It was the heavyweight equivalent of a London derby on a fitting stage at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday. British champion Jeamie Tshikeva grew up and still lives just a few blocks from the stadium. It would be a dream to defend his title on those grounds for the first time.
But Tshikeva, who only started boxing at age 19, ran into reality named Richard Riakporhe of Walworth, London.
Riakporhe (20-1, 16 KOs) took apart Tshikeva of London (9-3, 5 KOs) in five rounds with the precision of a surgeon, but one who wields a sledgehammer.
Riakporhe had bloodied Tshikeva’s nose by the second round and continued to pour on the punishment until referee Lee Every stepped in 2:12 into the fifth round. The stoppage was every so slightly premature, but Tshikeva’s eventual fate was clear.
DOMINATION FROM RICHARD RIAKPORHE AGAINST JEAMIE TSHIKEVA TO FORCE THE STOPPAGE 😮💨#FuryMakhmudov is LIVE on Netflix! pic.twitter.com/hODXv2lMA9
— Netflix Sports (@netflixsports) April 11, 2026
While we won’t get the viewership numbers from Netflix until next week, there is no doubt that the fight between Riakporhe and Huni will become the most-viewed British heavyweight championship in boxing history. This is a regional title with major history and significance for all British fighters.
“I was arguably the hardest puncher at cruiserweight division. So obviously, if I’m moving up, I’m packing on more muscle mass, as you can see, you know what’s coming next. It’s gonna be more power, more power, more knockouts. So I’m 3 and 0 at a heavyweight division or knockouts, and more is coming,” said Riakporhe.
Riakporhe Becomes Two Time British Champion
Riakporhe is now a two-time British champion, having also won the title at cruiserweight. Asked who he’d like to fight next, Riakporhe first named the winner of the upcoming Fabio Wardley vs Daniel Dubois fight, but then moved on to British fan favorite Johnny Fisher.
Riakporhe thanked the fans, promising them more of the same he delivered on Saturday. “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.”
Justis Huni Edges Frazer Clarke By MD
In what was billed as a must win fight, Justis Huni of Brisbane, Australia (13-1, 7 KO) edged out Frazer Clarke of Staffordshire, England (9-3-1, 7 KOs) with a tight majority decision after an incredibly tight fight.
Scores went to Huni on the strength of winning the final round, 96-94 twice and one card even at 95-95.
Huni came back from his only loss, a knockout by Fabio Wardley in a fight Huni was winning on the cards in a stunning comeback. Clarke was coming off a loss to Jeamie TKV for the British heavyweight championship. With a prior loss in his rematch against Wardley, like Huni also by knockout.
While Clarke delivered a much-improved performance under new trainer Joe Gallagher, showing excellent stamina and slick punching power, Huni was the bigger and stronger man on the night.
Huni came out firing and won the early rounds, but Clarke was competitive. In the fourth round, Clarke turned the fight to his favor, landing a right hook to rock the Australian, and then unloaded as the round ended to save Huni from anything worse.
Gallagher said to Clarke in the corner, “Now you know you can hurt him.” Armed with this realization, Clarke came at Huni, and for the next three rounds, he had Huni on the back foot. Several times, Clarke pinned Huni in a corner and went to work, winning those rounds.
When Huni landed hard shots on Clarke, the former Olympic medalist took them well, a credit to his training and determination. He never looked hurt.
In the seventh round, Huni lost his mouthpiece at an opportune time, scoring himself a much-needed break from the referee, who took time to have it washed in the corner before returning it to Huni. It seemed to give him the extra breather that made the difference. Huni landed the cleaner, harder shots down the stretch, and it made the difference.
But Clarke shouldn’t consider it a career killer. He put on a truly good performance and ran into someone who had just enough more on Saturday. Within a reinvigorated heavyweight division in the UK, there’s still a future for Clarke if he wants it.
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.