Matchroom Boxing announces exciting fights for early 2026
Matchroom Boxing has revealed its fight schedule for early 2026, which includes two world title fights, a title unification, and a highly anticipated rematch.
On January 24, Raymond Muratalla will defend his IBF lightweight title against 2020 Olympic gold medalist and undefeated Cuban boxer Andy Cruz in Fontainebleau, Las Vegas.
Muratalla (23-0, 17 KOs) won the vacant title in his last fight, defeating Zaur Abdullaev in May. His first title defense will be against the rising Cruz, who debuted as a professional in 2023 and remains undefeated with a record of 6-0. Cruz is coming off an impressive fifth-round knockout victory against Hironori Mishiro in June.
The following week, IBF super welterweight champion Bakhram Murtazaliev (23-0, 17 KOs) will put his title on the line against Josh Kelly (17-1-1, 9 KOs) at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle.
Kelly has won seven consecutive fights since he was stopped by David Avanesyan in 2021. Murtazaliev will make his second defense of the title he won in 2024 with a knockout over Jack Culcay. He defeated Tim Tszyu in three rounds in October 2024 and will compete for the first time in over a year.
An expected rematch between Leigh Wood (28-4, 17 KOs) and Josh Warrington (32-4-1, 8 KOs) will headline a card on February 21 at the Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham.
In their October 2023 encounter, Wood achieved a knockout victory over Warrington. Wood seeks to return to winning ways after being stopped by Anthony Cacace in May, while Warrington hopes to avenge the knockout loss and secure his second consecutive victory.
Finally, Emanuel Navarrete and Eduardo “Sugar” Nunez will face each other in a super lightweight unification fight on February 28 at the Desert Diamond Arena in Arizona.
Navarrete (39-2-1, 32 KOs) holds the WBO title, while Nunez (29-1, 27 KOs) holds the IBF championship. Nunez secured the unification fight with a unanimous decision victory against Christopher Diaz in September. The fight was originally scheduled for March 7th at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, but has since been moved to Glendale and will take place a week earlier.
