This time last week, British fight fans were anticipating yet another fight of the year candidate from Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke who were scheduled to meet for a second time after their enthralling Easter Sunday encounter ended in a draw. Yet, the contest played out much different this time around and Wardley has received an updated world ranking as a result.
Wardley and Clarke famously battled to a split-draw when they met at the end of March, topping the bill at the O2 Arena in one of the most captivating British title contests within recent memory.
As a result, the announcement that the pair would meet again on the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol undercard was met with jubilation, as domestic fans predicted a similarly close-fought affair β with the victor likely to progress to the world stage in the near future.
However, Fabio Wardley had other plans and took the fight to the Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist from the sound of the opening bell onwards, landing a prodigious right-hook that cracked the jaw and dented the head of Clarke in the opening-round, rendering him unable to continue.
One of the most vicious KOs Iβve ever seen. Look at the side of Clarkeβs head. Also, look at his mouth. Emphatic display by Fabio Wardley. Sheesh. π₯ @DAZNBoxingpic.twitter.com/OxLPNSnp28
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) October 13, 2024
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The authoritative display has seen Wardley receive plenty of plaudits, not only for his aggression but for his punch power, with many believing him to be amongst the hardest punchers in the division β as supported by his record of 17 KOs in 18 victories.
Whilst Clarke left the ring requiring surgery, Wardley stepped outside of the squared circle pondering who is next and whether he should stick around to defend his British title on one more occasion to win the Lonsdale Belt outright or focus on positioning himself for the heavyweight world titles, which are expected to become vacated during the aftermath of Fury-Usyk II.
Regardless of the prestige of the fabled British heavyweight title, Wardley may find it difficult to refuse the allure of the world stage, especially now that he has entered the Ring Magazine rankings, coming in at #9.
π Fabio Wardley has now entered the Ring Magazine heavyweight rankings:
ππΊπ¦ Oleksandr Usyk
1οΈβ£π¬π§ Tyson Fury
2οΈβ£π¬π§ Daniel Dubois
3οΈβ£π³πΏ Joseph Parker
4οΈβ£π¨π³ Zhilei Zhang
5οΈβ£π©πͺ Agit Kabayel
6οΈβ£π¨π© Martin Bakole
7οΈβ£π¬π§ Anthony Joshua
8οΈβ£ππ· Filip Hrgovic
9οΈβ£π¬π§ Fabio Wardley
ππ³π¬ Efe Ajagba— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) October 15, 2024
Amongst the other sanctioning bodies, Fabio Wardley is ranked #12 with the IBF, #8 with the WBC and WBO and #9 with the WBA, although his position with the latter three has not yet been updated following his demolition of Clarke.
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