Fabio Wardley is a man in demand. Last Saturday night, the British and Commonwealth heavyweight champion defended his titles against David Adeleye in impressive fashion, stopping the Londoner in seven increasingly one sided rounds on the undercard of the ‘Battle of the Baddest’ between Tyson Fury and Francis Ngannou.
Wardley was at the center of the boxing universe in Saudi Arabia, surrounded by some of the greatest to have ever ducked between the ropes but as he posed for photographs afterwards, he wouldn’t have been able to avoid the sight of another British rival, Frazer Clarke, looming on the ring apron.
Hours after touching back down in Britain, Wardley found himself looking at Clarke again – this time via a zoom link – as the pair appeared together on Sky Sports.
“Look, if he wants it and he’s ready to knuckle up and get it on then, yeah, I’m more than happy to get that done,” Wardley said.
“Me and Frazer have our back and forths but I’ll give him the credit that he will probably be the toughest test of my career so far. He’s a decorated amateur and he’s got a good history of boxing behind him. He’s got his head switched on and he knows what he’s doing in that ring so I’ll have to bring my full game but it’s something I’m more than willing to do.”
Wardley (17-0, 16 KO’s) was due to defend the British title against Clarke (8-0, 6 KO’s) earlier this year but Clarke’s team withdrew him from the purse bid at the last moment citing his lack of professional rounds. It’s safe to say that the 2020 Olympic bronze medallist didn’t agree with the decision but he has made the most of the extra time, racking up ten valuable rounds with Mariusz Wach and stopping Dave Allen. Following Saturday’s impressive performance, Wardley’s profile has never been higher either. All’s well that ends well and the fight is undoubtedly bigger now than it would have been six months ago.
“I’m always 100% confident in retaining my belts. I’ve put them on the line before and I’ll happily do it again,” Wardley said. “Look, there’s no point going into the fuss about what happened before about the fight that was meant to be but everyone clearly knew that I was ready to take the fight there and then. Nothing has changed, nothing is different I’m happy to get it on wherever.
“It’s all fun and games but you sign that contract. You get there on the night and you’re getting knocked out.”