Explainers

GERVONTA DAVIS is set to return to ring action as he makes the latest defence of his WBA lightweight title.The dominant lightweight nicknamed “Tank” was initially meant to defend his crown in December last year but was postponed until the following March. Knockout specialist, Davis, boasts an unbeaten professional recordCredit: GETTYLamont Roach was confirmed as Tank’s opponent last SeptemberCredit: GettyThe reason for the postponement of the fight is still unclear but the wait is nearly over. Davis, who now holds a perfect 30-0 record following victory over Frank Martin last summer, will face off against fellow American Lamont Roach. The WBA has granted featherweight Roach ‘special permission’ to move up a weight class to set-up the clash as Davis voluntarily puts his belt up for grabs. The 29-year-old currently holds the WBA Super Featherweight belt and in the case of victory will have five days to decide which belt he decides to take up. READ MORE IN BOXING As for Davis, a win leads closer to a dust-up with a man who idolised him in Shakur Stevenson after he defended his WBC belt against Josh Padley in Saudi Arabia. When is Gervonta Davis vs Lamont Roach?Gervonta Davis vs Lamont Roach is set to take place on Sunday, March 2.The card starts from 1.00am GMT on Amazon Prime.Davis and Roach are expected to make their ring walks around 3.00am GMT.The fight will take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New YorkWhat TV channel is Gervonta Davis vs Lamont Roach on and can it be live streamed?Gervonta Davis vs Lamont Roach will be shown live on Prime PPV.The event is available on pay-per-view for £63.50 on Prime. Davis vs Roach fight cardGervonta Davis vs Lamont Roach; Lightweight, for WBA lightweight titleJose Valenzuela vs Gary Antuanne Russell; Super lightweightAlberto Puello vs Sandor Martin; Super lightweight, for WBC super lightweight titleYoenis Tellez vs Julian Williams; Super welterweightJarrett Hurd vs Johan Gonzalez; MiddleweightGeo Lopez vs Grimardi Machuca; Super featherweightCristian Cangelosi vs Jarrod Tennant; Super welterweightDwyke Flemmings Jr vs Florent Dervis; Super welterweightDavid Whitmire vs Angel Munoz; WelterweightAlexis De la Cerda Landin vs Sharone Carter; Super bantamweightNasheed H. Smith vs Tariq Green; Super middleweightDeric Davis vs Oscar Eduardo Gonzalez Jr; LightweightMost read in Boxing More

JOSH PADLEY will be fighting for a world title on just FOUR DAYS notice when he takes on one of the best boxers in the world.Shakur Stevenson was originally scheduled to fight Floyd Schofield but after being allegedly ‘poisoned’ just six days before the bout, Padley now steps in to what is the biggest fight of his life.Josh Padley has the fight of his lifePadley vs Stevenson will be one of SIX title fights in what fans are calling one of the greatest boxing events of all time.This isn’t the only short notice fight change this weekend with the event originally having seven title fights – however, Daniel Dubois has had to pull out of his fight vs Joseph Parker due to illness.This is set to be Padley’s first fight in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia but his second Riyadh season event – last time out he beat Mark Chamberlain at Wembley Stadium.BETERBIEV VS BIVOL 2 LIVE – LATEST UPDATESSimilar to Padley, this will be Stevenson’s first time fighting in Saudi Arabia but also his first time fighting outside of America and will be hoping to make a great impression with many fans watching the 27-year-old for the first time.Stevenson is going into this as the heavy favourite, holding a perfect record of 22 wins and zero losses.This fight marks as his second defence of the WBC World Lightweight title and has previously held the WBC and WBO World Super-Featherweight belts.Who is Josh Padley and what is his boxing record?Josh Padley is a British Lightweight boxer who has recently rose to fame after fans have found out that he is a part-time electrician. Most read in BoxingBefore his most recent fight, Padley was seen fighting on small fight events against much lesser known boxers, forcing the electrician to keep his part-time job for the much needed income.His last fight held at Wembley Stadium truly put him on the map with a huge upset after beating Turki Alalshikh’s favourite fighter, Mark Chamberlain.Padley has been a professional boxer for just six years now and with a record of 15 wins and zero losses he now takes a huge step in his career as he takes on Shakur Stevenson for the WBC World Lightweight title.With a win on Saturday night, it would be one of the biggest upsets in boxing history and one of the greatest underdog stories we have seen in recent British boxing.Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2 Full cardArtur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol – for the IBF, IBO, WBC and WBO light-heavyweight titlesJoseph Parker vs Martin Bakole Shakur Stevenson vs Josh Padley – for the WBC lightweight titleCarlos Adames vs Hamzah Sheeraz – for the WBC middleweight titkeVergil Ortiz Jr vs Israil Madrimov – for the interim WBC heavyweight titleZhilei Zhang vs Agit Kabayel – for the interim WBC heavyweight titleJoshua Buatsi vs Callum Smith – for the interim WBO light-heavyweight titleBradley Rea vs Constantino Nanga More

LIGHT-HEAVYWEIGHT’S finest will go head-to-head four months on from their first match-up.Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol will headline what is being coined as the ‘best card of all time’ in Saudi Arabia.Beterbiev vs Bivol clashed last OctoberCredit: GETTYThe two will battle it out in part two of their rivalry on Saturday, February 22In their last bout, the pair produced what promoter Eddie Hearn called “one of the best fights in the sport”.Beterbiev earned the decision with scorecards of 115-113, 116-112 and 114-114.Nonetheless, Hearn, Bivol’s promoter, was in disagreement with the score, citing there was “only one winner” and it was his guy.The clash in respective boxing styles served up a boxing classic. READ MORE IN BOXINGTheir fight-to-come will command an even bigger gaze of watching eyes in Saudi and abroad. So, for those in the UK, what time will the Big Fight be on? What time will the fight start in the UK?The card is expected to get started at around 4.15pm UK time.Main event ring walks will be around 10.30pm GMT. The event will be broadcast live on DAZN Pay-Per-View, with PPV available to buy now at £19.99 in UK and $25.99 in US.Alternatively you can tune into the SunSport’s live blog for updates on the night.Full cardArtur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol – for the IBF, IBO, WBC and WBO light-heavyweight titlesJoseph Parker vs Martin Bakole for the interim WBO heavyweight titleShakur Stevenson vs Josh Padley – for the WBC lightweight titleCarlos Adames vs Hamzah Sheeraz – for the WBC middleweight titleVergil Ortiz Jr vs Israil Madrimov – for the interim WBC heavyweight titleZhilei Zhang vs Agit Kabayel – for the interim WBC heavyweight titleJoshua Buatsi vs Callum Smith – for the interim WBO light-heavyweight titleMost read in Boxing More

JOSEPH PARKER and Martin Bakole are set to go head-to-head for the interim WBO Interim heavyweight championship.Both are in incredible form; Parker’s on a five-match winning run and Bakole himself is on a run of 10 wins, with the only loss of his career coming in 2018.Parker hasn’t lost a fight since 2022Credit: ReutersMartin Bakole has stepped in for the ill Daniel DuboiaCredit: gettyParker comes into the bout with a record of 35-3-0, having lost just once to Joe Joyce since 2019, and currently holds the WBO interim heavyweight title.This kind of fight could easily main event a pay-per-view, speaking to the quality of the card on display when Artur Beterbiev rematches against Dmitry Bivol.What time will the fight start in the UK?The card is expected to get started at around 4.15pm UK time.Bakole and Parker ring walks will be around 9.10pm GMT TONIGHT. The event will be broadcast live on DAZN Pay-Per-View, with PPV available to buy now at £19.99 in UK and $25.99 in US.Alternatively, you can tune into the SunSport’s live blog for updates on the night.Why is Daniel Dubois vs Joseph Parker OFF?Daniel Dubois withdrew from his IBF heavyweight world title defence against Joseph Parker due to illness.READ MORE IN BOXING DDD was forced to pull out on Thursday – just two days before his hotly anticipated mega-fight in Saudi Arabia.The 27-year-old was examined by doctors in Riyadh and has was ruled out with sickness.Parker now faces Bakole, as the co-feature before Artur Beterbiev’s rematch with Dmitry Bivol.Dubois was deemed medically unfit to compete by doctors and so fast-rising star Bakole will take his place in the chief support slot.Most read in BoxingFull cardArtur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol – for the IBF, IBO, WBC and WBO light-heavyweight titlesJoseph Parker vs Martin Bakole for the interim WBO heavyweight titleShakur Stevenson vs Josh Padley – for the WBC lightweight titleCarlos Adames vs Hamzah Sheeraz – for the WBC middleweight titleVergil Ortiz Jr vs Israil Madrimov – for the interim WBC heavyweight titleZhilei Zhang vs Agit Kabayel – for the interim WBC heavyweight titleJoshua Buatsi vs Callum Smith – for the interim WBO light-heavyweight title More

BOXING history is littered in so-called ‘best card of all time’ shouts over the years. However, the card lined up for Saturday night in Riyadh will certainly rival anything that has ever been put together in boxing – despite two late changes.Dmitry Bivol blockbuster bout against Artur Beterbiev is being lablled ‘The Last Crescendo’Credit: GettyArtur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol’s rematch will headline the card.There was previously a co-main event between Daniel Dubois and Joseph Parker for the heavyweight title – but Dubois has been forced to withdraw because of illness.Joseph Parker vs Martin Bakole is now one of the chief supporting acts after the feared heavyweight stepped in at short notice.Beterbiev and Bivol bout is sparked from the pair’s initial fight in the Middle East last October, where the former won a narrow decision for the undisputed light-heavyweight titles.READ MORE IN BOXING Resurgent former world champion Parker on a five-match win streak will look to disrupt any supposed formalities.Martin Bakole took the fight on very short notice, only jetting into Riyadh for the fight against Parker on Friday morning.Dubois and Parker’s heavyweight title fight has been cancelledCredit: GettyFellow British fighters Joshua Buatsi and Callum Smith will open up the night, as their meet-up presents crunch time for both. Buatsi is looking to deliver on the promise hailed on him since holding the British title in 2019.Most read in BoxingSmith has the opportunity to show he still deserves a place at the top of the sport after a couple of failed title shots.Meanwhile, pound-for-pound star Shakur Stevenson will now defend his WBC lightweight title against unbeaten Brit Josh Padley after Floyd Schofield was also forced to withdraw.When is Joseph Parker vs Martin Bakole?Joseph Parker vs Martin Bakole is set to take place on the undercard of Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol II, on Saturday, February 22.The card gets underway from 4pm GMT, with Parker and Bakole to fight before the main event at around 9pm GMT.The fight will take place at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.SunSport will bring you all the action from EVERY fight with our live blogFull cardArtur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol – for the IBF, IBO, WBC and WBO light-heavyweight titlesJoseph Parker vs Martin BakoleShakur Stevenson vs Josh Padley – for the WBC lightweight titleCarlos Adames vs Hamzah Sheeraz – for the WBC middleweight titleVergil Ortiz Jr vs Israil Madrimov – for the interim WBC heavyweight titleZhilei Zhang vs Agit Kabayel – for the interim WBC heavyweight titleJoshua Buatsi vs Callum Smith – for the interim WBO light-heavyweight title More