WBA featherweight champion Nick Ball is preparing for a homecoming fight in Liverpool this weekend, making a voluntary defence of his title against California’s Ronny Rios. Should he win that contest and make a first defence of the belt, there is now a mammoth opportunity around the corner.
Ball announced himself onto the featherweight scene when he knocked out Isaac Lowe on the Fury-Whyte undercard at Wembley Stadium in April 2022 but since then his reputation has grown ten-fold.
A string of stoppage victories for the small but fearsome scouser saw 5’2” Ball rise up the rankings and a points win over Isaac Dogboe granted Ball the chance to challenge for world honours.
A contentious draw with WBC champion Rey Vargas on the Joshua-Ngannou bill impressed viewers and the world stage but it was against America’s Raymond Ford where Ball finally got his hands on a world title – edging a razor-thin split-decision.
Now, as world champion, Ball finds himself with a target on his head and the imminent move up in weight from pound-for-pound number one Naoya Inoue has got British fight fans hopeful of seeing ‘The Monster’ travel to fight in Old Blighty.
Meanwhile, Stephen Fulton, who lost his super-bantamweight titles to Inoue last year, has also recently made the move up and was victorious on his 126lb debut against Carlos Castro last month.
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Today, the WBA have confirmed that ‘Cool Boy Steph’ has been installed as the #1 contender and the mandatory challenger for Ball’s title – teeing up a showdown between the front-footed ‘Wrecking’ Ball and the slick Philadelphian, as per Boog Williams.
@coolboysteph is the new WBA #1 Contender and Mandatory Challenger Featherweight
— Boog Williams (@Ovajay) October 1, 2024
“@Coolboysteph is the new WBA #1 Contender and Mandatory Challenger Featherweight”
Speaking with Boxing News, before his split-decision win against Castro, Fulton outlined that Ball was his target and admitted that he felt the aggressive style of the WBA champion was a perfect match-up.
“That [Ball] is the one that I want because that is the weight-class that I am number one for and this is an eliminator for that belt.
“They were close fights [against Rey Vargas and Ray Ford], close fights should go to the champion but it happens. S**t happens.
“We will see, once we get past this, if we can line that up.
“[We would match up] perfect [stylistically] because he comes off as an aggressive, strong fighter and what we have been working on in camp is perfect for that.”
Before Ball can look towards a scrap with Fulton, he must overcome Rios this Saturday night at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool – where he tops a bill featuring a host of domestic talent that can be watched live on TNT Sports.
As for Inoue, the Japanese sensation could look towards IBF featherweight champion Angelo Leo, before a potential unification bout against the victor of Ball-Fulton in late 2025.
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