Queensberry sweep Matchroom in unique 5vs5 team boxing in Riyadh
RIYADH: Frank Warren’s Queensberry fighters accomplished a 10-0 clean sweep over Matchroom’s boxers in a team boxing format in Riyadh on Sunday.
Queensberry’s Daniel Dubois put on the performance of his career to stop Filip Hrgovic, after a nasty cut to the Croatian forced a stoppage.
Dubois, who continues to progress up the boxing ladder, took a number of heavy blows in the early rounds, but found his feet in the middle of the bout.
Afterward Dubois called out Antony Joshua, who was ringside, for a chance at a heavyweight clash in London in the fall.
Queensberry captain Hamzah Sheeraz added to victories by Nick Ball and Willy Hutchinson to give the team a massive lead in the opening fights.
Queensberry will collect $3m in prize money.
In the final fight, which started just after 3 a.m., Zhilei Zhang knocked out Deontay Wilder in a result that was largely inconsequential to the outcome of the event dubbed 5vs5.
Ahead of the event, Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom and Frank Warren’s Queensberry were both confident that their fighters could be victorious with this unique boxing format at the Kingdom Arena.
Nick Ball told Arab News Sport that his victory over Raymond Ford “means the world to me”.
“This is something that you work your whole life for and it means a lot for everyone around me,” the Liverpudlian said.
Separate from the team format, Dmitry Bivol defeated Malik Zinad, who was a last minute stand-in, for the WBA light-heavyweight title, forcing a stoppage in the sixth against the Libyan.
Talking to Arab News Sport after the bout, Bivol said the victory was important to show his children what their father does.
“I just wanted to show them how their father is working,” how people respect him, he said. “I am working for their future, also.”
Bivol praised Zinad’s bravery in the fight but said his own game still had room for improvement.
“I am happy for, maybe, 80 or 90 percent,” he said, adding if he was hitting his 100 percent target he’d have to “leave boxing”.
At a press conference after the Riyadh Season event, Warren said the center of world boxing has shifted away from Las Vegas toward the Saudi capital and promised that “it’s going to get better”.
“You can expect some fabulous shows.”
