The Fight Is Right hosted by Tunde Ajayi & Spencer Fearon

Rachel Ball talks with our hosts Tunde Ajayi & Spencer Fearon about her spectacular win over Shannon Courtney! Her life before boxing, her aspiration and of course the rematch!  All this and more on The Fight Is Right  

Adam Booth-managed Shannon Courtenay was the red hot favourite when the super-bantamweight fight was announced but Ball was slowly backed once fans read up on her pedigree. The three-time kickboxing world champion started sensationally with a first round knockdown but Courtenay showed true grit and seemed to roar back into the lead.  But referee Howard Foster shocked the few staff inside Eddie Hearn’s back garden when he picked the away fighter 77-75.  The flame-haired marathon runner and down-to-earth girl could not beat back tears as she said: “Most of my fellow social workers, who I work with, only found out I box this afternoon so thanks to them for all their late support.  “I hardly ever cry but I am so happy, it means everything for me.  “It was a closer fight than I wanted but I got the win and I want to move on to big things now, I dream of a world title.”  Courtenay started the opener well, jabbing to the body because towering Ball’s head was seven inches above hers.  The Watford woman backed Ball up toward the end of the first and landed a right hand from a crouched position.  But Ball connected with a peach of a left hook that dropped the 27-year-old who was struggling in the first fair fight of her career.  Courtenay, 27, to her total credit battled her way back into the contest in the second, stalking and tagging Ball around the ring.  Ball’s rangey one-twos scored again a few times at the start of the third but Courtenay remained relentless and marched her down, bobbing away from the jab and rising with hooks.  Sensational slugfests ensued in the fourth, fifth and sixth with a breathless Courtenay demanding to know how her corner was scoring it and they had good news for her after plenty of clever head movement and bullish boxing.  When the Bell rang, it was assumed that Courtenay would get the home decision but Ball had her arm raised by Foster.  And the most emotionally charged interview of boxing's comeback followed with Ball reminding the British boxing world what a Rocky story looks like.  

Tunde Ajayi Instagram - @tundejayi9 https://www.instagram.com/tundeajayi9/ 

Spencer The Knowledge Fearon Instagram - @master_knowledge https://www.instagram.com/master_knowledge/ 

 The Fight Is Right Instagram - @thefightisright9 https://www.instagram.com/thefightisright9/  

Tunde's Twitter - https://twitter.com/tundeajayi999 

Spencer’s Twitter -  https://twitter.com/Spencer_Fearon The Fight Is Right Twitter - https://twitter.com/Thefightisrigh1  

Produced by - @iammrblake (instagram)

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On this episode of The Fight Is Right our hosts Tunde Ajayi & Spencer Fearon  discuss Dillian Whyte & Alexander Povetkin fight from last week. They are joined by journalist, broadcaster and presenter Gareth A Davies and former WBO Heavyweight Champion Joseph Parker via Zoom!  All this and more on The Fight Is Right.  

WHO IS GARETH A DAVIES?  

A respected and resonant voice in fight sports in print, radio and television.  With approaching three decades in journalism – twenty-five years with The Telegraph, fifteen years on radio with TalkSPORT, as well as twelve years working on television with BT Sport, FOX, ESPN and Setanta Sports – Gareth has become one of the go-to voices on boxing and has also pioneered mixed martial arts into mainstream coverage.  Aside from his award-winning writing, as on-air talent, Gareth has presented over thirty documentaries on the biggest names in MMA for BT Sport, while co-hosting and presenting more than one hundred hours of live and recorded weekly studio shows, some with a studio audience.  Work as a voice artist includes being a boxing analyst on live broadcasts on record-breaking nights at Wembley Stadium and The Millennium Stadium, hosting studio shows on the biggest platforms, as well as being a host on hundreds of podcasts for FOX, ESPN and TalkSPORT.  A storyteller by nature, Gareth found himself drawn to fight sports by the narrative of its protagonists, and the triumph of the human spirit in an often unforgiving and brutal environment.  The British-educated journalist’s wider work includes prominent roles in the documentary movies Pistorius (Release September 2018), Manny The Movie (Directed by Academy Award Winning Leon Gast), Mr Calzaghe (Western Edge Pictures) and acting roles in Journeyman (Paddy Considine) and Cagefighter (Release 2019).  Gareth brings a distinctive perspective, passion, humour and insight, has a huge contact resource direct to the most influential figures and fighters, and an instinct and knowledge reaching deep into the fight sports business in both boxing and MMA.  

WHO IS JOSEPH PARKER?  

Joseph Dennis Parker, OM (born 9 January 1992), is a New Zealand professional boxer of Samoan heritage. He held the WBO heavyweight title from 2016 to 2018, and previously multiple regional heavyweight championships including the WBO Oriental, Africa, and Oceania titles; as well as the PABA, OPBF, and New Zealand titles. As an amateur he represented New Zealand at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in the super-heavyweight division, and narrowly missed qualification for the 2012 Summer Olympics.  Parker turned professional in July 2012 with Duco Events in Auckland, under the tutelage of Sir Bob Jones. After defeating Andy Ruiz for the vacant WBO title, Parker became the first heavyweight boxer from either New Zealand or the Pacific Islands to win a major world championship. As of August 2019, he is ranked as the world's eighth best active heavyweight by The Ring magazine and ninth by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board (TBRB). During his reign as WBO champion, he reached a peak active heavyweight ranking of third by the TBRB.

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American middleweight Lorenzo Simpson joins Tunde Ajayi & Spencer Fearon to talk about his career so far and discussing his move to MTK Global.  

All this is more on The Fight Is Right.  Tunde Ajayi Instagram - @tundejayi9 https://www.instagram.com/tundeajayi9/ Spencer The Knowledge Fearon Instagram - @master_knowledge https://www.instagram.com/master_knowledge/  The Fight Is Right Instagram - @thefightisright9 https://www.instagram.com/thefightisright9/  Tunde's Twitter - https://twitter.com/tundeajayi999 Spencer’s Twitter -  https://twitter.com/Spencer_Fearon The Fight Is Right Twitter - https://twitter.com/Thefightisrigh1  Produced by - @iammrblake (instagram)

WHO IS LORENZO SIMPSON?  

BIOGRAPHY  Lorenzo Simpson (Truck) is a professional boxer from USA. Born 15 Mar 2000.  His professional record consists of 5 total fights, with 5 Wins (4 by KO), 0 Losses, 0 Draws.  Simpson is in the super middleweight division, he fights in the southpaw stance.  TITLES  Lorenzo Simpson is having held currently no titles.  

BOXING FACTS ABOUT SIMPSON  Lorenzo is an undefeated professional boxer. Simpson’s KO ratio is 80%. PROFESSIONAL BOXING RECORD  Simpson made his professional debut on 08 Dec 2018 at the age of 18.  5 Wins, 4 by KO 0 Losses 0 Draws  The move will see MTK Global work alongside Simpson’s uncle and manager Raheem – and his management company Xquizit Sports.  

Baltimore’s Simpson (8-0, 5-0 KOs) has taken the world by storm following his professional debut in 2018, and will now become MTK Global’s first American-born signing.  The 20-year-old has won all eight of his contests in very impression fashion, with five of those victories coming by knockout.  

He had an incredible amateur career, earning several national titles along the way, and he is also the nephew of former world heavyweight champion and boxing legend Hasim Rahman.  The super-welterweight star has been widely tipped to achieve big things in the sport, and he’s excited for the future after taking the next step in his career.  

MTK Global CEO Bob Yalen added: “We’re proud to be welcoming Lorenzo Simpson to the team. We’re always striving to work with the best boxers in the world and we truly believe that he is destined to reach those heights.  “We’ve expanded into America recently with the unveiling of the MTK Tuscon Gym, and with other moves in the USA on the horizon soon, we’re certain that Lorenzo can spearhead our presence in the country and become a huge name.  “He’s clearly a very exciting fighter and brings with him a superb amateur pedigree, so I urge fans to keep an eye on his progression because he’s definitely capable of achieving plenty of success.”  Simpson is set to return to the ring later this month, taking on fellow unbeaten fighter Sonny Duversonne live on CBS Sports, in what is expected to be yet another can’t-miss fight.  Aged 15-19 and want to enter the world of boxing as a fighter, coach, referee, cutsperson, promoter, event coordinator, journalist and everything in between? Sign up for the #MTKAcademy now: www.academyse.co.uk/mtkacademy

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Shakur Stevenson joins The Fight Is Right and speaks on his movement up to the lightweight division. He tells us why he beats Carl Frampton, Josh Warrington and Gervonta Davis!  He also tells us his stories from sparring Lomachenko and Terrence Crawford in the past.   All this and more on The Fight Is Right  

Tunde Ajayi Instagram - @tundejayi9 https://www.instagram.com/tundeajayi9/ Spencer The Knowledge Fearon Instagram - @master_knowledge https://www.instagram.com/master_knowledge/  The Fight Is Right Instagram - @thefightisright9 https://www.instagram.com/thefightisright9/  Tunde's Twitter - https://twitter.com/tundeajayi999 Spencer’s Twitter -  https://twitter.com/Spencer_Fearon The Fight Is Right Twitter - https://twitter.com/Thefightisrigh1  Produced by - @iammrblake (instagram) 

 WHO IS SHAKUR STEVENSON?  Ash-Shakur Nafi-Shahid Stevenson (born June 28, 1997) is an American professional boxer who held the WBO featherweight title from 2019 to July 2020. As an amateur, Stevenson represented the United States at the 2016 Summer Olympics, winning a silver medal in the bantamweight division.  Stevenson turned professional on February 9, 2017 signing a promotional contract with Top Rank. He signed Andre Ward as his manager.  Bob Arum told Ringtv that Stevenson would likely make his debut on a stacked card at the StubHub Center in Carson, California on April 22, 2017. Stevenson showed off his quickness, defense and punching skills as he won his first professional fight against American boxer Edgar Brito. Stevenson won via fifth round technical decision. Brito was cut on the left eye after an accidental headbutt in round 2. In round 3, he was deducted a point for intentionally headbutting Stevenson. From his own intentional headbutts, Brito suffered a cut over his right eye. The ringside physician stopped the bout. Stevenson was ahead on all three judges scorecards and won every round.  In an official press release on May 3, it was confirmed that Stevenson would make his Madison Square Garden debut on undercard of the Crawford vs. Díaz world light welterweight championship fight on May 20, 2017. His opponent was announced as Argentine boxer Carlos Suarez (6-3-2, 1 KO).Stevenson won the bout after 2 minutes and 35 seconds of the first round. Suarez was knocked down before the stoppage. Stevenson's third bout took place at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska, again on the undercard of Terrence Crawford, this time his unification fight against Julius Indongo on August 19, 2017. Stevenson fought his second straight Argentine opponent, David Michel Paz (4-3) in a scheduled six-round fight. Stevenson easily outpointed Paz over 6 rounds winning 60-53 on all three scorecards. In round 5, Paz was knocked down following a straight left. Stevenson seemed comfortable and patient in letting the fight go the distance. On November 20, Top Rank confirmed 26-year-old Mexican Oscar Mendoza (4-2, 2 KOs) as Stevenson's opponent, which would take place on the undercard of Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Guillermo Rigondeaux on December 9, 2017 at the Madison Square Garden Theater in New York City, New York.  Stevenson's first fight for 2018 was announced on February 7 to take place at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino's Grand Theater in Reno, Nevada on February 16 against Juan Tapia (8-1, 3 KOs) in a scheduled 8 round bout. Stevenson easily outpointed Tapia, winning 80-72 on all three judges' scorecards. Stevenson showed defensive improvements in the fight, boxed with his jab and worked to the body. He used the distance well, allowing Tapia to land only one punch at a time.

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Grime artist Jaykae joins Tunde Ajayi and Spencer Fearon on this show to discuss the new fighter from Birmingham he has just signed, his thoughts on Wiley and his recent comments on Twitter and who he believes is the king of the Welterweight division.  All this and more on The Fight Is Right.  

Tunde Ajayi Instagram - @tundejayi9 https://www.instagram.com/tundeajayi9/ Spencer The Knowledge Fearon Instagram - @master_knowledge https://www.instagram.com/master_knowledge/  The Fight Is Right Instagram - @thefightisright9 https://www.instagram.com/thefightisright9/  Tunde's Twitter - https://twitter.com/tundeajayi999 Spencer’s Twitter -  https://twitter.com/Spencer_Fearon The Fight Is Right Twitter - https://twitter.com/Thefightisrigh1  Produced by - @iammrblake (instagram)  

WHO IS JAYAKE?  Jaykae has quickly become one of the UK's rising artists with songs, such as "Toothache", "Moscow" and "Pull up" all receiving millions of views each on YouTube, and millions of streams each on Spotify. In 2017 "Every Country", a single from Jaykae with Murkage Dave (of the Murkage cartel) which was produced by Skepta, was a hit featuring as Radio 1's Tune of the Week. He has featured on Charlie Sloth's trademark BBC show, Fire In The Booth, where he performed a moving two piece set which reflected on life and the recent passing of a fellow grime artist, and friend, Depzman. In addition, he has performed on the popular BBC radio show segment, The BBC Live Lounge, where he covered two of his own songs, "Moscow" and "Toothache", and also performed a cover of Cameo's "Candy". Jaykae is held as the artist who put Birmingham's Grime scene officially on the map, and described [by whom?] as the "essential voice of the city".  He has featured on Skepta's all star remix of the hit single '"That's not me". Furthermore, he has collaborated numerous times with Mike Skinner (of The Streets) producing tracks such as "CCTV" and more recently "Boys Will Be Boys". Jaykae has performed at numerous concerts including Glastonbury, MADE, Reading, Creamfields and Wireless.  He has supported Skepta on his Konnichiwa tour, supported Stormzy at one of his gigs, and will also be supporting The Streets on their upcoming Greatest Hits tour. Jaykae was brought out at Drakes 2019 Birmingham concert. Jaykae also completed his first solo headline tour in December 2017, where he performed in Manchester, London and Birmingham.  Jaykae's "Toothache" also featured on award-winning TV series "Power".  In 2019 Jaykae appeared in the BBC Three comedy-drama Man Like Mobeen, where he played local gangster Azar.

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Dillian Whyte joins Tunde Ajayi and Spencer Fearon to give the EXCLUSIVE on his split with Mark Tibbs. He tells the story of appointing his new trainer Xavier Miller and details his preparations for his up coming fight with Alexander Povetkin. Our hosts also ask Dillian for his thoughts on comments made from Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder since the start of the year. As it has been over 1000 days since Dillian became the WBC no.1 contender and still hasn't had a title shot.  

All this and more on The Fight Is Right  Tunde Ajayi Instagram - @tundejayi9 https://www.instagram.com/tundeajayi9/ Spencer The Knowledge Fearon Instagram - @master_knowledge https://www.instagram.com/master_knowledge/  The Fight Is Right Instagram - @thefightisright9 https://www.instagram.com/thefightisright9/  Tunde's Twitter - https://twitter.com/tundeajayi999 Spencer’s Twitter -  https://twitter.com/Spencer_Fearon The Fight Is Right Twitter - https://twitter.com/Thefightisrigh1  Produced by - @iammrblake (instagram)  

WHO IS DILLIAN WHYTE?  

Dillian Whyte (born 11 April 1988) is a British professional boxer, kickboxer and mixed martial artist. He has held the WBC interim heavyweight title since July 2019. He has held multiple regional heavyweight championships, including the WBC Silver title from 2017 to 2019, the WBO International title from 2018 to 2019, and the British title from 2016 to 2017. As of February 2020, he is ranked as the world's third best active heavyweight by The Ring magazine, fifth by the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board and sixth by BoxRec. His knockout-to-win ratio stands at 72%.  Whyte is also a former kickboxing champion, having held the BIKMA British super-heavyweight title and the European K1 title, and has competed professionally in mixed martial arts.

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Our hosts Tunde Ajayi and Spencer Fearon catch up with British & Commonwealth Super Middleweight challenger Umar "Top Boxer" Sadiq, about his up and coming fight with champion Lerrone Richards.  All this and more on The Fight Is Right. 

 Tunde Ajayi Instagram - @tundejayi9 https://www.instagram.com/tundeajayi9/ Spencer The Knowledge Fearon Instagram - @master_knowledge https://www.instagram.com/master_knowledge/  The Fight Is Right Instagram - @thefightisright9 https://www.instagram.com/thefightisright9/  Tunde's Twitter - https://twitter.com/tundeajayi999 Spencer’s Twitter -  https://twitter.com/Spencer_Fearon The Fight Is Right Twitter - https://twitter.com/Thefightisrigh1  Produced by - @iammrblake (instagram)   

WHO IS UMAR SADIQ?  Super Middleweight boxer Umar Top Boxer Sadiq is fast making a name for himself both inside and outside of the ring.     In 2017 the Top Boxer swapped calculators and spread sheets when he left his highly paid accountancy job in London to turn professional signing a long term promotional contract with Hall of Fame promoter Frank Warren.     The Nigerian born fighter that moved to London when he was 12, also works as a model rubbing shoulders with the likes of David Beckham and playing Anthony Joshua’s double in high profile TV ads.      His love for boxing begun when he took part in a boxercise session organised by former Welterweight Tony Cesay in a local community centre at the age of 16.      Sadiq quickly became a feared opponent on the amateur scene being crowned a two time Haringey Boxcup Champion, English Champion, triple Northeast London Champion and Nigerian Champion.      His amateur dream was to represent Nigeria at the Olympic Games and that almost become reality when he made the final qualifiers as part of the Nigerian 2016 Olympic Team.  WHO IS LERRONE RICHARDS?  New Malden’s Lerrone Richards is a master at range. He fights at the right distance to suit his style where he can flash out his fast jabs and one-twos. When his opponents try to close the gap, they get greeted with a southpaw-stance right hook to the left of their head.  Trained by Alan Smith and Eddie Lamm out of the thriving iBox Gym in Bromley, he is patient and skilled, with great feet and movement. Because he boxes on the outside at range and mostly on the backfoot, he doesn’t generate the power to really hurt his foes, although he does wear them down over the rounds and cause them to look ragged. That’s probably due to them persistently chasing him around the ring all fight.  He does have a tendency to showboat and drop his right arm down low when he feels he’s in control, which he mostly is during his fights.  He very rarely puts more than two or three punches together at a time, which causes some critics to call him lazy.  Even in the final round, Richards will still be skipping around the ring popping out his jab and one-twos and looking as fresh as the first round.  Just like Sadiq, he was also an amateur champion, winning nine national titles when representing Repton, amassing a fine record of 82-9.     However having dominated his Russian opponent the judges shock decision left his dream in tatters.      Outside of the ring the Top Boxer is leading the way in how a professional athlete engages with sports fans and the wider general public. Since turning professional Sadiq has consistently produced fun and insightful video content believing that the onus falls on his own shoulders to actively promote himself and boxing.      In 2018 the “Top Boxer Vlog” was launched on YouTube which is an unfiltered series of videos that documents the lifestyle of a boxer that is rapidly rising through the professional ranks.

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Former World Cruiserweight Champion and Sky Sports Boxing pundit Johnny Nelson details his career high, lows and experiences as a former world champion. A MUST listen for any current or future boxers out there.   

All this and more on The Fight Is Right, hosted by Tunde Ajayi & Spencer Fearon.   

Tunde Ajayi Instagram - @tundejayi9 https://www.instagram.com/tundeajayi9/ Spencer The Knowledge Fearon Instagram - @master_knowledge https://www.instagram.com/master_knowledge/  The Fight Is Right Instagram - @thefightisright9 https://www.instagram.com/thefightisright9/  Tunde's Twitter - https://twitter.com/tundeajayi999 Spencer’s Twitter -  https://twitter.com/Spencer_Fearon The Fight Is Right Twitter - https://twitter.com/Thefightisrigh1  Produced by - @iammrblake (instagram)  

Who is Johnny Nelson?   Ivanson Ranny "Johnny" Nelson (born 4 January 1967) is a British retired professional boxer who competed from 1986 to 2005. He is currently the longest reigning world cruiserweight champion of all time, having held the WBO title from 1999 to 2005. Nelson defended the title against thirteen different fighters, more than any other cruiserweight in history, and holds a joint-record of most consecutive cruiserweight title defenses (along with Marco Huck). Nelson also held the British cruiserweight title twice between 1989 and 1997, and the European cruiserweight title twice between 1990 and 1998. As of April 2020, BoxRec rates him the greatest cruiserweight of all time.

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British welterweight Conor Benn (son of legendary boxer Nigel Benn) joins our hosts Tunde Ajayi and Spencer Fearon, on the first episode of The Fight Is Right since the global pandemic.

He discusses the potential of a fight with fellow welterweight Josh Kelly and his efforts to fight with Ashely Theophane.

All this and more on The Fight Is Right.

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