Notebook: Mason, 21, eyes 135 belt, can become youngest active titlist
New trainer for Joshua; MVP announces Jake-Joshua undercard; T. Inoue seeks another title; BetUS show is back; Golovkin lands big job; Quick hits; Show and tell double
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Lightweight Abdullah Mason, hailed as one of the best, if not the best, prospect in boxing over the past couple of years, is ready to leave behind that label and win a world title.
“Being a world champion or contenting for a title is a huge step up in boxing from anything else — from Olympics, national champion as an amateur, or any of these smaller titles as a pro,” Mason told Fight Freaks Unite. “Being a world champion is huge. It’s just something that I’m looking forward to. (You have to have) composure, but I’m also excited. We can’t wait for it, man.”
Mason will get that shot when he faces Sam Noakes for the vacant WBO 135-pound title on “The Ring IV: Night of the Champions” card headlined by David Benavidez defending the WBC and WBA “regular” light heavyweight titles against Anthony Yarde on Saturday (DAZN PPV, 3 p.m. ET, $59.99 in U.S., £24.99 in the U.K.) at ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
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Mason (19-0, 17 KOs), 21, a southpaw from Cleveland, and Sam Noakes (17-0, 15 KOs), 28, of England, will fight for the belt stripped from Keyshawn Davis because he was 4.3 pounds overweight for a defense against Edwin De Los Santos on June 7 in his hometown of Norfolk, Virginia.
The fight was canceled but Top Rank, which promotes Davis and Mason, went through with the show anyway. Coincidentally, Mason was set for the co-feature. His fight against Jeremia Nakathila was bumped up to the main event and he won by dominating fifth-round knockout to maintain his No. 2 WBO ranking.
Days later, the WBO ordered Mason and Noakes, the WBO’s No. 1 contender, to fight for the vacant belt in a shot that has come much sooner than Mason expected and four years to the month since he made his pro debut.
But Mason, headed into his first scheduled 12-rounder and having never been past six rounds, has embraced the opportunity.
“I feel like I’ve been prepared perfectly,” Mason said. “I’ve been with a great team, you know, J Prince Management, Top Rank Boxing, and my team — my father (and trainer) and my brothers as well. Every fight that I go through, they’ve been pushing me to be better or tweak this, tweak that, and every fight I’ve been getting better and better.”
While Mason is getting the title shot sooner than expected, Top Rank vice president Carl Moretti, who has made the trip to Riyadh, said he is ready to win it.
“With Sam Noakes and Abdullah Mason you have two contrasting styles,” Moretti said. “Sam only knows how to knock people out and come forward while Abdullah can box and punch. I think the only southpaw that Sam has ever fought was Vincenzo Finiello and he stopped him in four (rounds). Abdullah Mason is no Vincenzo Finiello. We know that.
“We wouldn’t put our guys in fights that we didn’t think we could win. Nowadays, anyone can fight for a title, but the goal is to win. On Saturday night, Top Rank will have the WBO lightweight champion in Abdullah Mason.”
Mason and Noakes have both shown promise but have not faced any standout names. Mason figures they are both stepping up in class against each other with a big prize on the line.
“I feel like Sam Noakes is a worthy opponent,” Mason said. “We have faced similar opposition in a sense, and we’re in the same places in both of our careers. So it’ll be just as much of a test for him as it is for me. We’re both undefeated, right there closing in on 20 fights. So, it’s a perfect test for us both, and it’s going to show a lot about whoever’s going to be this next world champion.”
If Mason wins he will, at age 21, become the youngest active male world titleholder, supplanting Top Rank stablemate Xander Zayas, who is 23 and was 22 when he won the vacant WBO junior middleweight title on July 26.
It would be a meaningful accomplishment to Mason.
“That’s something that’s huge for boxing, but not just for boxing, but also for Cleveland, Ohio, to have a world champion and for that world champion to be the youngest active male world champion. It’s something huge to bring back to my hometown,” Mason said, adding that he would want to have a defense there as soon as possible.
“I don’t know when that would be, but soon. That’d be a huge thing, and I’m just excited for that.”
The Ring IV: Night of the Champions
Light heavyweights: David Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) vs. Anthony Yarde (27-3, 24 KOs), for Benavidez’s WBC and WBA “regular” title
Welterweights: Brian Norman Jr. (28-0, 22 KOs) vs. Devin Haney (32-0, 15 KOs), for Norman’s WBO title
Junior bantamweights: Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez (22-0, 15 KOs) vs. Fernando Martinez (18-0, 9 KOs), WBC, WBO, WBA unification
Lightweights: Abdullah Mason (19-0, 17 KOs) vs. Sam Noakes (17-0, 15 KOs), for vacant WBO title
Joshua makes trainer change
Former two-time unified heavyweight titleholder Anthony Joshua has made a trainer change ahead of his eight-round bout against Jake Paul on Dec. 19 (Netflix, 8 p.m. ET) at the Kaseya Center in Miami.
“I won’t be trained by Ben Davidson. I said that London’s a bit distracting for me, so I was invited to train with Team (Oleksandr) Usyk,” Joshua said on Friday at the kickoff news conference at the arena. “We’ve been doing some good training out in Spain, and I think (Usyk is) one of the best in the world. And it’s not all down to him; it’s also down to his team that surrounds him. So I linked up with them and (I’m) getting insight into how someone who’s achieved so much. It’s been phenomenal, man. It’s been a great experience, and it’s very challenging.”
Joshua, who has made several trainer changes in recent years, is joining the camp of the man that beat him twice.
Usyk, the two-time undisputed heavyweight champion and reigning lineal and unified champion, twice outpointed Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs), 36, of England, taking the unified title from him by unanimous decision in a mandatory challenge in September 2021 followed by a split decision in a far more competitive fight in their immediate rematch in August 2022.
After the second loss to Usyk, Joshua won four fights in a row, although not against elite opponents, before getting knocked down four times in an absolutely brutal fifth-round knockout loss challenging countryman Daniel Dubois for the IBF title 14 months ago at Wembley Stadium.
Joshua was trained by Davison for three consecutive fights beginning with his 2023 bout against Otto Wallin, his easy second-round blowout of former UFC champion Francis Ngannou in 2024 followed by the loss to Dubois.
Joshua, who had subsequent elbow surgery, has not fought since but was making plans to fight in December in a lower-profile fight before striking the deal to fight Paul in a major event for tens of millions of dollars. If Joshua wins, and he is a huge favorite, he is expected to fight in Saudi Arabia in February and then could at long last face countryman and former champion Tyson Fury in a long-awaited bout in September in London.
First up is Paul, and Joshua talked tough.
“I’m going to break his face; I’m going to break his body up; I’m going to stomp all over him.” Joshua said. “That’s my mentality; that’s a fighter’s mentality. I know what’s in my heart, what’s in my mind. I’m here to compete.”
Paul-Joshua undercard
On Friday, when Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua met face to face — or, rather face to chest — for the kickoff news conference for their eight-round heavyweight fight on Dec. 19 (Netflix) at Kaseya Center in Miami, Most Valuable Promotions announced the undercard.
The fights are mainly bouts that were originally scheduled for Nov. 14 on the undercard when Paul was supposed to face Gervonta Davis in an exhibition that was canceled due to Davis being sued over yet another incident of alleged domestic violence.
The co-feature remains the same with women’s unified junior lightweight champion Alycia Baumgardner (16-1, 7 KOs), 31, of Detroit, defending against Leila Beaudoin (13-1, 2 KOs), 29, of Canada, under men’s rules — 12 three-minute rounds rather than the standard 10 two-minute rounds for women’s title fights.
Brazil’s Anderson Silva (3-2, 2 KOs in boxing), 50, the MMA legend, will now face fellow former UFC champion Tyron Woodley (0-2 in boxing), 43, of Ferguson, Missouri, in a six-round cruiserweight fight at a contract weight of 195 pounds. They have both lost to Paul, Silva by unanimous decision in 2022 and Woodley by split decision followed by spectacular knockout in a pair of 2021 bouts.
“I believe that change always happens for a reason,” Silva said. “I am focused on doing a good job, always respecting my opponent and showing total respect to the boxing world.”
Woodley replaces former UFC champion Chris Weidman, who withdrew due to an injury.
“Rising to occasions like this are the moments where legends are born,” Woodley said.
Also rescheduled from Nov. 14 are bouts on the preliminary card:
Cherneka Johnson (18-2, 8 KOs), 30, of Australia, will defend the undisputed women’s bantamweight title against Amanda Galle (12-0-1, 1 KO), 36, of Canada.
Yokasta Valle (33-3, 10 KOs), 33, of Costa Rica, will defend the WBC women’s strawweight title versus Yadira Bustillos (11-1, 2 KOs), 25, of Las Vegas.
Welterweight Avious Griffin (17-1, 16 KOs), 32, of Chattanooga, Tennessee, will face Justin Cardona (10-1, 5 KOs), 26, of Salinas, California, in an eight-rounder.
In a new fight, two-time Brazilian Olympian and MVP signee Keno Marley, 25, will make his pro debut against Baltimore native Diarra Davis Jr. (2-1, 1 KO), 35, in four-round cruiserweight bout.
T. Inoue seeks another title
Former WBA bantamweight titlist Takuma Inoue (20-2, 5 KOs), 29, who is the younger brother of pound-for-pound star Naoya Inoue, will aim to win the vacant WBC title against Japanese southpaw countryman Tenshin Nasukawa (7-0, 2 KOs), 27, the former kickboxing star, when they meet in the Teiken Promotions headliner on Monday at the new Toyota Arena in Tokyo.
Top Rank has American media rights to the card and will stream it live on the Top Rank Classics FAST channel beginning at 3:30 a.m. ET with a 7 p.m. ET replay.
To watch on a mobile device or desktop visit trboxing.co/TopRankClassics. The channel is also available for free on various FAST channel apps, including Tubi, Pluto and Vizio.
Inoue has not fought in 13 months — since he lost the WBA belt by competitive decision to Seiya Tsutsumi in October 2024. Now he has a chance to win a 118-pound title vacated by Junto Nakatani when he moved up in weight.
“I’m physically and mentally in my best shape. My goal is not only to regain the WBC belt but also to inflict the first defeat to the up-and-coming and sensational Tenshin,” Inoue, who previously held the WBC interim belt in 2018 and 2019, said in translated comments. “That’s my best motivation.”
Also on the stream:
Japanese southpaw Mikito Nakano (14-0, 13 KOs), 30, and Ra’eese Aleem (22-1, 12 KOs), 35, of Las Vegas, square off in an IBF featherweight eliminator to determine titleholder Angelo Leo’s mandatory challenger.
Former world amateur champion Tomoya Tsuboi (2-0, 1 KO), 29, of Japan, will take a massive step up in competition against former junior bantamweight titlist Carlos Cuadras (44-5-1, 28 KOs), 37, Mexico, who has won five in a row since a decision loss to Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez for the vacant WBC title in 2022, in a 10-rounder.
BetUS Boxing Show
We were back for a special one-off BetUS Boxing Show live at 1 p.m. ET on Friday on Kick.com to preview and pick the four world title fights on Saturday on “The Ring IV: Night of the Champions” card: David Benavidez vs. Anthony Yarde for Benavidez’s WBC and WBA “regular” light heavyweight title; Brian Norman Jr. vs. Devin Haney for Norman’s WBO welterweight title; Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez vs. Fernando Martinez in a three-belt junior bantamweight unification bout; and Abdullah Mason vs. Sam Noakes for the vacant WBO lightweight title. We also took viewer questions and comments and discussed the latest boxing news! Please click here or the photo below to check out the show:
Golovkin to head Word Boxing
Former unified middleweight champion Gennadiy Golovkin is set to become president of World Boxing, the new organization that will oversee Olympic boxing beginning with the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Golovkin was running against Greek official Mariolis Charilaos when the candidates were announced in late October. But for reasons World Boxing did not announce Charilaos is no longer a candidate. World Boxing will vote on its officers at its Congress in Rome on Sunday.
“Unanimous acclamation from Congress can be accepted if there is only one candidate for any office bearing position,” World Boxing said in a news release. “It means that Gennadiy Golovkin will become president of World Boxing by acclamation at the Congress on Sunday when he will assume the mantle from the incumbent president, Boris van der Vorst.”
Golovkin has been heavily involved in amateur boxing since ending his professional career in 2022, including as president of Kazakhstan’s national Olympic committee. Golovkin, who is likely to be elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame when voting results are announced on Dec. 4, had a stellar amateur career that culminated with a 2004 Olympic silver medal for his home country of Kazakhstan.
Quick hits
Weights from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, for “The Ring IV: Night of the Champions” card on Saturday (DAZN PPV, $59.99, 3 p.m. ET): David Benavidez 174.3 pounds, Anthony Yarde 173.9 (for Benavidez’s WBC and WBA “regular” light heavyweight title); Brian Norman Jr. 146.12, Devin Haney 146.6 (for Norman’s WBO welterweight title); Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez 114.6, Fernando Martinez 113.12 (WBC/WBO/WBA junior bantamweight unification); Abdullah Mason 134, Sam Noakes 134.9 (for vacant WBO lightweight title); Vito Mielnicki Jr. 159.6, Samuel Nmomah 159.6; Mohammed Alakel 131.6, Jiaming Li 132.3; Julio Porras Ruiz 167.9, Pius Mpenda 166.12; Sultan Almohammed 129, Umesh Chavan 129.9; Barker Ssewanyana 115.3, Juan Perez Guerito 116.9.
Six days after middleweight Chris Eubank Jr. lost via one-sided decision to Conor Benn in their massively hyped rematch, welterweight Harlem Eubank (22-1, 9 KOs), 31, Chris’ first cousin, lifted the family name with a near-shutout decision against Canada’s Josh Wagner (19-2, 10 KOs), 32, in the Wasserman Boxing main event on Friday night at Brighton Centre in Eubank’s hometown of Brighton, England. Eubank won 100-90, 100-90 and 99-91 to rebound from when he stepped up in competition and lost a unanimous seventh-round technical decision to Jack Catterall, who was unable to continue after an accidental head butt, in July. Newly crowned IBF welterweight titlist Lewis Crocker (22-0, 11 KOs), 28, of Northern Ireland, was ringside looking to set up a possible fight with Eubank.
Junior middleweight Francisco Daniel Veron (16-1-1, 10 KOs), 27, a 2020 Olympian from Argentina fighting out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, set a fast pace, scored a ninth-round knockdown and defeated Roiman Villa (27-4, 25 KOs), 32, of Venezuela, via shutout decision — 100-89 three times — in the ProBox TV headliner on Friday night at War Memorial Auditorium in Fort Lauderdale. In the co-feature, junior lightweight Tsendy Erdenebat (14-0, 6 KOs), 29, a two-time Olympian from Mongolia fighting out of Paramount, California, outpointed Abraham Montoya (23-7-1, 14 KOs), 31, of Mexico, in a fan-friendly bout. Scores were 99-91, 99-91 and 96-94.
Show and tell
Mike Tyson was already a phenomenon exciting sports fans with his big knockouts when, at 20 years, 4 months, 22 days, he was ready to fight for a heavyweight title and fulfill the prophecy of late trainer and legal guardian Cus D’Amato, who predicted he’d become heavyweight champion. Not only did Tyson improve to 28-0 with 26 KOs in just his 21st month as a professional to become the youngest heavyweight champion in history, he did it in overwhelmingly destructive fashion when he challenged WBC titleholder Trevor Berbick at the Las Vegas Hilton. Berbick survived a knockdown in the first few seconds of the second round and then Tyson landed the title-winning left hook, essentially scoring three knockdowns with the single punch to the temple. Berbick rose but kept falling down because he was so badly disoriented, forcing referee Mills Lane to stop the fight. It wasn’t just a title win for Tyson but his coronation as the “Baddest Man on the Planet” and the start of a new era in boxing. That historic and memorable Tyson victory was on Nov. 22, 1986 — 39 years ago on Saturday.
Items from the fight are somewhat tough to find, especially in top condition but I have three in my collection: a mint program, which is quite scarce, as well as two different thin cardboard site posters, the main artwork version and one with art from the legendary LeRoy Neiman.
More show and tell
For decades, the most storied national rivalry in boxing has been Mexico vs. Puerto Rico. One of the biggest fights in the history of the rich rivalry was when Hall of Famer and then-lineal middleweight champion Miguel Cotto, the all-time great Puerto Rican and the island’s only male four-division champion, and Mexican legend Canelo Alvarez, a future Hall of Famer and also a four-division champion, squared off in a long-awaited mega HBO PPV fight at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. Although the fight won’t go down as a classic, they delivered an entertaining and hard-fought battle that saw the younger and bigger puncher Alvarez spend most of the fight stalking Cotto, who did his best to outbox Alvarez.
There were some hard rounds to score but the judges clearly favored Alvarez’s aggressive style and heavier punching and awarded him a unanimous decision by the surprisingly wide scores of 119-109, 118-110 and 117-111. I was ringside and also had Alvarez winning but much closer (115-113) as he claimed not only the lineal title but also the WBC belt that had been stripped from Cotto days earlier in a dispute over the sanctioning fee. It will go down as one of Mexico’s greatest victories against Puerto Rico and it took place on Nov. 21, 2015 — 10 years ago on Friday. Here is a glossy site poster in my collection.
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Photos: Mason, Mason-Noakes, Norman-Haney: Leigh Dawney/Queensberry; Joshua: Eva Marie Uzcategui/Getty Images for Netflix; Golovkin: World Boxing; Nasukawa-Inoue: Naoki Fukuda
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