What to Know
- Matchroom Boxing announced five fight cards for the early fall months through October in five different cities.
- Katie Taylor and Dalton Smith will defend their respective world titles.
- Rising stars and British Olympians Ben Whittaker and Pat Brown return to action.
Matchroom Boxing announced its UK domestic boxing schedule through October with five major fight nights planned in London, Dublin, Manchester, Birmingham, and Sheffield.
George Liddard Seeks European Middleweight Title
Saturday, August 22: George Liddard (14-0, 8 KOs) challenges Italy’s Dario Morello (26-1, 4 KOs) for the European Middleweight championship at York Hall.
Liddard successfully defended his British and Commonwealth Middleweight belts in March at London’s Copperbox Arena, defeating Tyler Denny by unanimous decision. Now he looks forward to returning to York Hall where he won his belts in November 2025.
“I am looking forward to picking up another major title and taking another huge step towards becoming a world champion. Expect a vicious and dominant performance for as long as it lasts at York Hall,” said Liddard.
Liddard relinquished his Commonwealth title. Stablemate Jimmy Sains (12-0, 10 KOs) and Tom Cowling of Newark (15-1, 4 KOs) will fight for the belt on the undercard.
Sains set aside his English title, so it’s now up for grabs between 21-year-old Leli Buttigieg (12-0, 4 KOs)and PA Gordon(9-0, 1 KO).
Tiah Mai Ayton of Ireland (6-0, 5 KOs) bids for her first championship when she takes on Doncaster’s Ellie Hellewell (7-1, 1 KO) for the vacant Commonwealth Featherweight title.
Katie Taylor Fights at Croak Park In Final Appearance
Saturday, September 5: Katie Taylor of Ireland steps into the ring for a historic farewell in front of 80,000 fans at Croke Park in Dublin. Fighting at home at the famed Croke Park is her longtime career dream. She will face Flora Pili in the undisputed super lightweight title defense.
Saturday, September 19: In Manchester at the state-of-the-art Co-Op Live, British Olympian John Hedges (12-0, 3 KOs) meets Pat Brown (6-0, 6 KOs) for the British and Commonwealth Cruiserweight titles.
Hedges claims he will silence the hometown fans rooting for their native son Pat Brown, who is already making a big impression in the competitive cruiserweight division.
“I’m very happy for a date and location for my fight versus Pat to finally be announced. It’s been a long time coming,” said Hedges.
“Everyone is counting me out, but I’m here to show them that John Hedges will be the new British Cruiserweight Champion come September 19. I’m a proud fighting man, and I’ll fight anybody, anywhere. This is just the start of my big nights. Those belts are coming back to Takeley.”
Brown expects the support of the Co-Op crowd. “This is the biggest fight of my career so far, and there’s no better arena for it to be in. The Co-Op Live in Manchester will be loud on September 19, and I can’t wait for it. The Lonsdale belt is so prestigious, every British boxer wants to take it home and that’s exactly what I’ll be doing on the night.”
Ben Whittaker Returns in Birmingham Bout
Saturday, October 3: Light heavyweight Ben Whittaker (12-0-1, 9 KOs) returns to the UK fresh off his American debut in June with a return to Birmingham’s Utilita Arena. He goes up against Conor Wallace of Australia (17-1, 12 KOs) in an IBF Light Heavyweight title eliminator.
Now ranked number 2 by the WBC and number 3 by the IBF at light heavyweight, Whittaker is positioned to contend in title fights in the near future.
“I am delighted to be bringing a big night back to Birmingham again after a successful trip to the States. This is a proper step up on my way to becoming World Champion and I’m excited to put on a special performance for you all again. See you all on October 3,” said the flashy Olympic silver medalist.
Dalton Smith Defends Title against Alberto Puello
Saturday, October 24: Dalton ’Thunder’ Smith of Sheffield (19-0, 14 KOs) defends his WBC World Super Lightweight championship for the first time against Alberto Puello of the Dominican Republic (24-1, 10 KOs) in front of his hometown fans at the Utilita Arena.
Two-time world champion Puello wants the title back that he lost in a narrow decision to Subriel Matias last July, now held by Smith, who stopped Matias in the fifth round of an exciting firefight at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Smith is now fully recovered from the injury that delayed the original May fight date and wants to deliver a happy homecoming to his legion of fans.
“I’m delighted the fight is finally back on and that we’ll be defending my WBC world title on October 24 in Sheffield,” said Smith, who says he was frustrated by the injury delay and thanks fans for their patience.
” The important thing is that I’ve taken the time to recover properly, listened to the medical advice and now I’m back training, feeling strong and ready to go again.
“Becoming world champion was something I’d dreamed about my whole life, but winning the belt was never the end goal. I want to build a legacy, and that starts with defending the title against the best challengers in the division.
“Puello has been a world champion before and earned his mandatory position, so I know exactly how tough this fight will be. I’ll be giving him the respect he deserves in training, but once that first bell goes, it’ll be about showing why I’m the WBC world champion,” promising a “statement performance.”
Puello is equally determined to get his belt back and spoil the party for Smith.
“I’m excited to be fighting for my title again,” said Puello. “I’m looking forward to becoming a three-time world champion and making history in the United Kingdom in front of its wonderful fan base. Smith is a good boxer. I’m excited to share the ring with him and give the fans a great fight.”
“The big nights keep on coming,” said Matchroom Sport Chairman Eddie Hearn.
Gayle Falkenthal is an award-winning boxing journalist with more than four dozen awards for both written and video coverage from the Boxing Writers Association of America, Society of Professional Journalists, and San Diego Press Club, where she is the past president. She is the only woman journalist who is a full voting member of the BWAA. She is the Boxing Editor for NY Fights based in San Diego, California.
