DAN AZEEZ will head to Paris for the following cease on his whistlestop journey in the direction of world title competition. The 33-year-old is already the primary British light-heavyweight to win the entire British Boxing Board of Control belts at home degree and added the Commonwealth title to his assortment by beating Rocky Fielding in December.
Now he has been rewarded with this crack at European champion Thomas Faure, the 21-4-1 (2) Frenchman. Faure, of Chateauroux, will take pleasure in residence benefit in Paris, which is round 250km north of the city the place he presently resides.
Azeez has been one of many unsung heroes of British boxing since COVID hit in 2020 – and he has performed the enterprise everywhere in the nation. He received English title fights in Kirkby and Bolton, received the British in London after which defended it in Liverpool earlier than December’s triumph in Bournemouth. A bit of journey throughout the Channel is unlikely to faze him.
“I want to be the king of Europe,” he stated. “So why not go and fight for the title anywhere in the continent?”
This combat had been scheduled to happen on the Wembley Arena final month however when Azeez fell ailing throughout January it was postponed. He had hoped to land on a card in England, maybe the one headlined by his former stable-mate and one-time beginner opponent Lawrence Okolie, however he has been despatched to France as an alternative. The present is a co-promotion between Boxxer and All Star Boxing and will probably be broadcast on Sky Sports right here in the UK and Canal+ in France.
Azeez admits he is aware of little of Faure, and he isn’t alone. The Frenchman has by no means boxed exterior his residence nation and has not had a combat since he received the vacant European title again in January 2022 – so way back that he’s presently thought of ‘inactive’ by Boxrec.
That night time he claimed a unanimous choice over his compatriot Kevin Thomas Cojean who moved to 27-10-2 (11) on account of the defeat. It was a rematch of their 10-round draw a 12 months earlier. He has additionally beforehand gone the 10-round distance with Tony Averlant who was stopped in one spherical by Joshua Buatsi, and 7 by Anthony Yarde.
Indeed, Faure may have grown accustomed to distance fights over the course of his profession with simply two stoppage victories out of 21 to this point. He has additionally been crushed inside the gap solely as soon as, in opposition to Eddy Lacrosse again in 2018.
Azeez might take some confidence from the character of that seventh-round end from Lacrosse who, like him, is a shorter, compact light-heavyweight who closed the gap to the rangey Faure, routinely slipping inside his lengthy levers and dealing on the within. Faure seems to love retaining issues lengthy however 5ft 10in Azeez has made a dwelling from making issues uncomfortable for taller opponents.
As such, count on Buddy McGirt-trained Azeez to put on Faure down all through the primary half of the combat earlier than turning the screw and forcing a stoppage between rounds six and 9 to say the belt.
That conflict, nonetheless, shouldn’t be the primary occasion on the Zenith de Paris, the 6,000-seater area a number of miles north of the town centre in La Villette. At the highest of the invoice, Paris-born heavyweight Tony Yoka takes on fellow Frenchman Carlos Takam as he makes an attempt to start rebuilding from the primary defeat of his profession final trip.
On May 14, the 2016 Olympic champion Yoka dropped a majority choice to Martin Bakole in what was his solely combat of 2022 however he’ll get again on the horse with what appears to be like like a stern check in opposition to Nevada-based Takam, a former opponent of Anthony Joshua, Joe Joyce and a plethora of different prime heavyweights.
At 42, nonetheless, Takam is properly previous his greatest and arrives in Paris off the again of two defeats: one, that sixth-round knockout by Joyce and most not too long ago a 10-round factors loss by the hands of Arslanbek Makhmudov.
Yoka, 30, needs to be too younger and contemporary for Takam at this stage and a factors win in this 10-rounder appears almost definitely. If Yoka is critical about ever difficult for world titles, he can not afford to slide up in opposition to an ageing Takam right here.
As properly as Azeez, there may be different British curiosity on the cardboard with Wales’ Lauren Price vying to proceed her regular progress as knowledgeable when she takes on Germany’s challenger Naomi Mannes.
The 28-year-old, whose final outing was a defeat to Englishwoman Kirstie Bavington for the European welterweight title in November, is 6-1 (4), will do properly to final the gap with a match and firing Price, who has received her first two outings as knowledgeable with little bother.
Price has fond recollections of Paris, the place she booked her spot for the 2020 Olympics, and it’s unlikely that she is going to style defeat hers. The 28-year-old, from Ystrad Mynach, Wales, went on to win gold in Tokyo and appears even higher suited to the skilled recreation.
“I was proud to represent Great Britain all over the world in my amateur career,” she stated. “And going to Paris, the place I certified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, for my third skilled bout provides me an identical feeling.
“I know that Naomi Mannes recently challenged for the European title so she’s definitely a step up in competition. I can’t wait to get over to France and show the world what I’ve been working on.”
There can also be a run-out for Wythenshawe’s Macaulay McGowan, who has now received three 4 rounders since he was crushed over 10 rounds by 48-year-old Sergio Martinez final 12 months. He takes on residence favorite Farrhad Saad who’s 8-0-1, however is but to complete a combat inside the gap.
McGowan, educated by Joe Gallagher, has combined at a far increased degree than Saad and will probably be hoping to make his expertise rely on the night time. The Englishman is aware of a win right here may fireplace him into far greater fights underneath the Boxxer banner in the longer term.
THE VERDICT: Azeez doing issues the old fashioned approach.
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