It is often said of modern boxing that rematches are unnecessary, particularly when world titles are involved, but the opposite can also be true.
Some of the best fights of recent times have been fully warranted rematches, such as Tyson Fury’s second with Deontay Wilder which ended in a dramatic KO. Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol have already delivered two undisputed light-heavyweight contests for fans. Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano are set to deliver the third chapter of their war this weekend in New York.
Back in March, the foundations were laid for another highly-anticipated return fight when welterweight Lewis Crocker was awarded the win after his opponent Paddy Donovan – who had been in complete control of the contest and scored a knockdown – was disqualified at the end of the eighth round because he landed significantly after the bell had sounded. The Irishman had already been deducted points in round six and eight for use of the elbow and head.
Donovan’s team, including former world champion turned trainer Andy Lee, protested that the noise in the arena was of a volume that stopped them hearing the bell. They also said referee Marcus McDonnell should have been closer to the action to step in. The IBF heard Donovan’s official appeal and ordered a rematch of the final eliminator, but the fight has now been made more significant by the fact that Jaron Ennis is vacating his world title to move up in weight.
The news of this fight being upgraded to a world title contest was shared on Matchroom Boxing’s X account, with the promise of a date and venue coming soon. Dan Rafael then reported that the fight is pencilled in for September 13 at Belfast’s Windsor Park.
