British heavyweights Fabio Wardley and Frazer Clarke participated in one of the country’s most pivotal domestic match-ups in a contest where Wardley’s BBBofC British, Commonwealth Boxing Council and WBO European titles were on the line and retained as the two heavyweights fought to split-decision draw. The two headlined a Boxxer card at the O2 Arena in London on Sunday, March 31st.
Fabio Wardley (17-0-1, 16 KO’s) came into the match as a more experienced professional, while Frazer Clarke (8-0-1, 6 KO’s) came into the match as a fully seasoned amateur―as opposed to Wardley who had no amateur fights prior to entering the professional ranks of boxing.
With both fighters having been expected to enter the ring since last year to determine the best out of the top British heavyweights below the world level, their March 31st bout resulted in a huge battle between the two fighters that neither of them ended up winning as they faced a split-decision draw; with one scorecard of 114-113 going in Wardley’s favor, while another scorecard of 115-112 deemed Clarke to be the winner. Ultimately, the even score of 113-113 by judge Mark Bates forced a split-decision (SD) draw as a result.
Both fighters competed in an evenly-sided match that swung in many directions and didn’t truly establish a clear winner. The most pivotal moment arrived when Fabio Wardley knocked down Frazer Clarke in the fifth round, which heavily contributed to the bout going in to the direction it did. Without the knockdown, there would be a legitimate chance of Wardley losing the fight.
Frazer Clarke also lost a point in the seventh round for a low blow in a round that would be best rated as a 9-9 round.
A case can be argued for either fighter to have won, with Fabio Wardley have performed impressively amidst what appeared to be a bruised and bloodied nose, even doing well later on in the match during championship rounds, while Frazer Clarke also did well with his amateur pedigree showing through and allowing him to break through Wardley’s defense with pinpoint and hard punches.
While the fifth-round knockdown was not counted, Wardley and Clarke both had their moments after the fifth round which made the split-decision draw a more understandable decision. Following the commencement of this match, a rematch will likely be pursued by both parties to help draw a more certain outcome, as the SD draw will hang over both fighters’ heads unless they face each other again.
Given the BBBofC’s British heavyweight title was also on the line, there is even more of a case for a rematch to be held as the bout still did not determine the best out of the current British heavyweights who have the potential to be genuine world title contenders, or even champions. Aside from retaining the British title, Wardley also retained the Commonwealth and WBO European titles.
On the undercard, Albanian welterweight Florian Marku (13-1-1, 8 KO’s) and British contender Chris Kongo (15-2, 7 KO’s) battled over the vacant IBO Inter-Continental title in a close contest over ten rounds. Kongo was ultimately declared the winner by unanimous decision (UD); a decision aided by the fact Marku was deducted points for repeated rabbit punching in the eight round.
British cruiserweight prospect Viddal Riley (11-0, 6 KO’s) maintained his unbeaten record against countryman Mikael Lawal (17-2, 11 KO’s)―who was notably coming off a loss that occurred last year to fellow Brit Isaac Chamberlain (16-2, 8 KO’s), bringing Riley closer to proving himself at least a fringe contender. Currently, a fight with another highly-rated British cruiserweights might be worthy to pursue for Riley, if the BBBofC British cruiserweight title can be included―setting up a pivotal domestic bout to determine the best up-and-coming cruiserweight with arguably world level potential.
The only other heavyweight bout that appeared on the card was a showing between Croatian Alen Babic (12-1, 11 KO’s) and British heavyweight Steve Robinson (6-3, 4 KO’s). With both fighters coming off of losses, it was a perfect chance for them to get back into a position where they could once again start climbing up the ladder to become genuine world title contenders within the division.
Alen Babic would be the fighter to look forward towards greater fights as he battled to an easier-than-expected stoppage victory in the sixth round of the ten-round match. Winning most, if not all the rounds, Babic proved himself a level above Robinson who has found his career derailed again as he suffers the third loss of his career, and his second in a row.
Former Olympian Ben Whittaker (7-0, 5 KO’s) also fought on the Boxxer card in a bid to remain active, going up against fellow Brit Leon Willings (7-2, 2 KO’s) in an eight-round light-heavyweight contest. Whittaker recorded an expected win over Willings who proved tougher than expected and did not allow Whittaker to take a win by knockout or stoppage despite suffering an early knockdown in the first round.
Whittaker’s choice of opponent raises some eyebrows, with the 175-pounder having yet to fight anyone of note despite former Olympian fighters often being fast-tracked during their professional careers due to their amateur pedigrees. However, in the case of Whittaker, he appears to have few decent opponents waiting in line to face with Willings having notably not faced an opponent with a winning record until last year, while he was six fights in as a professional.
Whittaker has thus far faced struggled to fill his resume with fighters that aren’t typically regarded as journeyman, which is an issue that can easily be attributed to his promoter, Boxxer, who supply the fighters he faces. Going forward, the silver Olympic medalist’s career much be clearly steered towards an improvement in opponents if the plan is for him to become a world champion.
