The Boxing Truth®

There inevitably will come a point in most fighters careers throughout combat sports where the line will be thrown out that they or their career is “At a Crossroads.” In most cases, the line is used when fighters are attempting to rebuild after a setback and/or a long stretch of inactivity. The month of April 2026 will begin with two fights featuring three fighters who that line is more than appropriate. Firstly, Boxing’s Heavyweight division will take centerstage when former longtime WBC World Heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder will square off with longtime contender, current IBF mandatory challenger, and former multi-time world title challenger Derek Chisora at the O2 Arena in London, England in a bout that can be seen on digital subscription sports streaming network DAZN as part of an Ultimate subscription or as a standalone pay-per-view offering. Of course, when discussing Derek Chisora and Deontay Wilder, if one is objective, they would say that we are talking about two of the be...

Credit: DAZN  On March 18th, the focus of the Boxing world focused on Madison Square Garden in New York City where a press conference was held where digital subscription sports streaming network DAZN announced its latest partnership in forming a multi-year worldwide broadcast deal with Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum and Top Rank Inc , marking the latest promotional entity to join the network that has marketed itself as “The Global Home of Boxing.” While the aforementioned tagline is a clever marketing tool, it is really as close to reality as one could claim. After all, in 2018 when DAZN entered the United States market, many laughed at the idea of a strictly streaming-based platform that would operate primarily under a subscription model as a potential power broker in the sport of Boxing. This observer has from the moment I was informed of the network’s entry both into the United States, but also Boxing was supportive of what was being attempted. Before I elaborate further, it ...

In August of last year, undefeated Heavyweight contender Moses Itauma was tasked with what many felt would be the first significant test of his career when he was pitted against longtime Heavyweight contender and former world title challenger Dillian Whyte in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia . Despite being one of the top Heavyweights of the last fifteen years and having a significant experience advantage over the young and unbeaten “Knockout Artist,” Whyte found himself on the receiving end of a brutal first round knockout loss as many previous Itauma opponents have found themselves.  The eleventh knockout in thirteen professional bouts for the twenty-one year old current Commonwealth Heavyweight champion seemed to serve as another example of evidence some are pointing to, to annoint Itauma as potentially the next marquee Heavyweight and future world champion. As emphatic as that knockout of the normally durable and always “Game” Whyte was, the question remains, who can provide Mose...

Credit: DAZN In the summer of last year, future Hall of Famer Oleksandr Usyk further cemented his legacy by becoming the first man in Boxing history to have fully unified the Undisputed World Heavyweight championship twice, adding a third undisputed crown to his extensive list of accomplishments following previously unifying the Cruiserweight division before setting his sights on the Heavyweight division. As record-setting and ground breaking as Usyk’s second unification of the World Heavyweight championship was, it came as a result of the politics that be in the sport of Boxing ensuring a short first reign by not allowing him to maintain the undisputed crown while fulfilling his contractually mandated obligation to give Tyson Fury , the man he defeated for his first undisputed crown at Heavyweight, an immediate rematch. Unfortunately for Usyk, his second undisputed championship at Heavyweight would have a similar outcome as the first as shortly after he reclaimed the IBF world cham...

WBC World Welterweight champion Marrio Barrios weighed in at the 147lb. Welterweight limit for his title defense on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas NV at the weigh-in held in the same venue on Friday afternoon. The challenger Ryan Garcia weighed in at 146 ¾ lbs. for the scheduled twelve round world championship bout that will headline a card that can be seen worldwide as part of a DAZN Ultimate subscription or as a standalone pay-per-view offering for non-DAZN Ultimate subscribers.  Barrios vs. Garcia takes place on Saturday, February 21st at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV. The fight as well as it's full undercard can be seen as part of a DAZN Ultimate tier subscription for $44.99 per month or as a standalone pay-per-view offering for $69.99. The card will begin at 5:45PM ET 2:45PM PT. For more information about DAZN including schedules, list of compatible streaming devices, platforms, Smart TVs, availability around the world, local start times in your area, su...

The fourth event held under the Ring Magazine banner titled Ring IV, which was held at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on November 22nd was promoted as a night of champions. It is indeed true that the event featured four world championship fights that produced a variety that just about every type of Boxing fan is bound to have an opinion on. The most dominant performance of the evening in the view of this observer was the one put forth by WBC/WBO Jr. Bantamweight world champion Jesse Rodriguez , who defended his title against WBA number one contender and former IBF Jr. Bantamweight world champion Fernando Martinez . After an opening round where Martinez seemed to narrowly get the better of the action and was able to land some hard punches particularly with his right hand, Rodriguez simply went to work. From the second round on, the champion put forth what can only be described as a “Masterclass" in displaying a full arsenal of Boxing skills. A display of lateral movement, ...

On Saturday, November 22nd, the Boxing world will set its sights on Riyadh, Saudi Arabia where a card held under the Ring Magazine banner called Ring IV will take place and can be seen worldwide on digital subscription sports streaming network DAZN   either as a standalone pay-per-view offering or included in the recently launched DAZN Ultimate subscription plan . The card will feature four world title bouts and in a bit of a departure from how pre-fight content is usually penned by yours truly here on The Boxing Truth®️, given the depth of the card, this will be a micro preview of sorts with a brief look at each world title bout, all four fights will be scheduled for twelve rounds. Main Event: WBC World Light-Heavyweight championship David Benavidez defending against Anthony Yarde The top of the bill will see unbeaten two-division world champion David Benavidez defending his Light-Heavyweight world title against multi-time world title challenger Anthony Yarde. This will mark...

The second encounter between former two-division world champion Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn on November 15th, the fourth chapter of a generational rivalry between legendary bloodlines, one filled with bad blood, came just seven months after the first bout between the sons of Chris Eubank Sr. and Nigel Benn , which took place in April of this year at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England. A fight that was a candidate for fight of the year that was won by Eubank Jr. after twelve grueling rounds in a unanimous decision. What made this rematch unique in a sense was that it was rare to see such a quick turnaround of only seven months, which is rare when one thinks of high-profile fights where the result of the original encounter was not controversial. Nevertheless, for a fight that was largely based on curiosity in Benn, a career Welterweight , essentially moving up two divisions to fight Eubank Jr., a fighter who has held world titles in both the Middleweight and Super-Middl...

Credit: DAZN The most consistent topic of Boxing coverage penned by yours truly over the last several years, particularly here on The  Boxing Truth® ️ has been on the sport’s reliance, despite consistent evidence of decline, on the pay-per-view model and the subsequent need to move away from said model, especially with the rise of digital subscription-based streaming . Without doing a complete refresher as by this point there have been many columns written by this observer that serve as an accurate chronicle of how we have gotten to the present time and topic. What is the topic of this writing the reader might ask? the revamp of sorts for digital subscription-based streaming network DAZN . As some may recall the network, which launched in 2016 internationally, made a significant expansion into the United States in 2018, which coincided with what turned out to be a significant shift not just in Boxing, but for sports overall as shortly before DAZN entered the United Sta...