BoxMania 2 headlined by Joshua Wahab vs Liam Dillon
When Goodwin Boxing launched the BoxMania concept earlier in 2022, they promised the biggest nights of small-hall boxing in the UK.
It has been announced that, in association with hall of fame promoter Lou DiBella, the next show in the series will be headlined by Nigeria’s undefeated KO artist Joshua Wahab (22-0, 15KO) who takes on English titleholder Liam Dillon (10-0-1, 2KO) in a Commonwealth super featherweight title eliminator. There will be three Southern Area title fights acting as chief support to this fantastic main event.
Wahab, promoted by DiBella, makes his first UK appearance after amassing a number of hugely impressive victories in Ghana and his birth country of Nigeria. With 15 knockouts from his 22 wins, the former Ghanaian champion will make for a great matchup against another undefeated fighter in Liam Dillon, who himself has been on an impressive run of form in picking up the English title in his last fight.
“We aren’t here to play around,” said Steve Goodwin, head of Goodwin Boxing. “We promised fans big nights of boxing when we launched the BoxMania series and this second show is bigger than even we had hoped for. Adding in Wahab versus Dillon makes no sense economically for us, but we made a promise to boxing fans and we always deliver on them.”
The addition of Wahab-Dillon to the July 23rd show adds to what was already a stellar night of boxing with a plethora of title fights to attract fans, as well as true 50/50 fights on top of that. It is often said that Area title fights deliver the highest quality of viewing, with two fighters who see it as the key to opening the door to bigger opportunities. So the card has been stacked with them.
At super-lightweight, the unbeaten Barking-based Lithuanian Denis Denikajev (8-0-1, 1KO) goes toe-to-toe with Essex-based 'ID' Idris Hill (10-3-2, 2KO) for the Southern Area title. Nigerian-born Hill, 37 from Westcliff-on-Sea, has built a reputation as an all-action fighter and will be looking to make his experience count against the stylish 26-year-old Denikajev.
Cruiserweight Southern Area champion Daniel Mendes (13-2, 1KO), fresh off of re-capturing the title against Mark Little, makes a second maiden defence against big punching Jamie Smith (5-1, 4KO). With a quartet of knockouts from a quintet of wins, 30-year-old Buckinghamshire boxer Smith, whose sole loss was during the three-round BOXXER Series format to the overall winner Ellis Zorro, is a serious challenge to 6'2" southpaw Mendes. The Silvertown stylist is a slick talent, who has the edge in experience having held the cruiserweight strap before in 2019, but wasn't successful in his first defence. Now, the 37-year-old has a chance to defend this belt again but will it be artistry or power that prevails?
The final title fight of the night sees a rematch at super-flyweight, where Jack Hughes (7-2-1) and Paul Roberts (3-3-2) run back their draw from March of this year, which was an instant small hall classic. 'Punk Kid' Hughes never fails to entertain and is looking to pick up the title in his third attempt.
Even without a title on the line, Adrian Martin (11-2, 3KO) vs Dalton Miller (9-10-3, 2KO) promises to be an outstanding matchup over 10 rounds. Both recently fought for the Southern Area middleweight title against a common opponent in Lewis Syrett, and with one eye on getting back to title level a win here would boost either man.
On top of all of this, the likes of former English title challenger Ramez Mahmood (12-2, 2KO) will be on show, alongside one of the UK’s brightest prospects, 23-year-old super-welterweight Joshua Gustave (1-0).
Rounding off the stacked card will be the eagerly awaited debut of super-lightweight Sher Khan; undefeated super-middleweight Bromley boxer Jack Owen (4-0) entering into his first six-round contest; and the return of undefeated super-welterweight prospect 'Shocki Khan' (2-0).
Steve Goodwin called it: "The best show Goodwin Boxing have put on. Definitely. Make sure you get a ticket fast as the show is certain to sell out. Not only do Goodwin Boxing never stop, but we are also here to stay. See you July 23rd at York Hall!"
