Ultimate Boxxer II

Tonight, the Indigo at the O2 in London will host Ultimate Boxxer II. This one-night event is the second round of the tournament. Eight professional light heavyweights will face-off against each other, with each bout consisting of three, three-minute rounds.

The quarter finals will feature four bouts. In the first half of the draw, we will see Joel McIntyre (17-2) vs. Darrell Church (7-2-1) and Sam Horsfall (2-1) vs Dec Spelman (12-1). The second half of the draw will showcase Shakan Pitters (7-0) vs Sam Smith (5-1) and Jordan Joseph (7-2-1) vs Georgii Bacon (1-1). It should be noted that Bacon is a late replacement for John McCallum.

The Ultimate Boxxer tournament will follow a fast-paced format of single elimination bouts that have been sanctioned by the British Boxing Board of Control. The winners of the quarter finals will compete in two semi-finals, followed by a final bout that will determine the champion of the light heavyweights. The winner will receive a golden robe, a share of £50,000, and the opportunity to participate in a British title eliminator fight.

This British sports entertainment organization claims that their independence allows them to focus on a transparent approach to providing an equal playing field for fighters while utilizing internet broadcasting services and social media to promote and market this unique platform and the individuals who are participating. The three gentlemen at the head of this project are founder and managing director Benjamin Shalom, accompanied by Ultimate Boxxer ambassador Ricky Hatton, a former three-time Junior Welterweight and Welterweight world champion, and Non-Executive Director Paulie Malignaggi, a former IBF Junior Welterweight and WBA Welterweight world champion.

Earlier this year, competitor Dec Spelman was in a ten-round war with Scott Westgarth. Both men were knocked down, with Westgarth winning by unanimous decision. Tragically, Westgarth passed away the following morning due to a brain injury.  Tonight will be Spelman’s second time in the ring since his fight with Westgarth, whose family has been very supportive. Scott’s brother Adam will there at the fight tonight in support of Spelman, who will be wearing Scott’s initials on his Tee-shirt as a symbol of his commitment to continue fighting in his honor.

In determining the draw for tonight’s event, the men competed head-to-head in a series of challenges evaluating power, speed, and punches. The fighters have been evenly matched, with the determining factors coming down to a matter of style, size, focus, and implementation of tactics and self-control.  Two favorites mentioned are Shakan Pitters and Dec Spelman.

Tonight, eight professional light heavyweight boxers will fight tournament style, with only one being crowned the winner.  There will also be live music and entertainment hosted by BBC Radio 1 DJ Charlie Sloth. The venue doors open at 6:45 pm and close at 8:30 pm. The event finishes at 12:00 am. The show will be streamed live, exclusively on Facebook via SPORTbible at 8:15 pm. It will then be broadcast live on Freeview via Channel 5Spike at 10:00 pm.

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