
He's in his backyard, his home country,
and everybody's here tonight
to watch him perform,
-and that's what he's here to do.
-[Mauro] And father and son embrace.
Conor Benn adding some class
to his entrance
with the orchestra standing by.
Ready or not, here he comes.
[dramatic orchestral music playing]
[upbeat music playing]
[Mauro] After his dynamic duology
at 160 with Chris Eubank Jr.,
Benn begins the journey
back down to welterweight.
He says he is the future of the division,
targeting current champions,
Ryan Garcia, Rolly Romero,
Lewis Crocker, and Devin Haney.
[Andre] Conor Benn using an old trick
where you make the opponent
who's in your hometown or home country,
you make them wait.
[Mauro] What do you think he is?
-Prince Naseem Hamed? [laughs]
-[Andre laughs]
He's trying to become
and he's trying to build his own,
and trailblaze his own lane,
and he's doing
what the old great champions did.
Make the opponent wait, make them think,
make them feel the pressure
in the stadium,
and let those legs get cold.
[David] Conor Benn, you would think
he was a world champion already,
with the hype, with the excitement
of the stadium, with the fan base.
He just needs to perform
like a 15-million-dollar fighter tonight.
He's got the perfect opponent.
He needs to let his hands go.
He needs to be able to counteract
the classy southpaw stance of Prograis.
And the pressure's on him.
[Mauro] I've gotta get his people
to negotiate my next contract.
[David laughs] You sure do.
[Mauro] And here he is, Nigel Benn,
of course, a legendary father,
a two-weight world champion.
And you see, despite coming back
down to welterweight,
the WBC already has him at number one.
And of course, last year, he was involved
in the 2025 fight of the year,
the first meeting with Chris Eubank Jr.,
that didn't go his way,
but he avenged it emphatically
by knocking down Eubank
in the final round of their rematch
to pick up the victory via points there.
So, we are set
for the co-main event once again,
the one and only Michael Buffer!
[crowd cheering]
Ladies and gentlemen,
we are live worldwide on Netflix
with this,
the special attraction of the evening,
a presentation
of Ring magazine and Netflix,
and sanctioned
by the British Boxing Board of Control,
steward in charge, Guy Williams,
timekeeper at the bell, Mark Shannon.
The three judges scoring are Mark Bates,
Reece Carter, and Lee Every.
And inside the ring,
in charge of the action at the bell,
referee Kieran McCann.
And now, from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
London, England,
ten rounds of boxing
in the super welterweight division.
[crowd cheering]
[Michael] Introducing first,
fighting out of the blue corner,
wearing purple,
official weight, 148.1 pounds.
His professional career,
33 fights with 30 victories
and 24 of those victories
are by knockout.
He has three defeats.
Fighting out of New Orleans,
Louisiana, USA,
the former light welterweight
champion of the world,
the power-punching southpaw,
Regis "Rougarou"
Prograis!
[crowd cheering]
[Michael] And across the ring,
his opponent fighting
out of the red corner,
wearing black and gold,
officially weighing in at 149.5 pounds.
As a professional,
in 25 fights, he has 24 victories,
14 wins by knockout and only one defeat.
That defeat avenged,
making him one of the few fighters
who has defeated every man
he's faced in the ring.
He's the 2025
Fighter of the Year candidate
from Essex, England, Conor,
"The Destroyer",
Benn!
[crowd cheering]
[Kieran] Gentlemen, I gave you
instructions in the dressing room.
You know exactly
what I expect of you both, okay?
Keep the fight clean, obey my commands,
and most importantly,
protect yourself at all times, gentlemen.
Shake hands. Let's go.
[Mauro] On this night,
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
North London's crown jewel
has become boxing's pressure cooker,
and the pressure
is on Conor Benn to deliver.
At a contract weight of 150 pounds,
Regis Prograis, moving up in weight,
looking to knock Benn off his perch.
Both promise a fast start.
Each have recorded
five first-round knockouts.
A crowd in excess of 50,000 on hand
-[timekeeper] Seconds out! Round one!
-[bell ringing]
for the fourth stadium show in England
over the past 12 months,
and the crowd erupting
with the opening bell
and they meet in the centre of the ring.
The orthodox Benn,
the southpaw Prograis.
We're scheduled for ten.
[Andre] Prograis, no matter how old he is,
he still has power in that left hand.
You see Benn right now sending a message
to Prograis that I'm the stronger fighter,
I'm the bigger fighter,
and Benn's gonna try to get
a big shot through
early on the chin of Prograis.
[Mauro] Mauro Ranallo
along with Hall of Famer Andre Ward
and David "The Haymaker" Haye, ringside,
bringing you all the action.
And boy, the action,
hot and heavy from the get-go.
Benn leading with the right hand,
opening up on Prograis.
Prograis shelling up, trying to fire back.
[David] He's already stiffened
the legs of Prograis.
Right hook, left hook, the intensity.
You mentioned the pressure on Benn.
He's the type of guy
who likes to apply it,
he doesn't receive it.
[Andre] Prograis's gotta focus
on that right jab
because he's throwing the left hand
and he's missing
and he's swinging his back leg in front
and it's keeping him
out there for the counter of Benn.
[Mauro] Prograis with the one-two
from the southpaw stance,
moved his training camp to Las Vegas,
working with Kay Koroma,
Benn working with Tony Sims
as his chief second, and with one minute,
40 seconds left in the first,
a scintillating start
to this co-main event.
[Andre] I think Prograis has to be honest
about where he is right now with his legs,
because the legs are not as springy
as they used to be.
So, when he comes forward,
he leaves himself open.
Like I said,
he needs to try to counterpunch
the hard-charging Benn
with the left hand and the right hook.
Don't try to go after him right now.
[Mauro] And David, we've seen it now,
the evolving trend for Prograis.
Lower volume, fewer damaging shots,
and numbers that sit
well below the elite standards
of the sport.
[David] That happens as you get older,
but he's tricky and crafty.
He just snuck in a cheeky left-right
down the pipe on Benn.
Benn took it, but he doesn't want
to take too many of them.
Prograis's got so many skills.
Heads coming dangerously close together
as they both come in for the clinch here.
They've both got to watch out for that,
particularly Conor.
-He doesn't need to be clashing heads.
-[Mauro] Benn made short work
of the last 37-year-old former
140-pound champion he faced,
that being Chris Algieri,
who was knocked out in four rounds
in Liverpool in December 2021.
[Andre] Right now, Benn does not respect
the power of Prograis.
-[Mauro] Yeah, nice from Benn.
-[Andre] He's got to try to get
try to get something in there
that at least Benn feels,
so he can think twice
before he charges in.
[Mauro] Still some snap
to those punches from Prograis.
[David] Prograis seems to be adjusting
to the intensity of Benn.
Benn touches down on the knee there.
[Mauro] Was that the result of a punch?
[David] I'm not sure.
We need to watch the replay on that.
It was very, very quick.
If it was, it was very flash.
[Mauro] Final ten seconds
of the opening round.
Both Benn and Prograis looking
to stand their ground,
looking to dictate terms.
-And we are underway
-[bell ringing]
-with this Whoa! On the bell!
-[David] On the bell!
[Mauro] Prograis was
had his knees buckled!
[David] He did,
he buckled his knees on the bell.
Perfectly timed shot.
[Mauro] But he didn't go down.
[David] He didn't go down,
but it rocked him to his boots.
And any success he had
in that first round,
he would have lost a bit of it there.
[Andre] You see right here,
Benn doing what Benn does.
Charge forward,
land those big right hands.
He's not landing,
he's not landing everything
but he's trying to land those big shots,
and Prograis did a decent job
of getting out of the way
until he didn't do a decent job
toward the end of the round
where it just takes one shot
to get that reaction that we saw
and to send that message that again,
"I'm the bigger stronger fighter."
[Mauro] One shot,
do not miss your chance to blow.
And right there,
on a nice right hand
-that buckled the knees of Prograis
-[bell ringing]
at the end of the first round.
Immediately Benn comes out,
takes the centre of the ring
and goes to work behind the jab.
[David] Prograis showed in that round,
he's still got enough to cause problems.
He landed a good head
landed a good a few good body shots.
You know, a few people
have told me Prograis
was injured and he wasn't ready.
His legs, there's something up
with Prograis's legs at the moment.
[Mauro] And at times, Benn punches himself
off balance, Andre.
[Andre] Well, that's who Benn is.
He'll punch himself off balance
and then work his way back on balance.
I don't think that's gonna change
tonight with Conor Benn.
That's just who he is,
but that's what also makes him dangerous
-because he fights off rhythm.
-[Mauro] Nice.
[Andre] And he throws punches in places
you don't believe he's going to,
and oftentimes they're hard.
[David] It's hard to prepare
for someone who does have
that sort of herky-jerky style
where they're throwing shots,
coming off balance
and throwing shots back in.
But Prograis, I'm impressed
with how Prograis is trying
to keep Benn at bay
and not allowing himself to be pressed
up against the ropes
like lots of Benn's opponents.
[Mauro] And you see Eddie Hearn there
right beside Anthony Joshua
to the left of your screen,
the former promoter of Regis Prograis.
There was talk he would not show up
here tonight, but he did.
I don't know if he had a chance to visit
with Prograis in the dressing room,
but his former promoter taking
in the action
as Zuffa Boxing signed Benn
to a one-fight deal.
And we'll see where that leads
as he's looking to take over
the welterweight division.
But right now, he has the veteran
Regis Prograis to deal with.
[Andre] Conor Benn is missing
a lot of shots to the head of Prograis.
He needs to sh**t that shot,
the right hand and the jab to the chest,
and then ultimately it'll land right
on the chin or on the temple of Prograis.
[Mauro] There's a right hand
that landed for Prograis.
The jab from the southpaw stance.
[Andre] Gotta sh**t it a little bit lower.
He keeps missing.
He's gotta make that mental adjustment.
[Mauro] And right now,
just like Andre said,
two to one in terms
of connect advantage for Benn,
throwing a lot more as well.
And, oh! Prograis threw the punch,
touched the canvas.
Floyd Mayweather did that once.
[Andre] Listen,
Prograis's not coming forward
because he knows
that his legs are on shaky ground.
So, you have to make an adjustment.
You're an older fighter,
you're a seasoned fighter,
but you're a fighter
that has miles on him.
So, he knows that
if I'm gonna be successful,
I have to let Benn lead
and I have to counter.
That's why you don't see
Prograis going forward very much.
[Mauro] Prograis, 37,
and his opponent, 29. Go ahead, David.
[David] Just like that, as you said,
he's waiting for Benn
to make a mistake to counter.
Benn threw a right hand,
he slipped on the outside
and threw himself a left hook
to Benn's body.
He's looking at trying to steal,
steal big punches.
He's not leading off with too much,
waiting for Benn,
who's throwing plenty of shots,
to throw something
and nail him with a counter.
[Andre] I think Benn has to think
quickness over power.
Everything is power now.
We know you're the bigger fighter,
but if you throw it quick
and sharp, it'll land hard.
[David] You should be more interested
in how many times
can he hit him with shots.
-Don't worry about the power.
-[bell ringing]
[David] It's an accumulative thing.
[Mauro] We are through two rounds
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
And when a category five hurricane
decimates a coastal town,
the storm surge brings something
far more frightening than destruction.
Hungry sharks.
If the flood doesn't k*ll you,
what's beneath will.
Thrash, now playing only on Netflix.
And plenty of sharks
in the welterweight division,
ready to welcome the likes
of Conor Benn back. Let's listen in.
[Tony speaks indistinctly]
Don't forget your body shots,
all right? Yeah?
He can't reach through your reach,
he can't reach you.
So keep playing him, keep playing him.
Straight, bump, bang.
Down the centre, all right?
He's just waiting
to go through with the left.
That's the only thing he's looking for.
[speaks indistinctly]
Okay, thank you, thank you.
[timekeeper] Seconds out. Round three.
-[bell ringing]
-[Mauro] All right, the third round,
scheduled for ten
and a contract weight of 150.
Benn comes out like a cannon fired,
goes behind the jab.
And Prograis standing in front of him,
already showing some markings
under his left eye.
[Andre] When the physical tools
are not where they used to be,
you have to find a different way
to get the job done.
And you see Prograis's brain working.
You see him trying to dig in his IQ bag,
his experience bag.
He's trying to find a way
to try to sneak a shot in there
that could possibly hurt Benn,
but right now he hasn't been able to.
There's too much youth,
too much explosiveness,
too much speed and power
from Benn right now.
[Mauro] And, David, Prograis competing
at the heaviest weight
since scaling 151
before his November 2013 fight
against journeyman Miguel Alvarez
in his seventh pro fight.
What do you think thus far?
[David] I think he's doing as well
as he can do.
He's been asking a few questions.
He hasn't been able to maintain the pace.
Benn set a tremendous pace.
[Mauro] Nice right hand
on the left by Benn.
[David] Consistent, consistent rhythm.
And this breaks down fighters,
particularly older fighters.
Benn is wanting to show his conditioning.
Benn isn't getting tired in here.
He can do this all night long.
He can do 15 rounds of this.
[Mauro] Andre, how much
additional pressure is on Benn,
knowing what we know
in terms of his career progressing
outside of the ring?
[Andre] There's a great deal of pressure,
and he understands that.
You know, hometown fights
are not just a gimme.
There's more pressure now
because you're expected to win.
It's one thing when you're trying
to prove people wrong,
but when you're trying to cement a win
that everybody expects you to get
in this stadium with this kind of crowd,
it's a huge amount of pressure
and where Benn is,
in his career and where he wants to go.
[Mauro] Benn working the jab.
Third straight fight here
at his home away from home,
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
and he's just picking Prograis off
with the jab, no real head movement
off the centre line for Prograis, David.
[David] Progre's using
some good head movement.
Probably 70, 80% of the time,
he's slipping the shot,
but those 20, 30% are sliding
through just like it did then.
But the shots that he would have
slipped four, five, six years ago,
they're landing now.
And you can't keep taking shots,
particularly when someone like Benn,
-who seems to be throwing 60.
-[Mauro] And we mentioned the jabs,
a two to one edge for Nigel Benn
working the stick effectively.
-Nigel Benn? Conor Benn, thank you.
-[Andre chuckles]
[Mauro] I was too young
to call a Nigel Benn fight. [laughs]
[David] Benn, one of my favourite fighters
growing up.
The intensity from him,
very similar to Conor here.
[Andre] And fellas,
the welterweight division is watching.
-[Mauro] Oh, yeah.
-[Andre] Not just who's here tonight,
the welterweight division is watching,
all the big names.
They're looking at the good
and the bad of Conor Benn right now.
And there's not a lot of bad
other than Benn not making adjustments
to get the right hand through.
Doing Throwing
Taking the redundant approach
and missing shots
that he should make a quick adjustment to,
and so he can land it.
[David] Benn seems
to have a nice rhythm here.
He looks like he's enjoying himself.
He's not fighting beyond himself.
-[bell ringing]
-[David] He seems like he hasn't got out
of second gear yet. I know it looks like
he's going hell for leather,
but this is him just going
through the gears nice and gradually.
[Mauro] All right, guys, ringside tonight.
The Sidemen Inside
is streaming now on Netflix,
where a cast of content creators
compete for a one-million-pound prize.
And keep your eyes peeled
as there is even more Sidemen
coming up on Netflix very soon.
[hip-hop music playing]
[Mauro] A wonderful evening,
a wonderful atmosphere,
a wonderful building,
and so far a wonderful start
for Benn with punches like that.
[Andre] Landing good shots,
but Prograis's taking those shots.
I thought that Benn would have
more impact on those shots,
at least early,
than he has so far,
so hats off to Prograis
for being able to take that shot.
-But for Conor Benn, I want to see him
-[timekeeper] Seconds out! Round four!
-employ a different style.
-[bell ringing]
[Andre] More quickness than power,
more speed than power.
And if you notice,
he's throwing the right hand
at the same trajectory, the same way,
and he's missing probably more
than he's landing.
[Mauro] This is round four,
scheduled for ten
at a contract weight of 150 pounds.
And Prograis coming forward
behind the southpaw jab.
Now, the left hand lands for Prograis.
-[Andre] Good shot from Prograis.
-[Mauro] Goes to the body with the left.
[David] There's a cut on Benn's right eye.
[Mauro] Good call there, David.
And so a little adversity here now
in the fourth round for Conor Benn.
[Andre] Gonna give Prograis a little life
to see that blood
dripping from the eye of Benn.
[David] That's exactly what Prograis
wanted to do.
He needed some sort of foothold,
needed something
to give himself confidence
going into this fight.
As the fight goes further,
he's gonna need to do something.
[Mauro] Benn opens up on Prograis
with a multiple punch combination.
[David] Prograis seems to have risen
in terms of energy-wise.
-He looks like he's
-[Mauro] Yeah, he definitely has.
[Andre] He sees that blood.
[Mauro] Yeah, best performance
of the fight for Prograis in this fight.
[Andre] He's landing clean shots now.
All of a sudden he has the confidence
'cause he's starting to believe
that maybe I can win.
Maybe I can push the younger fighter back,
and maybe I still do have it.
It just takes a small thing
to click something on
in the brain of a fighter
who's questioning himself
in the moment. Good shot from Benn.
[David] And if you look at the feet,
the front foot,
the right foot of Prograis
and the left foot of Benn,
Prograis's always having his right foot
on the outside of Benn's left foot,
and he's able to come inside.
Benn, not that conditioned
fighting southpaws, but Prograis,
the majority of his opponents
have been orthodox, right-handed.
So, as it gets
into the meat of this fight,
the skills of the southpaw
should have some type of advantage.
Is that advantage gonna be enough
to outweigh the condition
-and youth of Benn?
-[Mauro] Final minute of the fourth round,
and Prograis has had better work
here in the fourth,
but Benn still right behind that jab.
Blocks that punch.
[Andre] Looking for Benn
to make an adjustment, fellas.
[Mauro] He's backing up, retreating,
and then firing off a one-two
that Prograis blocked.
[Andre] This is when you start to see
what's in a fighter's bag.
We know you have strength.
We know you have power
in the right hand if you can land it.
You're not landing it
the last couple rounds.
You need to see an adjustment
from Conor Benn
to show you how deep his bag really is.
[Mauro] Benn lands a left hook upstairs.
There's the jab.
They come at close quarters.
Body shot by Benn
before he clinches with Prograis.
Final 15 seconds of the fourth round.
The best round of the fight
so far for Prograis.
Is it enough on the judges' scorecard?
[bell ringing]
[upbeat music playing]
[Tony speaks indistinctly]
[Mauro] We've been informed
that a right hand caused the cut
over the eye of Conor Benn.
Let's see if we can pick it up.
-[David] It looked like a head to me.
-[Andre] Headbutt.
[David] Here we go,
as his head comes up, it just glances it.
-There you go.
-[Mauro] So, it's not a punch.
[David] It's not a punch,
that's an accidental head clash.
-[bell ringing]
-[Mauro] Fake news.
[David] Yeah, fake news.
I saw it with my own eyes.
[Mauro] Left hand there
by Prograis to the body.
[David] This is getting interesting now.
Benn came out completely controlled
and dominated in that last round.
Prograis really brought his own ideas
to the game.
[Mauro] Yeah, but Benn
is opening up here in the fifth,
starting to take the fight
back to Prograis,
but Prograis standing his ground.
Avoiding a lot of these punches,
going to the body with the left hand.
[Andre] Yeah, but Prograis
has tasted the power of Benn,
not to say he can't be hurt,
not to say he can't be knocked out,
but thus far he's comfortable
with what he's felt,
so now he's starting to open up
a little bit more,
plus the blood
that he saw on the eye of Benn.
And I'm gonna say it again,
Benn has shown
that he can be strong and powerful.
What else do you have?
How else can you set the table
so you can eat
with the punches that you normally
knock fighters out with?
That's the question I have right now.
[David]
What adjustments is he going to make
to keep this very, very talented
two-time champion at bay?
[Mauro] Prograis is Benn's first
southpaw opponent since April 2022,
when Benn stopped Chris van Heerden
in two rounds.
And Benn now flashing the jab,
circling Prograis right in front of him.
High guard, there's a straight left hand
down the middle for Prograis.
Benn fires back to the body.
[David] This is where we're going
to see what Benn's about now.
He's got someone, a world-class fighter
in front of him with a game plan
who's trying to really ask him questions.
And so far, he's answering them.
He's answering them really well,
but he's going to need
to really start digging in.
He's only got ten rounds.
It's not a 12-round fight,
so he has to get his work done
nice and cleanly.
[Mauro] And we're just
over a minute left in the first half
of this ten-round affair.
Prograis gets another shot in, Andre.
[Andre] Prograis's landed some nice shots,
single shots,
-but nice shots nonetheless.
-[Mauro] Oh.
That was a good left hook
to the body by Benn.
[Andre] If you're Prograis,
you don't acknowledge that shot.
Even if you think it was an ill*gal shot,
you gotta go back and get your money.
You gotta go back and take the playback,
hit Benn with a body shot.
Don't complain about it.
[Mauro] Prograis interested
in making this a two-way battle.
Prograis going to the body
with a series of lefts.
[Andre] That's how you get your respect.
[Mauro] And these two now
earning each other's respect.
[Andre] See, the confidence of Prograis
growing by the moment.
Benn has to shut that down
by landing a good shot
that hurts him just like he did
at the end of that first round.
[David] There's definitely been
a shift in momentum.
There was no momentum
from Prograis early
-in the first two, three rounds.
-[Mauro] And here comes Benn.
-[speaks indistinctly]
-[Mauro] Fifteen seconds left
in the first half of this fight.
Referee warning Benn.
[David] This is what world-class boxing
is about.
You can't have it
your own way the whole time.
There are ebbs and flows.
-[bell ringing]
-[energetic music playing]
-[energetic rap music playing]
-[Mauro] Gypsy King, Tyson Fury
with a tribute to the late,
great Ricky Hatton on his trunks.
RIP Ricky. Of course, Ricky Hatton
tragically passed away last September
at the age of 46.
I thought Tyson Fury was training himself.
That looks like SugarHill Steward
wrapping his gloves.
Of course, a long-time corner man
for Fury, and of course,
we will await his special tribute
to Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton,
coming up in tonight's main event as well.
Fury's had a tremendous career,
but he's 0 and four against retirement.
[announcer] Corners, ten seconds.
[Mauro] All right, so how will things go
in the second half of this fight?
-[timekeeper] Round six!
-[Mauro] Regis Prograis appears
-to be gaining more confidence.
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] Conor Benn wants to prove
to the world
that he is a force to be reckoned with
in one of the best weight divisions
in the sport,
the welterweight division.
And the pressure is on.
The one-fight deal, the mega money.
Is Conor Benn going to rise
to the occasion?
He got tagged
with a left hand right there.
[Andre] He's been getting tagged
with left hands
the last two or three rounds,
looking for the adjustment,
not just offensively,
but also defensively.
When I see a fighter get hit
with the same punch
and the same hand,
it starts to raise questions.
Do they know how to get out of the way?
Do they know how to make the adjustment?
We're watching it in real time right now.
[Mauro] Benn trying to get Prograis
to bite down on his feints.
Right uppercut by Benn.
[Andre] Some of the body work,
even though they're single shots
from Benn have been really, really good.
He needs to stay downstairs
and then look to come back upstairs.
That's how he can shock Prograis
and land another good shot.
[Mauro] Another uppercut by Benn.
[David] He's calmed down a little bit
and he's trying to pick his shots.
That right uppercut to the body landed,
followed by a right uppercut to the head.
-[Mauro] Oh!
-[David] There you go.
[Mauro] Stiff jab, body shot by Prograis.
[Andre] Looks like another cut
on the opposite eye from another headbutt.
[Mauro] Yeah, another cut.
So now, Benn dealing
with cuts over both eyes.
David Hayes' unofficial scorecard
has this very close.
The drama intensifies
here at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
And boy, high drama for Conor Benn,
whose face quickly becoming
the proverbial Crimson Mask.
[Andre] Prograis's gotta take advantage
of the blood going in the eye of Benn,
and he's gotta try to land a shot.
While the blood is flowing in his eyes,
you may be at home
and say, "Oh, that's not fair."
This is boxing, that's how it goes.
[David] I remember getting my first cut
against Giacobbe Fragomeni.
It was the first time, I didn't realise
your vision completely blurs.
Benn having two cuts, one in each eye,
can really affect his vision.
[Mauro] We have the Clash of the Giants
in the main event.
We have clash of heads here
between Benn and Prograis.
And Benn's father, Nigel, looking on.
[Andre] And as bad as that cut looks,
Benn looks unbothered at the moment.
[David] He does.
It doesn't seem like it's affecting him.
He's slipping punches. He's not showing
any signs of impaired vision.
[Mauro] And there is that sense
of urgency now with Benn,
knowing he's been cut,
amping up his intensity.
And the referee telling Benn
to stop talking to Prograis.
We're the ones paid
to talk here tonight, Andre.
Nice clubbing left hand there by Benn.
[Andre] That hurt. That hurt Prograis.
Got his attention a little bit.
You see the legs wobble just a little bit.
[David] Benn seems to be faster,
he should be using that speed.
Feinting.
[Mauro] So, Conor Benn has been cut
over both eyes.
Regis Prograis trying to make life
difficult for the native son.
-[bell ringing]
-[upbeat music playing]
[Mauro] Conor Benn's cut man
is Mark Seltzer, earning his keep tonight.
[Tony speaks indistinctly]
[David]
I think there's another head clash.
That's the thing,
when you fight southpaws,
an orthodox fighter
really needs to be aware
that a southpaw who understands
that their head can come in nice and low
usually a southpaw understands that
and keeps his chin low
so you become,
if you're an orthodox fighter,
you end up coming off second best.
[Mauro] These two are going
head to head in more than one way
and it's definitely impacted Conor Benn,
-although his comportment
-[timekeeper] Round seven!
-seems to be in check
-[bell ringing]
as we begin round seven.
Scheduled for ten.
Sharp jab lands
for Benn to begin the round.
[Andre] Conor Benn responding the way
a fighter's supposed to respond
when they get cut.
He's unbothered. He's not focused on it.
He's staying focused on the opponent
and the game plan in hand.
[Mauro] Nice left hand lands
upstairs for Prograis.
[Andre] Like that, Prograis
leaned in slightly, timed to counter Benn,
a single shot, but a clean shot.
[David] Prograis's legs seem
to be a little unsteady.
I'm not sure
if that's a balance thing or
[Mauro] Or are the rumours about
an existing injury coming to the fight
[Andre] No, there's no injury.
That's just miles on the odometer.
That's miles. That's wear and tear.
That's all that is.
It's nothing about an injury.
[Mauro] It is his 34th professional fight.
He's been in many battles,
and here he's in another pitched battle
with Conor Benn, younger by eight years,
coming off the big win
over Chris Eubank Jr.
here at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
And Benn now looking
to put together combinations.
[Andre] Benn's asserting himself,
testing the tank,
testing the mind and the body of Prograis
with twos, threes, and fours.
And many of those shots
have landed clean in this round.
[David] He's setting a hell of a pace.
[Mauro]
He's knocking Prograis off balance.
[David] He is. He really pushed him
off balance. The inside work.
Break! Take a step,
take a step, take a step.
[David]
He's trying to use his advantages,
which is his size
and his strength and his power,
and his freshness.
[Andre] The key adjustment Benn made
when he started to go
to the body with a two-fisted attack.
[Mauro]
And that was his corner's instruction.
[Andre] And that opened up the head shots,
the same head shots
that he was leading with
that he started missing,
-now all of a sudden Ooh!
-[Mauro] Oh! Ripping a body shot
-and another left to the body.
-[Andre] Oh! My goodness.
[Mauro] Benn really putting the oomph
in those body shots to Prograis.
[Andre] It's tight, but it's right.
Prograis better get his defence up
and start hitting Benn to the body
because Benn is ripping both shots.
-[Mauro] Oh! Another body shot.
-[Andre] Another shot to the body.
[Mauro] Final minute.
[Andre] He keeps landing those shots,
we might not be here very long
'cause they're landing clean.
[Mauro]
Right hand lands for Prograis upstairs.
Benn hands a little Oh!
Benn got momentarily stopped there
but comes forward,
Prograis going to the body.
[Andre] The body shots
are draining Prograis,
he better get his defence up
and protect his body
and try to counter Benn,
that's another way you stop a fighter
from hitting you to the body.
you block counter.
Then he thinks twice
before he reaches down there.
[Mauro] The fight offered at 150
with no rehydration clause.
Prograis said additional money
was negotiated
because of the weight situation.
-[David] Oh!
-[Mauro] And now that weight
behind the punches of Benn.
[Andre]
Nasty body attack from Conor Benn.
We wanted to see adjustments,
well, we just saw it this round.
[Mauro] Keeps targeting the breadbasket.
The midsection of Regis Prograis,
sapping the energy,
-looking to steal the soul of Rougarou.
-[bell ringing]
[David] Big round
for Benn there, big round.
He was loading up on those body shots.
[Mauro] And his father
not showing any real emotion
either way, the poker face.
[Andre] Well, yeah.
Pops has been there and done that.
This is another day in the office.
It's his baby boy up there,
but he understands what's happening.
So you won't see much emotion from Benn.
See this two-fisted attack right there.
Not that shot.
That was Prograis early in the round.
But Benn just kept pouring
on the pressure.
It's the same shot we just saw.
Hopefully we get to see
some Conor Benn work here
because he did great work
in that last round.
Ooh! Good shot right there
underneath the heart right there.
Came with a ripping shot
around the ear and back to the body.
And you saw the offense drop off
drastically of Regis Prograis.
That's because those shots hurt,
and he doesn't want
to open himself up to get hit there,
but they also physically drain you.
[Mauro] A convivial atmosphere here,
an ocean of humanity
-convening at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] And this has been
one of the fights
they came to see, the co-main event.
Conor Benn going
to the body with a left hook.
Regis Prograis, a former two-time champion
at 140, moving up to 150
to meet this challenge.
And Benn unloading on the American.
[Andre]
Conor Benn needs to stay in the body.
Go to the body first,
then it's to the head second.
[David] sh**t low, that's right.
The more he shoots low,
the more Prograis brings his arms down.
So when he does go for the head as*ault,
he can show down and go high.
[Mauro] All right, let's take a look
at the statistics
according to CompuBox as we are
into the eighth round, scheduled for ten.
And Benn, again,
putting together combinations.
Prograis trying to stymie his attack.
[crowd clamouring]
[Mauro] Prograis's face showing
the wear and tear,
not just of this fight,
but of his career, Andre.
[Andre] Yeah, it's a long career.
And, you know, it is what it is.
It's part of the fight game.
We all got to deal with it as fighters.
But Prograis needs to find
another adjustment.
Prograis made an adjustment.
Now Benn made another adjustment.
Does Prograis have anything in his bag
to stop these body shots from landing?
Yeah, Prograis sparred with former
welterweight champion Shawn Porter
as useful preparation because, of course,
Porter brings a lot of pressure.
But he's even bigger than Benn,
and Prograis thought
that the work with Porter
would help him avoid
the physicality of Benn.
That's not been the case.
[Andre] Well, sparring is great.
You need it to get you ready,
but it doesn't tell the whole story.
You have to execute when you get
in there with the opponent
in real time, small gloves,
and in front of a live crowd.
[speaks indistinctly]
[Mauro] Pace has abated a bit here
in the eighth as Prograis looking to go
to the body,
Benn using that upper body movement.
[Andre] I think one adjustment Prograis
can make is hit Benn to the body.
He's had success, not a lot,
but at moments when he does throw,
it's working for Benn,
it can work for Prograis.
[David]
This is the perfect match for Benn.
He's been asked questions,
he's had to dig in deep.
[Mauro] What about the questions
that boxing fans may be saying,
"Yeah, but he's fighting
a blown-up 140-pounder."
[David] The guy's landing shots,
Prograis's landing good quality shots.
And what did he weigh today?
-He wasn't, he's not
-[Mauro] Came in at 148.1,
so actually under the 150-pound limit.
And for Benn was 149.5.
Oh, body shot and the right hand's
up there by Benn at the bell.
-[bell ringing]
-[energetic music playing]
[David] Benn taking control here,
taking back control.
[Tony] Keep them body shots going,
all right?
Body, head, body, head, yeah?
[trainer] All right, good, yeah?
[Tony] Keep that little short wail
going now.
[continues speaking indistinctly]
[Andre] One of the few left hands
that Regis Prograis landed right there.
And he often lands
when Conor Benn gets over-anxious,
and he misses a shot,
and all Prograis has to do
is just turn the left hand over,
which is a natural punch for Prograis.
[Tony] You start bangin' him up now,
all right? Your face is banged up bad.
-[timekeeper] Ten seconds!
-[indistinct chatter]
[Mauro] Coming up, the much-anticipated
main event, the Clash of the Giants.
Two-time heavyweight champion, Tyson Fury,
-returns after his fifth retirement
-[bell ringing]
against knockout artist
Arslanbek Makhmudov.
That will come your way
minutes after the conclusion
of tonight's co-feature attraction,
the penultimate round, and Conor Benn
putting together the combinations
as we look at David Hayes'
unofficial scorecard,
and he has been pulling away.
[Andre] Can Prograis find a way
to get to the end of this fight?
Because Conor Benn
is applying a lot of pressure.
And can Benn find a way to get a shot
or the shots through
that stops the veteran, Regis Prograis?
[Mauro] Obviously, it's easier said
than done, David,
but how much would a knockout
help Benn moving forward?
[David] I think exactly
what's happened is the perfect thing.
He's getting quality rounds,
and it's very difficult
to get rounds against Benn.
So this is the type of fight,
this is a learning fight.
If he can get the stoppage, great,
but he doesn't want to risk walking
onto something just to get the ring.
He's won the majority of the rounds.
And remember, he's a young fighter,
coming through these quality fights
that he's gonna get better from.
[Mauro] And when you look
at the lay of the land at welterweight,
what do you think about Benn's performance
when you consider
what the championship level is
like in this division, Andre?
[Andre] Yeah, Benn is gonna have
to continue to grow
because you start getting
to that upper echelon
in the welterweight division,
there's gonna be adjustments
and more adjustments
and more adjustments
that are made at that level
and this fight is going to be compared
to the fight that Devin Haney had
-with Regis Prograis, you can bet that.
-[Mauro] Yeah.
Benn starting to find some flow,
right hand on the inside as they clinch,
minute and a half left in the ninth round.
[Kieran speaks indistinctly]
-[Mauro] Body shot by Benn.
-[David] Very good. Very good body shot.
[Mauro]
There's Prograis going to the body.
[Andre] But Regis is a dog, man.
He's tough. He's got no quit in him.
And even though offensively
he's not putting forth enough effort,
the toughness and the durability
is there, and I respect that.
[Mauro] Yeah, while he may be
past his peak, like you said,
he's got the experience,
the athletic instincts,
and the proven punching power.
He has never been stopped.
[David] I can see why as well now.
Benn's landed some concussive shots.
Many fighters in and around this weight
wouldn't have had
to take this type of abuse.
[Mauro] Benn with 14 knockouts.
Prograis with 24 KOs.
Just over 30 seconds left
in this, the penultimate round.
[David] Benn hasn't given
Benn's pace,
his fitness, his conditioning,
he looks the same
as he did in the first round.
I don't know why this was a ten-rounder.
[Mauro] Yeah. Whoa! And Prograis,
his face beginning to look like it was
put together like a ransom note, Andre.
He's eating a lot of leather upstairs,
but he is tough.
[Andre] He's getting hit
with a lot of leather
and he's light-skinned, man,
Light-skinned problems, you know?
-[Mauro laughs]
-[David laughs]
[Andre] If the wind blows too hard,
you gonna have a mark on your face.
Let him up! Let him up.
Take a step right back.
Boys, when I say, "Stop boxing", back.
Listen for the bell.
[bell ringing]
[Mauro] Yeah, swelling over that left eye,
around the eye of Prograis,
as we have reached
the tenth and final round.
-[upbeat music playing]
-[indistinct chatter]
[Mauro] His Excellency, Turki Alalshikh,
responsible for this huge night.
Oh, who we got there?
Queensberry, the promoters!
-[David] Frank Warren in the house.
-[Mauro] Yes!
[upbeat music continues]
[Mauro] Interesting what's going on
in the sport of boxing,
but look at Tyson Fury.
He feels good.
Dancing to The Godfather, James Brown.
And while James Brown may have been
the hardest working man in show business,
Tyson Fury loves to put on a show.
-[dramatic music playing]
-[timekeeper] Seconds out!
[Mauro] So, the tenth and final round here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
[bell ringing]
[Mauro] Will Conor Benn
put an emphatic closure on the show?
Can Regis Prograis
pull out one last big punch?
[David] You know Benn wants the stoppage.
He's wanted it from the first round,
and he's doing whatever he can to get it.
-[Mauro] Including pushing Prograis down.
-[David laughs]
Conor! Over there!
[David] If he doesn't stop Prograis,
it wasn't through a lack of effort,
put it that way.
-[Mauro laughs]
-[speaks indistinctly]
[David] Prograis is literally falling
all over the place.
Back there, very unsteady legs.
[Mauro] What about the adage
that once you move up in weight,
it's harder to move back down?
He's only 29, so is that a problem
for a guy like Benn?
We haven't seen
any of those issues here tonight
in terms of his power, right?
[Andre] No issues with the weight.
If he goes three pounds south to 147,
I think he'll be fine.
He said that as much.
So, we have to take him
at his word until we see otherwise.
[Mauro] Left hands from Prograis.
There's the jab from Prograis.
Benn misses with the right as they clinch.
Just over two minutes left in the fight.
And according
to David Hayes' unofficial scorecard,
Regis Prograis will indeed need
his 25th knockout to pull out the victory.
[David] Prograis still in there,
still chucking shots.
Benn's still got to stay alert.
Prograis's going to the bitter end.
[Mauro] Backing Prograis up.
Prograis saying,
"Come into the corner, I'll set a trap."
[David] He came in with a head there.
Finish the last round.
Keep it clean! Mind your heads, okay?
[Mauro] There have been
three accidental head clashes.
-[David] That one didn't look accidental.
-[Mauro laughs] Yeah.
-And that's one that didn't produce blood.
-[David] It looked like he called him in.
And as he came in,
he walked into his head.
That was an old trick of his.
[speaks indistinctly]
[Mauro] The final 60 seconds
of this co-feature.
Conor Benn coming off victory here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
against Chris Eubank Jr.,
including dropping him in the final round,
against the double-tough
former two-time champion at 140 pounds,
Regis Prograis, coming up in weight,
has never been stopped.
What do they have left for us?
[Andre] I think this is
a good, solid victory.
A workmanlike victory from Conor Benn.
I think what we're seeing tonight
is 70% Conor Benn
and everything he brings to the table,
and 30 % Regis Prograis,
and what he doesn't have anymore.
That's what we're seeing
on display tonight.
[Mauro] And there's Eddie Hearn
sitting at ringside,
not showing any emotion.
You wonder what he thinks
of Benn's performance tonight
after leaving his longtime promoter
for Zuffa Boxing.
Benn trying to outbox Prograis
here in the final round.
[yells] Stop boxing! Stop boxing!
Don't punch him, his back's hurt.
[Mauro] It will come
to the three judges at ringside
to determine a victor,
but from where we sit,
-it's all Conor Benn.
-[bell ringing]
-[crowd cheering]
-[dramatic music playing]
[Mauro] All right, we will get
the official decision
when we come back live on Netflix.
[music concludes]
[Mauro] Ten rounds are in the books here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Will it be Conor Benn or Regis Prograis?
[dramatic music playing]
[Mauro] We will momentarily find out.
Prograis marked up, so is Conor Benn,
after those accidental clashes,
but part of being a professional fighter
is having to overcome adversity
of all kinds, building character,
and building that mental
and physical fortitude,
both of them are showing off the vestiges
of what was a ten-round battle.
-[upbeat rock music playing]
-[indistinct chatter]
[Mauro] Eddie Hearn, Anthony Joshua
sitting at ringside.
It's good to see AJ in the house
after suffering that personal tragedy.
And of course, he will be watching
the main event with vested interest,
because if Tyson Fury prevails
over Arslanbek Makhmudov,
plans are to stage the biggest fight
in British boxing history.
A big fight for both Benn and Prograis,
and I believe
we've got the official decision.
Let's go back to Michael Buffer.
[Michael] Ladies and gentlemen,
after ten rounds of boxing
we go to the scorecards.
All three judges scored the same, 98-92,
for the winner by unanimous decision
-Conor "The Destroyer" Benn!
-[crowd cheering]
[Mauro] Well, Regis Prograis
immediately applauded,
so he has no issues with this.
Conor Benn goes ten rounds
with the former two-time,
140-pound champion, and it looks
like they have definitely earned
each other's respect
as Benn gets the job done
for the third
well, the second consecutive time here
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
but his third consecutive fight here
in this North London cathedral.
So Conor Benn, The Destroyer,
improves to 25 and one, getting it done,
and let's see what the future holds
as the one-fight deal
with Zuffa Boxing is done,
but I'm sure negotiations will continue.
So the stage is almost set.
Let's go back to Elle Duncan.
[Elle] Thank you, Mauro.
You mentioned it. What the future holds.
Undoubtedly, Conor Benn
will be eyeing a shot
at that welterweight title
currently being held by Ryan Garcia.
But all our eyes are on the main event.
Tyson Fury returns once again,
after another short-lived retirement,
facing the Russian Arslanbek Makhmudov.
Our main event is next.
[dramatic music playing]
[Elle] And we are back
from here in North London
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
They're swinging "Sweet Caroline"
as they tend to do here.
The vibes are high.
The energy is electric as we get ready
because the stage is set.
Tyson Fury in his latest comeback bid,
taking on Arslanbek Makhmudov,
which is just minutes away.
A 16-month layoff.
He says that he wanted to come back
because boxing needs him.
Do they need him,
or does he need boxing, Laila Ali?
I think it goes both ways, okay?
Yes, like I said earlier,
he has that charisma.
He's the type of guy
you just want to see win.
He has a great story. Fans love him.
So I'm ready to see
what he's bringing tonight.
Yeah, what he's bringing
is a lot of energy.
He says that he has been as calm
as he ever has been even earlier.
No anxiety, no angst.
But is he facing a lot
of pressure, Lennox?
[Lennox] Yeah,
I think he's facing pressure.
I mean, we create our own pressure.
That's how I feel.
So he doesn't look
like he has any pressure on him.
He's been in this situation
many times before.
So he knows how
to prepare for these fights.
He knows what his body needs.
He knows what he needs
to be the best.
And I think
he's feeling himself right now.
So I think this is going
to be a good fight for him.
You know, he's made no qualms, Carl,
about the fact that he still
believes he can be a champion.
In fact, he wants to go
for a third heavyweight title,
something our friend here Lennox Lewis
certainly accomplished
in his illustrious career.
Do you think he still has what it takes
to accomplish that great feat?
Yeah, I do. I mean, it depends
who's the world champion at the time.
Would you put him in
with Oleksandr Usyk again now
and expect him to win?
You know, maybe, maybe not.
It's a tough ask, but he'll be
concentrating on the man
in front of him.
Makhmudov tonight is a serious threat
because he can punch,
but we expect Tyson Fury
to do the business
because he's been here,
seen it, and done it.
He's climbed off the canvas many times.
He's got bags of experience.
He's full of confidence.
You see him there dancing
in the changing rooms.
I envy that because I was so nervous,
but the nerves got me ready.
Tyson Fury is enjoying himself
and he enjoys it
in that ring, which is a great sign.
He really has.
I mean, listen, we're broadcasting
in 190 countries.
This is the first time that Netflix
is doing a live event on British soil.
Lennox, for the other 189 countries
that don't know,
what does boxing mean to the Brits?
Oh, it's a great sport for Britain,
they love it.
I mean, it's the biggest sport,
one of the biggest sports
in England next to soccer
and rugby so, you know,
it's one of the top sports.
And very quickly
on Arslanbek Makhmudov,
of his 19 KOs in his career, 17, Carl,
have come within the first three rounds.
What should Tyson Fury's corner be
telling him early on in this bout?
Run for the first three rounds,
keep out of the way,
don't get hit on the chin,
because when this guy detonates
on your chin
and Tyson Fury's been on the floor,
he's hit the canvas a few times,
more so of late,
towards the end of his career,
and he does get hit far too often,
so if you're in Tyson Fury's corner,
to answer your question,
use your jab, use your movement,
try and be light on your feet,
and just keep out of the way.
Keep out of harm's way.
-[Elle] Keep out of way
-[Laila] I'd be using my jab,
using my distance,
dropping that right hand.
Yes, get out
of the three rounds for sure.
-He's got a powerful right hand.
-[laughs]
And there it is from up here.
Let's get it to the stage.
The stage is officially set.
After 16 months, Tyson Fury,
The Gypsy King, is back.
[Laila] They're partying.
[crowd cheering, applauding]
[man 1] Here comes the Gypsy King.
[distorted voice] Tyson Fury.
[man 2] Makhmudov!
[intense instrumental music playing]
[man 3] One of the hardest punchers
in the division.
That is raw power.
[man 4] The best of the best of the best.
[Tyson] I'm looking forward
to punching his face right in.
[Arslanbek] It's a fight for my life.
[man 5] When he puts those arms on you,
it is trouble.
[man 6] Who will land
the first significant blow?
[Tyson] I don't feel pressure.
I live for this sh*t.
[music fades]
[crowd cheering]
Ladies and gentlemen,
the moment has arrived.
It's the Clash of Giants main event
of the evening.
So let's get this party started.
Now making his entrance to the ring,
Arslanbek, "The Lion",
Makhmudov!
[crowd jeering]
[siren blaring]
[Mauro] So we await the arrival
of The Lion, Arslanbek Makhmudov.
Six five and a half,
tipped the scale at 264.
And a native of Russia,
residing in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Making his first appearance in Tottenham
and his second consecutive bout
in England.
He scaled 261
before his most recent fight,
a 12-round unanimous decision
over British fan favourite
David Allen last October
in what was a brutal slugfest.
Makhmudov, in many ways,
the ideal comeback acid test
because he will force Fury
to prove every surviving layer
of his greatness.
The danger is obvious early.
Massive size, attritional pressure,
short hooks, and the kind
of jab used to impose,
not just score.
Thirteen knockouts
in the opening round,
so Arslan Makhmudov,
he's not paid by the hour,
looking to get it done quickly.
And yes, you may have seen the footage
of him wrestling a bear,
and then Thursday,
at the press conference,
he put Tyson Fury in a bear hug
and then playfully picked him up.
The playing is over,
an elaborate amateur career.
You look at his knockout percentage,
and then we talked about it,
13 wins before the first round is over.
If Makhmudov is going to get it done,
he's going to get it done early.
And now, The Gypsy King
returns to the ring,
making his entrance,
the two-time champion,
Tyson Fury!
[announcer] Ladies and gentlemen,
before The Gypsy King
returns to the ring tonight,
he wishes to honor his great friend,
a two-weight world champion
and a hero of British boxing.
Please stand
for Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton.
[slow sentimental music playing]
[announcer]
From a dynasty built on warriors,
one man rose above them all.
A king. A gypsy king.
A giant who conquered champions
and proved that greatness is never given.
It is forged in battles.
The throne stood waiting.
[dramatic music playing]
[announcer]
And the people called for their king,
and tonight he answers.
Under the old English battle c*ck
of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
The Gypsy King returns.
Stronger, louder,
more dangerous than ever,
Tyson Fury, The Gypsy King.
-[rock music playing]
-[crowd cheering]
[Mauro] A thunderous ovation.
The Gypsy King is back.
And a classy gesture by Tyson Fury
paying tribute to the late,
great Ricky Hatton,
the two-division champion
who passed away last September
at the age of 46.
Fury trained at the Hatton Gym
before his 2018 comeback.
Hatton was in Fury's corner
for the first fight
of his terrific trilogy
with Deontay Wilder.
There is only one Ricky Hatton.
And there's only one Tyson Fury.
The two-time heavyweight champion
ending his fifth retirement.
It's his sixth straight stadium show,
his second appearance in Tottenham,
and his first fight in the UK
since KO-ing Derek Chisora
in their third meeting in December 2022.
[upbeat music playing]
[Mauro] Yes, it's a fight!
But it's also entertainment,
it's also a show,
and Tyson Fury is a consummate showman,
and he is once again putting
in excess of 50,000 people,
one of the biggest draws
in the sport of boxing,
and for his size, Andre,
one of the most nimble movers
-in heavyweight history.
-[Andre] And I want to see
if he still has those legs.
I still believe he does.
The questions surrounding what Tyson Fury
we're going to get tonight,
what does he have left,
it means nothing to Tyson Fury.
He's been questioned his whole career.
Fighters are questioned all the time.
We're bred and we're built
to answer those questions.
The stage is set for Fury to answer
those questions here tonight.
[Mauro] A man who's overcome
many personal issues,
including mental health issues,
and I had a chance
many years ago at Big Bear
to interview him about his issues.
It's a guy who's ballooned
over 400 pounds when not in action.
As Lennox Lewis and others said,
"He needs boxing as much
as much as boxing needs him."
[David] He really does.
It's the routine, it's the rhythm.
It's waking up
in the morning with a purpose.
And when that purpose
is combat and battle,
It opens up the day.
[hesitates] I know what that's like.
I know what it's like to wake up now
without a battle in mind.
[Mauro] And here a look
at some of the stats as we mentioned.
Two-time heavyweight champion.
His first fight in nearly 16 months.
Ending his fifth retirement
and he's recorded six knockdowns
in his last seven fights.
It's two behemoths about to battle.
And the fans here
in Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
and Netflix are looking forward
to one hell of a show.
-[edgy music playing]
-[crowd cheering]
Ladies and gentlemen,
from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium,
London, England,
the Bible of Boxing, Ring Magazine,
and Netflix proudly present
the main event of the evening,
12 rounds of boxing
in the heavyweight division.
Brought to you in association
with Spencer Brown's Gold Star Promotions,
and Frank Warren
for Queensbury Promotions.
Sanctioned by
the British Boxing Board of Control.
Steward in Charge, Guy Williamson.
Supervisor at ringside, Dennis Gilmartin.
Timekeeper at the bell, Steven Pucci.
The three judges scoring, Reece Carter,
Lee Avery and Kieran McCann.
And inside the ring,
in charge of the action at the bell,
your referee, Mark Bates.
And now, the officials
are in place and they are ready.
The fighters are in the ring.
And they are ready.
So for the thousands in attendance
and the millions watching
around the world,
ladies and gentlemen,
let's get ready to rumble!
[crowd cheering]
Introducing first,
fighting out of the blue corner
wearing black
and officially weighing in
at 264.9 pounds,
and he stands six feet five
and one half inches tall.
Fighting out of Montreal, Quebec, Canada,
his professional record an excellent one.
Twenty-three fights, 21 victories,
including 19 knockouts
and 17 of those KOs
in three rounds or less,
with only two defeats.
Ladies and gentlemen, he is Arslanbek
"the Lion" Makhmudov!
[crowd cheering, booing]
[] And across the ring, his opponent,
fighting out of the red corner,
wearing blue and black,
standing six feet nine,
weighing in officially at 276.9 pounds.
Fighting out of the Isle of Man
and representing the United Kingdom
with a professional record
of 34 victories,
24 big wins by knockout,
two defeats, one draw.
He's the two-time heavyweight
champion of the world,
the Gypsy King,
Tyson
-Fury!
-[grunts]
[crowd cheering]
[man] Go on, sausage!
[Mark] protect yourselves at all times,
good luck to you both.
All right, touch gloves.
[Mauro] The time has come
for the Clash of Giants.
Tyson Fury said he has sparred 500 rounds
for his fifth comeback.
He said he didn't
lose his speed and reactions.
Round one is 255th as a pro.
Makhmudov's first round,
his 70th as a pro.
Scheduled for 12 rounds
in the heavyweight division.
Referee is Mark Bates, and let's hope
he has a better night tonight
than he did last weekend refereeing
Deontay Wilder and Derek Chisora.
And again,
Makhmudov, dangerous early,
but already on the attack.
Break! Take a step back, take a step back!
[David] Very positive start
from Makhmudov.
Doesn't look phased,
doesn't look intimidated
by the night the magnitude of it here.
He's coming in like he always does.
[Andre] Makhmudov is the type of guy
that if Tyson Fury isn't who he once was,
if he isn't physically and mentally
where he needs to be,
Makhmudov will expose him.
[Mauro] A combined weight of 532 pounds,
the record weight
for a fight in the UK, 630.
Eric "Butterbean" Esch was 363,
Shane Woollas was 267
when they boxed at Wembley in 2001.
And the Russian lion looking
to put Fury in another bear hug,
which of course,
not exactly according to the Queen
the Marquess of Queensberry Rules.
[Andre] Makhmudov doesn't have
a lot of different gears,
but the gear he has is a strong one.
[Mauro] Yeah, limited adaptability,
but he's coming straight ahead,
smothering Tyson Fury in the corner.
[David] Tyson Fury's comfortable
in this zone,
getting right inside,
pulling and pushing.
He's very strong inside.
Makhmudov is looking at landing one
of these big hooks.
But Tyson's seen it all before.
[Mauro] And Fury, of course,
returning after a near-16-month layoff.
His only two losses coming courtesy
of the best heavyweight
on the planet, Oleksandr Usyk.
But even in those two fights,
Fury had his moments.
[Andre] Oh, yeah,
Fury's gonna have his moments.
He's still got a lot left in the tank.
And the reason why Makhmudov
is having some success right now
is because Tyson Fury's
not doing what he just did.
And that taking a walk around the block
and making Makhmudov turn his feet.
If you go straight back,
like Tyson Fury's doing,
Makhmudov will charge you
right into the ropes
and hit you with a good shot.
[Mauro] David, Fury was knocked out
in the ninth round of the Usyk fight.
He has been down eight times in his career
and probably has the best
recuperative powers I have seen in boxing.
He's never been stopped.
And I will never forget the night
in Los Angeles in the twelfth round
when Deontay Wilder flattened him out.
And all of a sudden he popped up
like the WWE's Undertaker.
[David] I remember everyone was in shock,
including Deontay Wilder.
[hesitates] He was celebrating
like the fight was over.
But you're right, he can recover.
And the recovery skills
do dwindle as you get older.
But Tyson's not looking
at taking those big shots from Makhmudov.
You can see it.
All of the assaults coming
from Makhmudov are very crude.
His head's coming in,
he's probably going to get worn,
maybe have a point taken off.
He's not a very cultured boxer,
he's just a big, strong,
rough, tough fighter.
Tyson's looking at taking
the steam out of him
-and then he's going to put a
-[bell ringing]
.boxing master class on
like he did right at the end
of that round.
Started having a little bounce.
-He's getting into it right now.
-[Mauro] So many luminaries on hand
and look who we've got here,
The Rest is Football
are in the heights, you can catch them
every day this summer on Netflix
as they debate the biggest moments
on football's biggest stage in NYC.
Good to see Gary Lineker
and Micah Richards,
the hosts of The Rest Is Football.
And we're here in this football stadium,
home of the Tottenham Hotspurs,
but tonight it's home
to the Clash of Giants.
[SugarHill] Don't wait for him
to take charge and start step in first.
So when you see him right there
[Andre] Good right hand right there
from Makhmudov,
and that's because, as I mentioned,
Tyson Fury is going straight back.
You gotta hit a corner.
You gotta turn the corner
when you're facing
a hard-charging guy like that.
[hesitates] Don't allow him to line up
his power just the way that he did.
[Mauro] You saw Tyson Fury's half-brother,
Tommy Fury,
watching with a little distress.
So some adversity for Tyson Fury
in the first round, David.
[David] Yeah, I gave that first round
to Makhmudov
just for his sheer effort,
he landed the biggest shots.
Tyson landed one uppercut there
and a few jabs.
But Tyson gives the first round away
most of the time just to get a feel.
[Mauro] And Fury has been known
to seamlessly switch
from orthodox to southpaw.
He can go from a long-range boxer
to showing that Kronk Gym aggression.
And yes, much Despite the fact
he claimed he trained himself
SugarHill Steward,
his corner man for a while,
has been in the corner. And of course,
Andre, a fight of this magnitude,
coming back again,
you don't want to be alone.
[Andre] Yeah, you got
to have another set of eyes,
another opinion in there,
you don't want to just trust yourself
because fighters will either
under train or over train,
and you'll miss things
that a trainer will catch.
[Mauro] And Makhmudov continues
to come straight forward
in linear fashion.
What you see
is what you get from Makhmudov.
[David] Crude assaults, throwing punches
when the punch isn't there.
[Andre] Yeah, but you see every time
Tyson Fury picks up his jab
and he throws it sharp and hard,
Makhmudov throws nothing.
[Mauro] Makhmudov, as we mentioned,
most dangerous in the opening chapters,
while Fury's superior feet,
ring IQ, clinch craft,
gas tank, and adaptability,
well, that should widen
the gap the longer it goes.
The operative word being "should."
[Andre] Tyson Fury doesn't need
to wrestle with Makhmudov right now.
That's his game.
He needs to keep the fight
right where it is right now,
in the centre of the ring, feinting,
looking like he's gonna do something,
then coming behind the jab
and landing ones and twos early.
As the fight progresses,
he can put together threes and fours.
[Mauro] You don't ever want to overlook
the opponent in front of you,
but as we have heard throughout the night,
plans are in place.
Should Fury win tonight
to finally face Anthony Joshua
in the biggest domestic fight
in British history.
But right now, he's in against a guy
looking to knock his block off,
Arslanbek Makhmudov.
[Andre] Fury's not a big body puncher,
but his body shots are open,
because Makhmudov is throwing wide shots.
And when he misses, his torso,
his liver are wide open.
Fury's gotta recognize that.
[David] Agit Kabayel really showed
how to beat Makhmudov.
And it's the counter punches.
It's getting underneath
and around his big crude shots
and countering.
[Mauro] Yep. Fury had great success
with the body shots
in that first fight with Usyk.
And you're right, he wants to look to
Both of them should be
making the deposit.
Now Fury turns the tables
on Makhmudov momentarily
as he played the matador
to the Makhmudov bulls.
[Andre] That's bad Tyson Fury
when he goes straight back.
He needs to get the angle.
That's good Tyson Fury,
what you just saw right there.
He punched and he took a walk
around the block.
Makhmudov threw nothing back.
[David] Makhmudov looks
like he's feeling the pace.
He looks like he's really
feeling the pace.
He's a very dangerous man early,
but he starts to fall apart
when he gets tired.
[upbeat music playing]
[SugarHill] Get your breathing.
Let's get that breathing.
I like when you recharging.
One time, you just staying up in there.
That breaks the momentum
of coming forward so much.
Just get your breathing.
Try to find your little poke
right on the inside
when you get in there. Just touches.
If you got it,
just push it like a button.
You're tiring out already, okay?
You see it, right?
-Just take your time.
-I kind of hurt him there.
[SugarHill] Yeah, just take your time.
Make sure you're all on balance.
One, two, get on your feet.
[Andre] Tyson Fury throwing that one-two.
Makhmudov landed a shot,
but Tyson Fury also landed a left shot.
And it's gonna be like that.
When you're exchanging as heavyweights,
there's gonna be some give and take.
But Tyson got more
than he took in those exchanges.
[Mauro] SugarHill Steward,
a disciple of the late
great Emanuel Steward,
the legendary trainer
at Kronk Gym in Detroit.
And the greatest quote in boxing history
came from Emanuel Stewart,
"Knockouts sell."
And both fighters,
especially at heavyweight,
are capable of seismic KOs.
[Andre] As strong as Makhmudov is
and as hard as he punches,
when Tyson Fury starts to put some flavour
into that food, into that dish,
Makhmudov doesn't know
what to do, when he feints him,
when he turns southpaw,
when he's flicking the jab,
throwing quick, fast shots.
Makhmudov is in school,
he's mesmerized by the speed.
Tyson Fury has to keep this up.
[David] Tyson, I think,
was willing to give him
give him the first couple of rounds,
letting him blow off,
going backward in straight lines,
knowing Makhmudov
was gonna come to unload.
'Cause that's all
Makhmudov's really had is this,
coming forward, boring forward
with his head.
Once that initial gas
is gone from Makhmudov,
Tyson can then relax
and start playing with him.
[Mauro] Mark Ramsay,
longtime Canadian trainer,
the chief second for Makhmudov.
He and his family moved
to Montreal nine years ago.
His wife, and he has two daughters
and a son,
so Makhmudov looking
to secure his family's future.
And boy, would it be secure with a win
over two-time
heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
A minute and a half left in the third.
Fury back to southpaw.
[Andre] One of the hardest things
that Tyson Fury has to do
is just stay focused.
It's not taking the power or dealing
with the strength of Makhmudov.
It's staying focused,
doing what he needs to do,
rinse and repeat,
and start it all over again.
[Mauro] How many times
have we seen momentary lapses
cost Tyson Fury?
[Andre] Well, all fighters
can have momentary lapses.
He just can't have one
against this guy tonight.
Took defence right there,
two scraping heavy body shots
and one to the face of Tyson Fury.
[Mauro] Oh, he's unloading now
as Makhmudov tries desperately to hold on,
Fury trying to punch out.
[Andre] That's where Makhmudov
thought he wanted to be
and now Tyson Fury is dominating
that section of the fight too.
[David] Really unloading
with a big body as*ault,
Tyson slowing down the big man,
really is chopping him down.
[Andre] Tyson getting in a real
good groove right now.
[David] Yeah. Yeah,
he's starting to enjoy it now.
This is Tyson Fury's zone here.
There you go.
[Andre] Makhmudov doesn't have a plan B.
-[Mauro] Did he have a plan A?
-[Andre] He did, and it's a strong one.
But Tyson Fury made the adjustment,
and right now,
Makhmudov hasn't made one himself.
[Mauro] So, as we
[bell ringing]
[Mauro] So as we come
to the end of the round,
let's check in with Anna Woolhouse,
a very interested onlooker.
Indeed. I'm sat next door
to Anthony Joshua.
Anthony, really good to see you
back here ringside at Tottenham.
-How does it feel being back?
-It's amazing.
UK fans have come out to see Tyson Fury,
Conor Benn, Regis Prograis,
TKV, Riakporhe.
It's been a really good undercard.
I'm enjoying it.
It's actually thrilling here as well.
So boxing's thriving in the UK.
But we all know you're probably here
on a spying mission.
-His Excellency, Turki Alalshikh.
-Oh, yeah.
We know, we know.
[Anthony] I'm not that much of a good spy.
I'm front row.
But I've got my eyes on the prize, 100%
You know what I'm here for.
It's been a long time coming.
He's been out
in the ring for a long time.
And this is his welcome back.
And he'll be in the deep end really soon.
What's the plan?
Is the plan to fight Fury next
or are you going
to have a fight in between?
The plan is right hand, left hook,
right hand, left hook
until something connects and boom.
I'm a very, very powerful guy,
a strong guy and I'm hungry.
[Anna] And it's good to see you back,
and hopefully see you in the ring.
I've been very well, thank you.
Thank you for asking.
[Anthony] Good to see you.
[Mauro] Always a class act,
Anthony Joshua showing some respect
for our reporter, Anna Woolhouse.
And yes, everyone waiting
to see what happens
in this main event
as Makhmudov clipped Fury
with the left hand, but Fury took it.
[Andre] Yeah, that's that plan A
I was talking about.
It's still in effect if Tyson Fury
gets off his game,
or if Makhmudov was able
to step up his game.
[David] The more the rounds go on,
the more chance Tyson's got
of stopping Makhmudov.
[Mauro] Makhmudov unloading on Fury.
They clinch, and Makhmudov
should have an edge,
maybe, a wrestling background.
He's from Dagestan, and of course,
UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov
from those parts.
And if it's one thing a Dagestani
knows, it's how to wrestle.
But this is a boxing match.
[David] If this is Makhmudov
when he's fresh in the first few rounds,
what is his style like
in round seven, eight and nine?
[Mauro] And now the exchange.
[Andre] We talked about that focus
a round or two ago from Tyson Fury.
Makhmudov is having success
because Tyson Fury
put the car on cruise control.
He stopped jabbing, he stopped feinting,
and he stopped coming forward.
So Makhmudov felt emboldened
to do what he did,
and that's why
he landed the shot.
Tyson Fury needs to take the car.
off of cruise control
and get back to work.
[Mauro] And again, makes Makhmudov miss
and then makes him pay
before putting him in a guillotine.
[David chuckles] A guillotine choke.
[Mauro] That'll be on display
at Netflix on May 16th,
when MVP presents MMA on May 16th
with the much-awaited,
long-awaited fight
between Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano,
but here we have the heavyweights,
the Clash of Giants
and Fury attacking the body in the clinch.
[David] Tyson looks like
he's actually enjoying it in there.
It looks like he's really kind
of getting into a flow.
-It's been a long time
-[Mauro] Whoa!
-turning the shots over.
-[crowd shouting indistinctly]
[Andre] Nice one-two from Tyson Fury.
Makhmudov can probably take the shot
that he sees coming from Tyson Fury,
but he might not be able to take the shot
that he doesn't see coming.
[Mauro] Coming into this fight,
Makhmudov's opponents have landed 47%
of their power punches.
Anything over 40% offensively is good.
If it's a defensive stat, not so good.
[David] Tyson giving us a wink there,
looking down after he lands
that big right hook to the body.
He knew it was a good shot.
[Mauro] And Fury opening up a big lead
in terms of punches landed.
But Makhmudov swinging
for those proverbial fences.
And it's not
the most aesthetically pleasing.
Leaves a lot of space,
a big lane in between.
[Andre] I gotta remember
that Tyson Fury's been off for 16 months,
so he's literally shaking rough
right before our eyes.
[light-hearted instrumental music playing]
[Marc] Arslanbek, try
remember when we workout at gym,
try to be first on jab.
Don't let this guy,
because now he's comfortable.
Jab, jab, jab.
Don't let this guy jab, okay?
Even you don't need perfect jab.
You don't need, you can jab low.
I don't care. Far.
But make sure you're first.
And you will try your a*s off.
Now, you counteract.
You understand? "Go up, go up, go up.
Now, go."
-All right.
-[Marc] Yes.
[Mauro] Veteran trainer Marc Ramsay
wants Makhmudov to utilize his stick
and take away Fury's jab.
[Andre] The way he does that
is by applying pressure
and being willing to get hit
with the first jab,
pressing forward past that,
and when Tyson Fury opens up,
he has to punch with Tyson Fury.
You have to know your strengths,
you have to know your weaknesses,
and you have to play to your strengths,
-and Makhmudov
-[bell ringing]
[Andre] is the physically stronger guy,
but Tyson Fury
is the more skilful fighter.
[Mauro] Fifth round underway,
ten years ago,
Makhmudov had a photo taken
with Tyson Fury, and he's hoping
that the end result tonight
will be picture-perfect,
no filter required,
as though these two behemoths,
toe-to-toe,
Fury trying to find his rhythm,
trying to use those legs,
but they're 37-year-old legs
that haven't been used
for over a year and a half.
-Break! Break!
-[crowd shouting indistinctly]
[Mauro] Body attack from Fury.
Framing now, using his forearm
to create separation.
[Andre] But Makhmudov has to work
in there and not hold.
When you have Tyson Fury resting
or along the ropes,
you have to bang to the body.
You have to rip short uppercuts.
While you have
the more elusive man stationary,
take full advantage.
[Mauro] David,
Fury looking to establish that long jab.
But it's jab and grab, baby.
[David It doesn't look like
he's in any type of stress in there.
It looks like he's happy.
It's a 12-round fight.
There's no need to rush.
Every round that goes by,
the gas tank of Makhmudov goes down.
[Mauro] And yet, at times,
Fury looking like the man he conquered
for the heavyweight championship
the first time,
second longest reign, Wladimir Klitschko,
known for the jab and grab.
And for Fury, why not?
Land the punch and then do what you can
to stymie the return.
[David] If he tries
to take Makhmudov out now
when he's still relatively fresh,
there's a little bit of danger.
Drag the fight out,
break him down, tie him up,
get it into the later rounds
where he's a softer target.
[Mauro] Oh, Makhmudov misses wildly.
[David] Every time Makhmudov swings
and misses, he gets more tired.
[Andre] Think about it, fellas.
Tyson Fury's been off for 16 months.
AJ may be next. Tyson Fury needs rounds.
[Mauro] Yes, and his wife looking on,
that's Paris Fury.
Season two of At Home With The Furys
begins streaming tomorrow on Netflix.
Married couple, father of seven.
Uh, last minute here of the fifth
and Makhmudov coming forward,
lumbering forward is probably
a more apt description.
[David] Good shot there, turned it.
-[Mauro] Oh!
-[David] Turned over nicely inside
as Makhmudov is looking at, just resting.
[Mauro] He's not looking at his phone
like he was looking
-at the press conference.
-[David chuckles] Exactly.
[David] That's the speed difference
right there.
Makhmudov's looking at holding any time.
He's exhausted in there.
He's feeling the pace.
Tyson can feel his tightness,
and he just keeps touching the body.
He's tenderizing him in there.
[Mauro] Final ten seconds of the fifth.
Another jab from Fury.
And Makhmudov just wide, looping punches
that are not finding their targets.
-[bell ringing]
-[Mauro] And the seconds tick away.
[upbeat hip-hop music playing]
[SugarHill] You're doing a lot of damage.
That's smart boxing.
You ain't gotta be pulling back,
putting yourself in no damn danger.
[talking indistinctly]
Finally caught him with an uppercut.
All it takes is patience.
I'm patient. Patient.
[SugarHill] All I want you to say
is you'll be patient.
The shot's gonna open up
when you want it to.
'Cause you're controlling your shots
and the rhythm.
[trainer] It's time
for the big uppercut from the
[SugarHill] So, you see, you put it back,
you're hitting him hard, too.
[David] That was the shot
turning it over inside
when Makhmudov was looking at resting.
Thought the action was over,
oh, no, it wasn't.
Shows he's got a good chin, punch resist,
nothing wrong with his punch resistance
It's the fact he's gonna get exhausted
is gonna be his biggest problem.
-[Mauro] We're set for round six.
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] And the two
Oleksandr Usyk fights for Fury,
he still showed that he can be brilliant
his scratches still capable
of making elite adjustments.
But he ultimately fell second best
to a master of control
and finishing force.
Now, Makhmudov doesn't have the control.
He does have the finishing force,
but we're now into round six.
Anthony Joshua, Eddie Hearn looking
on from ringside.
A bit of tactical analysis.
You can see Joshua filming the fight
on his way home,
maybe doing a little bit of scouting.
[David chuckles]
Tyson playing in there now.
This is when Tyson's in his zone,
touching gloves. Friendly, friendly.
He ain't friendly when he throws.
He's looking for an uppercut.
Tyson's looking to land
a big uppercut as he comes.
[Mauro] No such thing as friendly fire
in the sport of boxing.
[David] No, there isn't.
That's all gamesmanship, touching gloves.
Makhmudovwants Tyson
to stop front punches,
so he'll be touching gloves.
-It's too crude. It's too crude.
-[crowd cheering]
[Andre] You hit me with some of the shots
that Fury is hitting Makhmudov with.
Please don't reach out
and touch my glove,
-'cause I will not touch it.
-[David laughs]
[Mauro] David, you have brought up
the word of the fight. "Crude."
That is exactly the best description
of Arslanbek Makhmudov.
[David] And as he gets more tired,
it just gets worse and worse,
slower and slower,
and will allow Tyson to see it coming,
and he'll hit him
with an almighty uppercut as he comes in.
[Mauro] The water is getting deeper.
A minute and a half away
from the first half
of this 12-round heavyweight attraction
The Clash of Giants
the 6'9" Tyson Fury,
the 6'5" and a half Arslanbek Makhmudov
who again looking to make it
bowling shoe ugly, Andre,
but whatever works.
[Andre] To the young fighters at home,
game plan and strategy
and the mental toughness
to execute that strategy is everything.
When Tyson Fury had the wrong strategy
in the first two rounds,
Makhmudov had success.
When Tyson Fury got back
into his game, into his bag,
so to speak, got disciplined.
All of a sudden, the fight turned,
and Makhmudov looks like
a totally different fighter.
[David] Maybe that was
that 16-month layoff.
Maybe that was the fact he hadn't been in.
And it took two, three rounds for him
to get the ring rust out,
to get back to, this is Tyson Fury.
[Andre] Which is impressive.
It only takes two rounds
for him to get in the rhythm
-[David] Yeah.
-[Andre] after being out for 16 months.
[Mauro] Fury is going into his bag,
in hopes of securing the biggest bag
against Anthony Joshua.
Fury switching stances,
giving Makhmudov different looks.
Makhmudov just a stationary target.
No head movement off centre line.
Hands are low, and here he comes again.
[Andre] I'm sure
if Tyson Fury heard Makhmudov
that he would try to take him out.
But I'm not sure
Tyson Fury wants a knockout.
Like I said, AJ could possibly be next.
And he's been off,
so why wouldn't Tyson Fury wanna get
-ten to 12 rounds under his belt?
-[bell ringing]
[David] He's not looking at it.
He doesn't really care about
an additional knockout on his record.
He wants the big fights.
That's all his corner's gotta say.
[mellow music playing]
[Marc speaking French]
[in English] Okay, son,
we need a second attack.
Right now, you're doing your head move
and it's good.
He's happy to give you a jab.
[Andre] See Tyson Fury
showing different looks.
One minute he's right-handed,
the next minute he's left-handed.
I wonder if Makhmudov trained
for a left-handed fighter.
I wonder if he had two sets
of different sparring partners
because Tyson Fury
has given him many looks
and he's given him, that's a backhand,
that's technically ill*gal.
But hey, it's up to Makhmudov
if the ref doesn't get in there
to make Tyson Fury stop.
-[Mauro] Round seven.
-[announcer] Round seven.
-[Mauro] As we move into the second half
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] of this heavyweight tilt
in front of over 50,000 fans
at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
And Makhmudov,
looking to bring the heat to Tyson Fury,
but so far Fury hasn't
minded the temperature at all.
[Andre] See right there,
Makhmudov missed a one-two.
-[Mauro] Yes.
-[Andre] He had Tyson along the ropes.
You've got to let both hands go
to the body first and then to the head.
And that's how Makhmudov puts himself
in the best position to win.
[Mauro] The jab
is such a crucial weapon, David,
and it's been all Tyson Fury
in terms of sticking the stick.
[David] That's his shot.
His shot is the jab, always has been.
That sets up his range,
it gets his rhythm.
It doesn't take that much energy
to throw at all.
He can throw a thousand jabs.
Because he's so big and so heavy,
just a flick and jab is enough
to really stun his opponent.
[Mauro] And after giving Makhmudov
the opening round,
David Hayes' unofficial scorecard
has Tyson Fury beginning
to run away with things.
[David] The first round off the strength
of Makhmudov's effort pushing
[Mauro] Oh, that's an uppercut.
Oh, nice counter right hand
by Makhmudov.
[Andre] Two good shots,
Makhmudov can't catch Tyson Fury
-[Mauro] Good right hand.
-[Andre] unless he throws.
He's gotta throw.
[David] That's the best spell
for Makhmudov for the last few rounds.
[Mauro] Why does he immediately smother
his offence, Andre, by lunging in
instead of staying at mid-range
where he's been landing a little bit?
[Andre] Bad habits.
He's been doing it for years,
and we can't expect in the biggest moment
that he's going to change that.
You were calling for it.
We think he should do it.
His coach is even asking for it.
But you're going to train to the level
of the drills you do
and to what you've been doing
every day in the gym.
That's why good habits
and good practices are so important,
because in the biggest moment,
you can't flip a switch and turn them off.
You're gonna do what you've always done.
[Mauro] Or you can be like James Clear
and include some "atomic habits."
Just over a minute left here
in the seventh round.
Makhmudov on the ropes, but again,
utilizing that wrestling background,
clinching Fury,
slowing the Gypsy King down
or trying to do that. And by the way,
I want to give a shout out
to Netflix's Peaky Blinders
for letting me know
that Gypsy King is also Rom Baro.
[Mauro] Travelling background.
[Andre] That's a dynamite jab
right there, fellas.
[Mauro] Yeah, good jab there.
[Andre] That's a dynamite jab
right there, fellas.
It's sharp, it's powerful,
and it's quick.
Not a lot of good jabs in the game.
Tyson Fury's up there
with the best of 'em, present day.
[Mauro] And of course,
the heavyweight division
has been the home to so many
incredible jabbers.
Larry Holmes comes to mind.
-[David] He's an assassin.
-[Mauro] Whoo!
[crowd shouting indistinctly]
[Mauro] Final 15 seconds of the seventh.
Makhmudov misses
with a sweeping right hand.
And again
-the scouting report on Makhmudov
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] is limited adaptability,
and we've yet to see any adjustments.
[David] Tyson Fury
really running away from this one.
[SugarHill] I told you, big ol' iceberg.
Let rip, you gotta get out of there.
[Tyson] Just needs one big shot, guys.
He's burning.
[SugarHill] You throw that shot in there,
don't pull out.
You throw that m*therf*cker,
slide up in there, put the body on him.
That way you get ready
for the next shot.
Bang, bang.
Two right hands, and then
you go back forward again.
Ain't no bang, bang and pull back,
it's bang, bang, slide up in there again.
What them shoulders all about?
You only get caught
when you're pulling back.
[David] Beautiful right uppercut there.
If that was a little lower,
that would have probably
taken the big man out.
[SugarHill] Rotate.
[David] Makhmudov's resistance,
his punch resistance,
his toughness, his fitness,
is as good as it's ever been.
I've never seen him this fit before.
He normally fades significantly
quicker than this.
[Mauro] Well, we begin the next chapter
here, round number eight,
and Makhmudov again coming forward.
It's almost like a middle linebacker
looking to tackle
the quarterback the way
he approaches Fury.
Fury now working behind the jab,
an effective ramrod jab,
a battering ram.
[Andre] Makhmudov is the perfect guy
for Tyson Fury to come back against
after 16 months, not because he's easy
or a soft touch, because he's
gonna make you work.
like he's making Tyson work,
even though Tyson's ahead in this fight.
And if you're not where you need to be,
he's gonna expose it.
So it's enough of a threat
where it makes you get ready,
but he's also the type of guy,
if you're on point, he'll make you work,
but you'll be able to look good as well.
[Mauro] Yeah, this is the terrain Fury
has historically mastered,
an upright, heavyweight,
predictable forward mover,
straight-line pressure
that can be manipulated with feints,
framing, and angles, and
that's why this fight feels
time sensitive.
We know that Makhmudov is dangerous
in the opening chapters
but the more this fight progresses
the more one would think
it would favour Tyson Fury.
[Andre] Boxing ability, you know,
the style that everybody says is boring,
the style that everybody says
that nobody wants to see,
but for some reason
that's the prevailing style
that keeps fighters on top
for a very long time
and helps them walk
into that Hall of Fame.
[Mauro] Sounds like the style
the last American male
to win an Olympic gold at the Olympics
22 years ago possessed,
the guy named Andre Ward.
[Andre] You might be right.
[Mauro] Oppercut by Fury
as Makhmudov walked forward.
[David] Tyson's really trying
to put on a show now.
This is, as Andre said,
this is the perfect opponent for Tyson.
He needs rounds,
and not just boring rounds,
he needs quality rounds
with someone coming
and pushing and testing him,
so he can practice his arsenal,
practice his uppercuts, his hooks.
You know, it's one thing
doing it in sparring
with 18-ounce gloves on and headgear,
with them little gloves on.
-You know, you really got
-[Mauro] Nice left hook by Fury.
[David] It looks like
the big man's hurt now.
Makhmudov is feeling it.
[Mauro] Makhmudov delivers
a right hand, but Fury
And Makhmudov doing his best
to try to wrap up the Gypsy King
because there was an opening there.
[Andre] Makhmudov hit Fury
with a "get off me" type punch,
but it didn't work.
Tyson Fury still closing in.
[Mauro] Oh, he's looking
for that uppercut.
Now from the southpaw stance,
Fury beginning to move in,
beginning to find its target,
and yet, Makhmudov content to wrestle him
like the big bear he wrestled in Russia.
His mother said, sure, go ahead.
She didn't realize
that he was wrestling a bear.
[Andre] Yeah, but that bear
wasn't throwing punches back then.
That bear tonight, that other bear,
Tyson Fury, he's throwing a lot of leather
in Makhmudov's direction.
[Mauro] And he's beginning
to really find his groove
-[bell ringing]
-[Mauro] as this fight continues.
[David] Makhmudov started
to stand up straight.
He's starting to stand up straight
and lean away from the shots.
A bad place to be with someone
with such long arms and good speed.
[Marc] You need to be careful
because now you show this guy
that you're tired.
You go like this. No, no, no, no, no.
Don't play this with him, okay?
Send him a different message.
Send him The Lion message, okay?
Good, buddy.
[Andre] Tyson Fury along the ropes,
call that a check hook.
In other words,
"Don't come at me like that,
get your hands up."
"'Cause if not,
I'm going to discipline you."
And Tyson Fury has been dishing out
a lot of discipline
in Makhmudov's direction.
See, boxers are not just slick,
but they're mean too.
You've got to be mean to be that close
to a guy like Makhmudov
and rip those kind of shots.
[Mauro] And you know what? You would think
shots like that would do damage.
Look at the neck of Makhmudov.
[David] Well, a 26-inch neck is crazy,
never seen anything like it.
[Andre] Oh, yeah,
that damage is soaking in
'cause you see Makhmudov shaking that head
and trying to get those kinks out
and what he's feeling.
He's just a tough guy
and he's got a strong poker face.
[Mauro] And we've reached round nine,
scheduled for 12.
Makhmudov in the centre of the ring,
the stab jab, the right hand.
Fury backing up and away,
resetting in the centre.
And Fury has landed 106 punches,
Makhmudov only 44,
so nearly three times
as many punches have landed
for the "Gypsy King," Tyson Fury.
[Andre] Makhmudov's coach, Marc Ramsay.
I don't know what he's making tonight.
He's earning every red cent tonight
'cause he is pleading, imploring,
reaching in his bag as a coach
and all his years of experience
to try to tell his charge something
to turn the course of this fight.
[Mauro] Marc Ramsay may need
to go like Roy Jones Jr. did
in that fight with his fighter
against Elijah Garcia.
And of course, Kevin Newman,
great job there.
Your podcast partner, Roy Jones Jr.
Love the Hall of Game, by the way.
[Andre] Appreciate you, brother.
[Mauro] Two minutes left
here in the ninth.
And Fury now backing Makhmudov
to the ropes.
Do you begin to see
the pace slowing down a bit, David,
or are you still content
with what you're seeing here?
[David] I'm very impressed with Makhmudov,
I really like the fact
that he's still in there,
he's still throwing punches, he hasn't
He's taking like
For instance, right then,
he took a big right hand on the chin,
and he's just marching forward.
[Andre] The pace of the fight goes
as Tyson Fury goes,
and that's the mistake
that Makhmudov has made.
He set the pace in the first two rounds,
had Tyson Fury a bit uncomfortable,
landed some good shots,
but he settled down
and allowed Tyson Fury
to dictate the pace of this fight.
[Mauro] Jab, body shot by Fury,
and then leans in,
continues to attack the body.
Referee Mark Bates giving them
an opportunity to punch out.
And I have to say,
Mark Bates having
a better night as referee
-than he did last weekend, David.
-[David] He really is.
And I'll tell you what,
what a spirited effort from Makhmudov.
[Mauro] Right hand from Makhmudov.
[David] He's not allowing the fact
that his skills are significantly
more limited than Tyson
to quench his thirst
to try to really get in there.
[Andre] There's a lot of questions
about Tyson Fury coming into this fight.
Rightfully so.
The age, the layoff, the two losses.
Good shot right there from Fury.
[Mauro] Oh, and Makhmudov's knees buckled.
[Andre] He just wanted to get Tyson Fury
off of his neck.
And Tyson Fury's checking all the boxes.
You look at the legs,
he's still got spring.
He's still got movement.
You look at the offence.
Is it still landing? Is it still sharp?
He checked that box. Can he take a shot?
He checked that box.
So, Tyson Fury still has
a lot left in the tank.
He's putting on a great show tonight.
But I want to see
if Makhmudov can grab something,
reach for something that can hurt Fury
or change the course of a round,
much less the fight.
[Mauro] Nice combination by Fury,
punctuated by the punch to the body.
[bell ringing]
[David] Tyson's trying to turn it up now.
Makhmudov isn't feeling it whatsoever.
He's not enjoying this pace.
[SugarHill] Go to work.
Keep your angle
and just keep digging that shot.
You got about two more rounds
and that's it.
But you gotta play it smart.
You're beating him on the jump already.
You don't wait for him to jump on you.
You go ahead
and slide up in that position first.
That last little pop
[Andre] Tyson Fury doing
what he's been doing
for most of this fight,
pretty much whatever he wants.
Uppercuts,
body shots when he gets in close,
and it's all been set up by the lead hand,
the jab, of Tyson Fury.
[Mauro] Marc Ramsay trying
to motivate Arslanbek,
"The Lion" Makhmudov,
as we have reached round number ten.
Series of body blows by Fury.
[Andre] I feel like if you're Makhmudov,
clearly there's a difference in class,
but don't wake up tomorrow morning
regretting not giving forth the effort,
not doing all
that you could've possibly did
-to try to win this fight.
-[Mauro] Needs to dig down deep,
especially if he were to be made aware
of David Haye's unofficial scorecard.
Fury way ahead.
[Andre]
Sometimes a fighter doesn't give up
by throwing in the white flag
or telling the corner
he doesn't want to continue.
It's just a subtle,
small thing that happens inside,
and he stops trying to win
like he previously was.
And that's what Tyson Fury
has reduced Makhmudov down to right now.
[Mauro]
Yeah, Fury working in close, David,
and still managing
to execute some body shots.
[David] Makhmudov is having
very little success inside with Tyson,
so why is he Yeah.
-[Mauro] Again.
-[David] Mouthpiece comes out,
that's the second time
that's happened in two rounds.
[Andre] A mean one-two from Tyson Fury.
[Mauro] Yeah.
And Makhmudov will say thank you
for this respite,
as the referee ensures
that it's done quickly.
As Tyson Fury waits in a neutral corner,
the Gypsy King looking to crown Makhmudov,
and he tried to do it
with that right hand.
[David] That's the first time
I've seen the legs buckle.
Fully buckled there for that right hand.
Tyson had some mean intentions
with that right hand.
[Mauro] Uppercut, and again,
the wide punches of Makhmudov.
If he were able to straighten them out,
there'd be a lot more power
behind them, Andre.
[Andre] Yeah,
not gonna happen tonight, fellas.
We've seen ten rounds of this.
We've seen a lot of Makhmudov
Makhmudov's career doing this,
and Tyson Fury
has gotten the timing down.
He's tasted the power. He's comfortable.
He's doing whatever he wants
to do right now.
[Mauro] Man, David Haye, that uppercut is
is getting closer and closer.
[David]
And Makhmudov isn't moving his head.
His head's in the same space.
Tyson just keeps missing it.
If he moves six inches to the right,
he'll land it on the button.
[Mauro] One of the best uppercuts
in the business
belongs to Gervonta "Tank" Davis
He authored the 2020 Knockout of the Year
with the left uppercut from Hades,
becoming the first man
to stop Leo Santa Cruz.
And always been a big fan
of the uppercut, Andre.
[Andre] It's a beautiful punch.
And nine times out of ten,
your opponent doesn't see it coming,
which is why it does so much damage.
[crowd cheering]
[Mauro] Now Fury unloading on Makhmudov
along the ropes.
Body shots, Makhmudov takes a knee,
but was pushed down.
[David]
But he wouldn't have been pushed down
in the first three or four rounds.
[Mauro] Good point.
Jab from Fury, right hand from Fury,
clinched by Makhmudov.
[Andre] See, Tyson put more power
in that right hand.
I think he's looking
for that knockout right now.
[Mauro] And he really wants to earn it
with that right uppercut.
-Left hook, right hand.
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] Makhmudov can take a shot!
[David] This is going exactly
how Tyson Fury wanted it to go.
He softened him up,
giving the crowd
the fantastic nights of entertainment.
He's turned southpaw, orthodox,
cleaned out the ring rust.
[SugarHill]
m*therf*cker's still punching, man.
[speaks indistinctly]
Regroup and do it again.
You're weighing him down.
You can't be in there training with him.
-[Tyson] Yeah.
-[SugarHill] Okay.
The shot I want,
I want this one right here.
Boom! Right here. f*ck the side.
[David] Here's the
That's the one that landed
right on the button.
[SugarHill] Put it right here,
that's gonna finish the fight, man.
Put it right on the motherfuckin'
[Tyson] Yeah, I think I'm marking him.
[SugarHill] I understand that,
but it's time to finish this sh*t up.
[Mauro] Oh.
[SugarHill] Put these shots
where I tell you. Put them there.
You got it? You almost got this shot.
Bang, bang.
[Mauro] SugarHill Steward
sounds like someone who comes
from that Kronk Gym because he wants him
to put the KO in Kronk.
And Tyson was even saying,
"Hey, I'm doing well boxing",
but he wants him to close the show,
and it's now round 11.
[Andre] Those great trainers
always got that fear.
They always got that concern
with the tough guy that can punch.
He's still here. He can land that shot.
You gotta get him out of there.
That's what you hear
from Trainer SugarHill.
[Mauro] And, David,
Makhmudov unable.
I mean, the scouting report
living up to its accuracy.
There's just no adaptability.
As Andre said too,
what you see is what you get.
And right now he's trying,
but is just being outclassed
by Tyson Fury.
[Andre] That's my issue with Makhmudov.
It's less about what he's unable to do
and more about the effort.
You can fall short,
but if you're giving maximum effort,
if you never stop trying to win,
that's respectable,
and you put yourself
in a position to win.
[Mauro] What kind of data package
does Anthony Joshua have
to still be recording the fight?
[David] He doesn't realize he can watch it
on Netflix in high definition.
[Mauro] Nice one-two
right through the guard of Makhmudov.
Wonder what Anthony Joshua thinks
of what he's seen from the Gypsy King.
[David] Good question.
Anthony Joshua is very much
a different proposition than Makhmudov.
[Mauro] Absolutely.
[David] A few people said
they've got a similar style.
I said,
"No, he doesn't have a similar style".
Maybe they're similar dimensions,
height and weight maybe.
But in terms of boxing ability,
one's an Olympic champion,
two-time heavyweight champion
of the world.
The other one's this fella here,
swinging and missing.
[Mauro]
What about the flicking jab, Andre?
I've always wondered.
I brought it up in other broadcasts.
Like that. Is that legal?
[Andre] It's technically not legal,
but the referee
is not saying anything about it.
Well, you can't hit
with the back end of the glove.
-It's that simple.
-[Mauro] At least he hit it.
[Andre] But it's a highly effective punch.
It stings. It hurts.
And that's why, you know, it's ill*gal.
But the ref, he's watching it.
He's not calling anything tonight.
[Mauro] Body shot again by Fury.
Right uppercut on the inside.
Forty-five seconds.
Makhmudov just trying to stay upright.
[Andre] Makhmudov is looking at the clock.
-Yeah.
-[Andre] He's like,
"Can you move any faster?"
[Mauro]
He's like, "When is my flight leaving?"
[Andre] "Is it only the eleventh round?"
[commentators laugh]
[Mauro] Thirty seconds left
in the second-to-last round.
And still, Makhmudov swinging.
[David] Beautiful uppercut
to the body from Fury.
[Andre] Couple ways you can go
in the game.
You can get knocked out
or you can get boxed out.
Tyson Fury is boxing out
Makhmudov right now.
[David] What a great night's work
from Tyson Fury here.
Really, really cooking him in there.
[Mauro] Fury unloading
on Makhmudov in the corner
as we head to the final round
of the Clash of Giants.
-[bell ringing]
-[crowd cheering]
[edgy music playing]
[David] Beautiful stuff.
[SugarHill] Bam, I needed a shot there.
f*ck the head.
-Put a little work behind this here.
-Put down Punish him.
-[Tyson] Yeah, I did, didn't I?
-[SugarHill] Again, you only did it once.
I wanted it three times.
That would've been the fight.
[Andre] Tyson Fury doing
what Tyson Fury's been doing
for about, hmm, ten rounds.
Uppercut, lead uppercut.
If you can land a lead uppercut,
everything is working.
You step aside, create an angle,
land another shot, another uppercut.
-[David] The right uppercut.
-[Andre] Boom, first one.
[David] The lead right uppercut is one of
the most dangerous shots to throw.
And he's in a position now
where he's very comfortable to throw it.
[Andre]
Yes, if you're the one throwing it,
but he's throwing it and he's landing it.
[Mauro] Well, at the age of 37,
after another long layoff,
Tyson Fury showing
-that his delivery system
-[bell ringing]
[Mauro] is still working very well.
[David] It is. Those weeks, those many,
many 16 weeks over there
in Thailand, living clean.
[Mauro] Now the question is
Uppercut again lands for Fury.
Did he really spar 500 rounds?
-[Andre] Five hundred is a lot.
-[commentators laugh]
He looks like he sparred 500
the way he's performing tonight though.
-[David] Yeah.
-[Mauro] And, of course,
Tyson Fury would never let facts
get in the way of a great story.
It's the 12th and final round,
and Fury continues
to go to work behind the one-two,
and the body shots.
Makhmudov looking to clinch
and not really that interested
in getting into a w*r here with Fury.
[David] Makhmudov is looking forward
to the final bell,
is what he's doing in there.
It will sound like an orchestra to him.
[Mauro] Well, only two men have heard
the final bell against Makhmudov.
That was heavyweight gatekeeper
Carlos Takam and David Allen,
the British fan favourite
in his last fight,
October of last year.
And with all due respect
to those two individuals,
not at the level of Tyson Fury.
And for Fury, yes,
the fifth retirement has ended.
Sixteen-month layoff, 37 years of age,
putting in the work against Makhmudov.
[Andre] I like the work
that Fury's putting in,
and I'm gonna take everybody back
into the classroom.
You hear about knockouts,
like I said, this is a box out.
Everybody's not a one punch
knockout artist.
Sometimes you gotta get it
a different type of way.
And that different type of way
is accumulation, precision,
sharpness, good feet, good legs,
good defence, and then all of a sudden,
the punishment starts to show up
on the opponent's face,
on their body, on their minds,
and all of a sudden, you tame
a fighter who is known
for being menacing and strong
with a lot of power.
There's a lot of ways to get
the job done in a boxing ring,
and you're seeing Tyson Fury
do it at the highest level.
[Mauro] Again, lands that right uppercut.
Just over a minute left.
And this, the return
of the Gypsy King.
And should the final minute go
as the rest of this fight has gone,
then yes, fight fans have a lot
to be excited about when it comes
to the future of boxing in the UK.
Another huge stadium crowd on hand here.
The fourth stadium show
in the past 12 months in England.
Tyson Fury's sixth
straight stadium show returning
to the scene of his last victory
on home soil in his third meeting
with Derek Chisora back in 2022
and now just seconds away from making
another successful return to the ring.
[Andre] And I get it.
Some will say Makhmudov is limited,
but he's good enough.
He's strong enough.
He hits hard enough.
But it's the way Tyson Fury is doing it.
You can't take away from what you've seen
from Tyson Fury offensively
and defensively tonight.
[crowd cheering]
[bell ringing]
[Mauro] They embrace,
and we await the decision
which should, for all intents
and purposes, be academic.
[Andre] Tyson Fury doesn't win this fight,
I'm done commentating.
I'm done with the sport.
[Mauro] Be careful. This is boxing.
-[Andre] I know.
-[Mauro] This is boxing!
[Andre] I put it out there.
I got to stick to my word.
[David] I gave Makhmudov the first round,
the second round
and a share of the second round.
Everything else was Tyson Fury
from there on.
The ring rust took one and a half rounds,
and then he was back to his best.
And as the fight went on,
he started to find his rhythm and timing.
The angles started coming in.
He started to look like
the prime Tyson Fury you all know.
[Mauro] What impressed you the most,
David, after the long layoff?
We talk about him showing glimpses
of being at his best.
Could he have turned it up a little more?
[David] He did exactly
what he needed to do.
That was the optimal performance for him.
If he could pick the type of performance
he'd put forth tonight,
it would be exactly that.
A big, strong, rough, tough man
who can take his best shot.
and just continue
to have that guy press you
so you can practice
and use all of your angles
and just fight you as much as you can.
That was perfect.
He could take all his tools
out of the box,
he polished them all up,
and he's ready now for a big, mega fight.
[Mauro] Now, before that big,
mega fight, and of course,
if he gets the victory that we all think.
I know you're the professor, Andre.
You always watch with that educated eye.
What's one thing you'd like
to see him do more
in the next fight,
especially if it's against Joshua?
[Andre] Well, there's just moments, right?
Not a lot, but just
a few moments that Tyson Fury
typically gives up in
Like he did tonight,
where like a mental lapse,
where he gets hit with a shot
he shouldn't have got hit with,
or he's making defensive moves
he shouldn't make.
This is the heavyweight division.
You fight Anthony Joshua,
you can't make certain mistakes.
So I think just tightening up
on his defence and his game plan
just a little bit.
[Mauro] Ain't no party
like an uppercut party,
'cause the uppercut party don't stop.
-And we saw a buffet there, David.
-[David] We certainly did.
He was practising,
it was coming from all angles,
Southpaw, orthodox.
He was dropping his hands.
That was exactly
the punch-perfect performance
that Tyson needed
to go into these big fights
later in the year.
[Mauro] And his wife, who I'm sure
was hesitant about another return
Oh, there you have Anthony Joshua
and Fury shaking hands.
Anthony saying,
"Hey, it's your moment. It's your night."
We'll wait and see what transpires.
And again, I do repeat,
we don't know the official scores.
[Andre] Listen to me. Listen to me, man.
[Mauro] I've been robbed too many times!
[Andre] If he doesn't win this fight,
this will be my last fight
that I ever call, brother.
[Mauro] I hope that's not the case
because you're one of the best, brother.
-How are you? Very good man.
-[Mauro] And there again,
the two heavyweights
going 12 twelve rounds.
And again, two individuals this size.
It speaks to the conditioning
and what it takes to be
a professional prizefighter.
And ten years after their first photo,
I'm sure Makhmudov and Fury
now posing for another photo,
this time after facing
each other in the ring.
Let's go and find out
the official decision
from Michael Buffer.
[Michael] Ladies and gentlemen,
after 12 rounds, we go to the scorecards.
Kieran McCann scores it, 120 to 108.
Lee Avery scores it, 120 to 108.
Reese Carter scores it, 119 to 109.
To the winner,
with loving memory to Ricky Hatton.
The Gypsy King is back!
The winner by unanimous decision,
Tyson Fury!
[Mauro] And save for the one judge who,
like David Haye,
gave Makhmudov a round, it was a shutout
for the most part for Tyson Fury,
who returns from a 16-month layoff
back to the scene of his last victory
here in the UK four years ago,
and he stands tall,
picking up his 35th career victory,
going the distance
against Arslanbek Makhmudov.
[Andre] I put my head down for a minute.
Where did where did the shorts go, Tyson?
-What happened?
-[David] I didn't see the come off.
-[Mauro] Quick change artist!
-[Andre] Oh, my goodness. [laughs]
[Mauro laughs]
All right, we're gonna hear
from Tyson Fury,
and let's go to Anna Woolhouse.
[Josh] That is right, Your Excellency,
you teased us earlier on in the night,
and you said you would have
a boxing fight for us
that would shake the boxing landscape,
that would set the boxing world ablaze.
Is it now time to tell the boxing fans
watching around the world
-what that surprise is?
-[Tyson] Is that clean?
It is the time, huh, Frank, Eddie?
It is the time.
Come on, Eddie. Come on, Eddie.
Come on here, Eddie.
Tyson.
Tyson.
He's the next.
[Tyson] Thank you, everyone,
for coming out tonight.
I really appreciate
every single one of you guys.
Sixteen months out
and we fill up Tottenham again.
But like I said, let me get
Arslanbek Makhmudov out of the way.
And we'll talk next.
Next, I want to give you the fight
you've all been waiting for.
I want you, AJ, Anthony Joshua.
Let's give the fight fans what they want,
the battle of Britain.
And here's my challenge,
I challenge you Anthony Joshua
to fight me, the Gypsy King, next!
Do you accept my challenge?
[Josh] We've heard it now.
Tyson, you've called out
that man right there,
your long-time rival, Anthony Joshua.
His Excellency, Turki Alalshikh,
has called it on.
This is the surprise.
Are we going to see this fight?
It is not my call. It is his call.
[Tyson] Let him say yes or no.
Let him say yes or no now.
Anthony. A serious, serious stare there
as he stares down a potential opponent.
Can we see you in the ring?
Can we have you here
at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium?
Can we get this fight done today?
[Tyson] Come on, you big shithouse.
Are you going to fight or what?
Tyson, you're a clout chaser.
[Tyson] Here, here. I can't hear you.
Give me this mic.
Tyson, I've never had no problem
getting in the ring with you.
I punched you out when we were kids.
And after watching you here tonight,
I'll punch you up again,
with all due respect.
Tonight is your night,
and you know I'll sit across that ring
from you in due time.
You ain't gonna tell me what to do.
I've been chasing you
for the last ten years.
When you're ready,
you come and see me,
and tell me your terms and conditions,
and I'll have you
in the ring when I'm ready.
-I'm the boss.
-I'm the boss.
You work for me. I'm the landlord.
Remember that. I'm the landlord.
You work for me.
The ball's in your court.
Cheers, Del.
Listen, let's give
the fight fans what they want.
Do not run from me this time.
Ten years in the making,
let's f*cking dance.
And by the way
I've dedicated this fight
to my long-term friend,
Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton.
May he rest in peace forever!
There's only one Ricky Hatton
One Ricky Hatton
Walking along, singing a song
Walking in a Hatton wonderland
I want to thank
my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ
for giving me this victory.
Sixteen months out of the ring,
I box-scored,
it took me a few rounds to get going,
but thank you very much
to Turki Alalshikh, Netflix,
all the people behind me,
and thank you so much.
But you are next, dosser,
and you're getting knocked back out.
Believe that!
Tyson, Tyson,
before you go anywhere
Tyson, before you go anywhere
I know you're a busy man.
-Sixteen months out of the ring.
-Yeah.
First two rounds started,
so we know he started quick,
and then you found your groove.
You look like you're enjoyed yourself
in there tonight.
You know, 16 months out,
it's not a short time.
It's a long time, you know.
But I got back to me slipping
and me sliding,
boxing, sliding up on in there.
I got a good sharp.
Twelve rounds in there, you know.
Been away for 16 months
and then coming back
with a 12 round against a tough opponent,
a knockout specialist there in Arslanbek.
I got a good
12 valuable rounds in tonight.
That's ten times better than
a one round knockover against a bum.
I just chuck out there the number
five ranked contender in the world.
With ease.
[Josh] Tyson, enjoy your time.
You've lit up this crowd with talk
of the Anthony Joshua fight.
Absolute pleasure.
Back to you in the studio.
[shouts]
[Anna] Well, I'm actually ringside
with Anthony Joshua.
Words exchanged, shots fired
between the two of you.
I don't believe I have heard a yes,
though, coming out of your mouth,
whether it is happening next.
So I'm going to be completely honest.
There's a negotiation
that you go through.
I've sat at this table
with him many times.
In my heart,
I'll fight Tyson Fury tomorrow,
especially after watching that.
There's no problem with me fighting.
This is what I do.
I'm not going to sit here and say,
yeah, I'll fight him.
I'm not here to get clout.
I'm here to fight.
Contracts will be sent over.
We'll go through the nitty gritty,
and you'll probably see us
in the ring next, more than likely.
But I'm not here
to start getting in the ring
and shouting in someone's face.
If you look at my track record,
I've never done that.
I'm not here for clout.
I just want to watch the fight.
I saw what I saw and I know what
I've got to do when I get him in the ring.
That's fair enough.
I think from a fan's point of view,
it has been absolutely years
in the making.
They want it to happen.
And quite often, some of the rivalries,
greatest rivalries
in the sport haven't happened.
Look at Lennox, Riddick Bowe,
that didn't happen.
Just how much they want it to happen.
If it does happen, put into context
how big it would be.
This has been rumbling on for years.
Exactly, exactly.
Look, he's the one that retired.
I've been in the game. I've never retired.
I've been standing strong
for the last 13 years.
It's on him, isn't it?
He disappears, comes back,
disappears, comes back.
I'm standing strong.
So, I'm not here to chase fame
or chase hype.
I'm a real person.
I'll fight whoever's in front of me,
whether it's him or the next person.
It don't matter to me.
And I'm always in big fights.
It's just my style.
You know, I make the big fights.
That's what I said to him.
-He works for me.
-We know.
We've seen you right here
at Tottenham before.
If you had your way,
would you have a warm-up fight
before you fought Fury?
Good question. Both options.
That could be a warm-up fight
after what I saw tonight, but
We'll see. We'll see.
I was just in a serious incident
maybe four months ago, innit?
Do you know what I mean?
So I need to really check out
what's going on with my return
to the ring, you know? So
But I'm here.
I'm keeping my eye on the game.
There's real stuff happening in my life.
Do you know what I'm saying?
It's not like I'm
I'm not ducking no one.
I know what my job is.
I know what I'm here to do.
But there's just real stuff
happening in my life
that I also got to attend to.
And once I'm
Once I'm 100%
I'll be ready, 100%. This is what I do.
I run the game, you know.
You know I run the game.
Everyone knows I run the game.
-I'm the big guy.
-For many years.
For many years. This is what I do.
I'm a serious fighter.
And I'm very strong as well.
And I think when I hit Fury,
I'm going to hit him and hurt him bad.
I think what you just said there, though,
it puts everything
into context, doesn't it?
When something happens
terribly in your life,
but you go through a tragedy,
it does put everything into context
and you're very much allowed
to take a minute
and do what is right for you.
I have to, I have to, I have to, you know.
You know, I'm sorting some things out.
You know, my brothers with their parents
and the brotherhood are taking care
of things at the minute.
And I've got to kind of put that first.
That's my priority right now.
Tyson Fury, if he's serious,
you'll see him in the ring.
I'm a very serious person.
You'll see me in the ring 100%,
whether it's against him or not
the ball will be in his court, innit.
I feel like this answer is still
very much "watch this space."
-We haven't got a definitive answer.
-I've been here a million times.
As I said, I'm not here to clout chase.
And once my name and signature's
on the dotted line, then it's a fight.
At the minute, there's nothing
on the dotted line.
Neither is his.
So if I'm going to be honest with you,
there's no fight right now.
Until our names are signed
Until that first bell goes,
there's no fight.
I've been here three, four times
with Wilder and Fury.
This is boring to me.
For guys at home, it's exciting.
New fans, "Joshua-Fury,"
for me, I've been there loads of times.
But it's no problem, honestly.
I like his fighting style.
I think he's good,
but I don't think he'll be able
to cope with me.
I was about to say, going off
what you've seen tonight,
what happens going off
what you've seen tonight?
Off tonight?
I think, I don't know.
It'd be hard. It'd be hard work for him.
I don't know.
I don't want to talk too much.
I just know it'd be a lot
of hard work for him.
[Anna] Do you know what?
I've forgotten how tall you are.
Holding this mic up
high is hurting my hand,
so I'm going to let you go.
Really good to see you,
and it's so good to see you
at the big fight nights as well, ringside.
Good to see you. Good to see you.
[Elle] Thank you so much, Anna. Wow.
A lot to unpack.
Clash of the Giants officially behind us.
Tyson Fury with a decisive win
in his return to the ring after 16 months.
We will have final thoughts
on this epic night of boxing
from here in North London after the break.
So stick around. Much more ahead.
[triumphant music playing]
[Elle] There it is.
The crowds are gone. They're piling out.
Soon they'll take down
the boxing ring.
Tyson Fury gets his win.
First one in a while.
After two straight losses to Usyk,
he returns after 16 months
in a decisive victory
over Arslanbek Makhmudov
But the talk of the night,
the talk that will be happening
over the next few months undoubtedly,
is Anthony Joshua versus Tyson Fury.
A fight that is close to a decade
in the making
as we officially put a button
on the night here.
A reminder, we've
got the great Laila Ali,
Lennox Lewis, and Carl Froch with us.
We gotta start there.
It was not a yes from Anthony Joshua.
But I'm getting a strong indication
that this fight is going to happen.
His Excellency felt that way as well.
This has been one
of the great sagas in boxing.
Will they, won't they,
will it ever happen?
As it appears that it will,
Lennox Lewis, how do you feel about it?
I don't feel too good
about it right now in the sense
that I think it's too early
for Anthony Joshua.
He just went through
a traumatic thing right now.
And that's why
he doesn't want to really make
any decisions right now.
I think they're forcing him
to make a decision
when he's not ready to make that decision.
It felt a little bit
like semantics, right?
He's like, well,
until it's pinned to paper,
it's not necessarily going to happen.
And the logistics
and all of those things.
Carl, when you think about this fight,
we heard Anthony Joshua say,
because we talked about this earlier,
would he need a warm-up fight
before he went toe-to-toe with Tyson Fury?
He said watching Tyson Fury tonight,
he would be the warm-up fight.
What are your thoughts?
Well, I think
that was a little bit disrespectful.
I thought Tyson Fury, first and foremost,
boxed well tonight.
He's been out of the ring for 16 months
and he puts in a 12-round performance
at a good pace.
Got some good work there.
The first couple of rounds were close,
but then he took over. Took over
against a dangerous puncher.
He got hit with a couple of little shots,
but you can see by his face,
he's not marked up.
Onto the Anthony Joshua fight.
I think the only person
that's not convinced this fight
is definitely happening
is Anthony Joshua himself.
-But he's trying to play Mr. Cool.
-Sure.
I think he wants this fight.
I think he knows
this fight is going to happen.
And let me tell you something.
Let me tell the viewers and put it
into context and perspective.
There's a couple of big
British fights that happened.
I know a thing or two about that.
My fight with George Groves
at Wembley Stadium.
In case you don't know,
80,000 fans at Wembley Stadium.
You probably heard me say
that a couple of times.
-I've heard, Carl.
-Chris Eubank Sr.
and Conor and Nigel Benn,
the father, Conor Benn's father.
That was a massive fight.
That transcended the sport.
It crossed over to the whole
new order, mainstream audience
on terrestrial television.
That was huge. They fought twice.
Chris Eubank Sr. getting the ball
to draw and then a win.
They're the two biggest standout fights
in British boxing history.
-This fight, if these two get in the ring
-f*cking long time, I won it.
[Carl] and meet face-to-face,
after watching them
there exchange a few words,
The hair's on my neck are standing,
-because you realize the size of it.
-I was surprised how fit I was.
[Carl] This fight should have
happened a long time ago,
but this fight does happen.
And Anthony Joshua has not
officially announced it,
but this fight looks
like it's going to happen.
-[Elle] It does.
-[Carl] This is massive. This is huge.
-[Tyson] Come on.
-[Carl] And I cannot wait for it.
This fight, for that first bell,
like Anthony Joshua said,
until the first bell goes,
until the contracts are signed,
and that's how I feel.
But this is huge, let's be honest.
[Elle] I mean, honestly, Laila,
like, this could potentially
be the biggest fight
in British boxing history.
What do you make of the w*r of words there
at the end between Tyson and Fury?
I wrote some down.
Anthony Joshua calling Fury
"a clout chaser."
Both of them doing their best Tony Danza.
"I'm the boss. No, I'm the boss."
-[Laila] It's all a part of the show.
-[Elle] "You work for me."
-So you think it was part of the show?
-[Laila] Look.
There's egos in boxing, okay?
Anything can happen.
We don't really
always know what's going on.
But like you said,
there's a serious indication
that this fight is happening.
But Anthony Joshua is not going
to ever let anyone act
as if they're calling the shots on him.
I wouldn't either.
Okay, because I've had some people
try to do that with me.
It's like, "Hold up, honey.
We call the shots over here."
So that's all a part of it.
You know, it could be mental,
but he has been going through a lot,
you know? So I don't think that he wants
to be in a situation
where it's like a do or die.
You know what I mean?
But yeah, we all want to see this happen.
So it just made the fight
even bigger and better.
-[Elle] Yeah, it did. Lennox.
-[Lennox] Yeah, it did.
Uh, you know, Tyson needed this fight.
He got rid of the cobwebs
and it took him a while
to get rid of the cobwebs.
And he definitely needed this fight.
Now he can go back and train in the ring
and prepare for whatever fight comes next.
Yeah, I mean, you mentioned it took him
a little bit to shake off the rust.
It has been a 16 month layoff,
but I'm also interested as well.
Does the weather factor at all
and potentially,
as to why it took a bit
for him to warm up?
100%. He needed those rounds, you know.
I remember boxing in the cold.
It took me a while, me and Frank Bruno.
We were throwing punches at each other,
but I was cold for the first four rounds,
and then I warmed up.
-So it took a little bit.
-Yeah, you could see him warm into it.
He's had the 16 month layoff
and then he's come out here
and it's freezing cold.
I mean, we're sat here now freezing.
We're shivering.
You've got your hot water bottle
in your blanket.
Literally.
Tyson Fury, you could see him
warming to the game.
You could see him ease into it
as well with his own mind.
And once he got his range,
he was beautiful with that jab.
Punch perfect with the jab.
Timing it, the range,
and he was landing uppercuts.
He was enjoying himself in there.
So Tyson Fury has still got it.
He's still got enough
to compete at that level.
[Elle] Yeah, I mean, you know,
we mentioned it a little bit
as we were watching this.
At first, it felt a little bit
like bull versus matador,
and you guys said it.
For a guy like Makhmudov,
who's had 17 KOs come in
the first few rounds,
the first three rounds,
you said the key for Tyson Fury
is evade, evade, evade.
Is that what you saw?
[Carl] Yeah, well,
did you see that right hand
just brush past his whiskers?
Tyson Fury's timing the distance
there, judging the distance
and the timing of the shot
and making it miss.
I mean, he got caught with one
or two shots, but nothing clean.
He saw it coming, and it's the shots
that you don't
see coming that do the damage.
Tyson Fury controlled the pace,
dictated the rounds, and when he was in a
in range here, in a comfortable spot.
You see him pick nice uppercut hooks,
slip and slide the head,
get his feet into position,
change the angle, and put shots together.
He's a natural fighter.
He's very gifted, Tyson Fury.
[Lennox] And plus,
Makhmurdov is awkward as well.
You know, he's coming at you.
He's putting 100 280 pounds on you.
It's hard to push him off.
I know that for a fact.
-And absolutely
-And he's trying to land the big shots,
the big overhand rights,
the dangerous shots.
Yes, he was dangerous
until the last round. Absolutely.
And I felt like Tyson did an amazing job.
I think we were talking about what type
of shape is he going to be in.
I think he showed us he was
in very good shape
to be able to go 12 rounds with a guy
like that who's wrestling bears.
I mean, come on, he's not
he wasn't an easy guy
to fight to begin with.
I thought he did an amazing job.
His timing was a little off at first,
but then even got that down
and started landing those uppercuts.
And that's when we knew it was all over.
Makhmudov wrestling bears.
I'm wearing one.
-I got a bear.
-[all laugh]
It looks like
I mean, it is, it's absolutely cold like
-It's very cold.
-Lennox is 100% right.
But, you know, we're going
to switch gears and talk about
the co-main event in just a minute.
But before that, I'd love to get it
back down ringside
and get some final observations
from Mauro and the g*ng.
Oh, no, okay,
we don't have Mauro and the g*ng,
-so let's just switch-
-They left, it's too cold.
They left, they're like, "We outta here."
So let's get some observations
on the co-main event
that we saw a bit earlier,
Conor Benn taking on Regis Prograis.
We talked about earlier
in the show, before this fight,
that he has made Conor Benn
no qualms about the fact
that he wants a shot
at that welterweight title
that currently is being held
by Ryan Garcia.
Did you see anything,
Carl, from him tonight
that tells you he is ready
and should get that shot?
Well, listen, he's gone ten rounds
with a former two-time world champion,
a very good Regis Prograis.
Who's He's passed his best.
You could see he was unsteered
on his feet.
I don't know if he rolled his ankle
a couple of times.
-[Elle] Yeah, shaky knees.
-He looked a bit shaky.
He got caught with a couple of shots.
You know, the lack of Conor Benn's power
when he was landing shots himself,
maybe down at that weight,
he's not as destructive
as he was at 160 pounds
because he hurt Chris Eubank Jr.
a couple of times.
But, you know, he's always up
for a fight, Conor Benn.
He walked into a headbutt there
on the playback. Big shots.
And he's tough enough.
That's the one that opened up
the big cut above his eye.
But Regis Prograis was
Let's be honest, a shadow
of his former self,
but he's still got the tricks.
He's a wise old fox.
I say old, he's 37 years old,
but in boxing terms, he's old.
And he's about ready to finish
and hang the gloves up.
He might do that after this fight.
But Conor Benn did a lot of things
that I'm impressed with.
His timing, he was able
to go ten rounds at a pace
at this new weight, 150.
Can he take another three pounds
off and perform?
Probably yes. So there's a lot
of positives to take from that.
But can he go in there
with somebody like Ryan Garcia,
who's the WBC World Champion,
who punches hard at that weight?
I'm not so sure on that performance,
but you've got to put him in
with somebody like that
because he's been a pro ten years.
That's probably his biggest test
other than the Eubank Jr. fight,
who's been found out at world level.
So he's got nowhere really to go.
He's been paid a lot
of money for this tonight,
and so for boxing
Fifteen million dollars for the one fight.
He's happy all the way
to the bank for this one,
but he's serious
about the game, Conor Benn.
He believes in himself,
so he has to take a big fight now.
Does he beat Ryan Garcia?
I'm not so sure, but what do I know?
Well, listen, you mentioned Ryan Garcia,
and so did Conor Ben
when he caught up with our Josh Denzel.
Take a listen.
That's right. We're in the changing room
with Conor Benn,
fresh off his decision victory
against Regis Prograis.
Conor, a mature performance in there.
You had to make some changes.
You dealt with some adversity.
We can see the stitches there.
-Was it a tougher fight than you expected?
-Yeah, of course it was.
I mean, we don't like southpaws.
Nobody likes southpaws.
Preparing for a southpaw is long.
But ultimately, we got the job done,
got through a few scratches.
But ultimately, we keep it moving.
Regis said that you weren't
at world level.
You hadn't been to the very, very top.
You feel like now
you've beaten a proven operator,
a two-time world champion,
now that you really are
the man that you say you are.
Listen, you just keep it moving.
He presented different challenges
to Eubank.
Eubank, great fighter, upper middleweight.
You know, it's my first fight back here,
150, 147 in three years.
So this is my first fight
against a two-time former world champion.
You know, done what I needed to do
and now I believe I won every round,
apart from the head clashes.
But, you know, ultimately I just want
to get my world title.
I want Garcia next.
I want Ryan next for my WBC belt.
Keep it warm for me.
The WBC belt
is the route you want to go to.
Ryan Garcia,
have you got any words for him?
He can get it next.
You can get it twice on Sundays,
any day of the week.
I'll give it to you.
Conor, it's an absolute pleasure.
Congratulations.
I look forward to seeing you.
You've already given it
to me at the press out.
I don't want it again.
I'll see you in a bit. [laughs]
In a suit? Oh, my goodness. All right.
So, Laila, Lennox, do you think
that Conor Benn showed tonight
that he is world class?
You know what?
I love that he believes in himself
and he does what he says he's going to do.
He brings it every single round.
He fights like he is there to win.
That is the type of fight I like to see.
That's the type of fight
that the fans like to see.
And you know what? If Ryan Garcia
wants to fight him, then go for it.
Yeah, I think the same way.
I think Colin Bench
should go for that.
That's what he wants.
We're in a boxing game, and we want
to box against the best.
So you've got to give him the best.
If he wants the best, give him
the best and see what he can do.
If you want to be the best,
you've got to beat the best.
-I feel like a wise man
-Gotta pay the cost to be the boss.
Yes, absolutely.
Tell 'em, James Brown.
I think that's gonna do it for us.
But I do want to say, especially
considering Conor Benn
has made Tottenham Stadium
a bit of his home away from home
at this point, three straight fights.
What an incredible electric crowd,
over 60,000 people here in North London
to witness tonight's fights.
Can you just very quickly,
as we say goodbye,
wrap up what boxing means
to the Brits?
I said, you can go anywhere you want
in the world.
Remember the late,
great Ricky Hatton,
who was tributed, very classy,
by Tyson Fury this evening.
When you go to Las Vegas
and the British fans go out there,
you know it's the British fans
because they make so much noise.
They're so passionate.
And I don't think you get
that with any other crowd
in the whole world
than the boxing crowd from Great Britain.
And unless you tasted it
and felt it yourself,
you felt a bit tonight,
then you wouldn't understand it.
But we love the game.
Wouldn't, we're American.
Listen, the energy is palpable.
You don't have to be from the UK
to understand how
much this means to them.
It has been
an absolutely electric night
and hopefully one that will continue
as we got the,
what we believe, is the news
that we will finally get
the long-awaited bout
between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
That's going to do it for us.
My thanks
to the entire Netflix broadcast team
and to you at home for all of your company
on an absolutely memorable night
of boxing here in Tottenham,
a night where
the Gypsy King ended his exile,
earned his spurs,
and reminded everyone watching
that he is back
and ready to reign once more.
We will see you for our next Netflix
on May 16th when Ronda Rousey
takes on Gina Carano,
and a to-be-determined date
for this Anthony Joshua-Tyson Fury fight.
See you later.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome
to the Clash of the Giants.
[Mauro] They are as close
conjoined twins.
Another left right upstairs
in the double right uppercut.
[Andre] What's on paper doesn't fight.
The fighters have to fight.
[Mauro] The right uppercut.
[announcer]
And new British Heavyweight Champion.
Fight fans, are you ready?
[Mauro] The action,
hot and heavy from the get-go.
[bell ringing]
-[Andre] And the bell!
-[Mauro] And the pressure is on.
Drama for Conor Benn, whose face,
the proverbial Crimson Mask.
[Michael] Conor Benn.
Let's get ready to rumble!
[Mauro] And both fighters
are capable of seismic KO.
We head to the final round
of the Clash of Giants.
Ain't no party like an uppercut party.
[Michael] The Gypsy King is back.
I challenge you,
Andy Joshua, to fight me,
the Gypsy King, next!
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