UoB Boxing's Amateur Fight Night 2025: Will Watson and freshers shine

By Mihai Rosca Sports Subeditor and Ike Idikakalu Politics and International Relations First Year

On March 1st Epigram was lucky enough to be invited to the Boxing Society's Amateur Fight Night held in Anson Rooms. Their event stood out from other 'white collar' student boxing events like The Fighter with which we're maybe more familiar, as it instead featured experienced boxers fighting to plump out their amateur records. This distinction between white-collar and amateur boxing events could be seen in other things too. Visually, amateur boxers wear vests while white-collar fighters don't- one of the reasons being that it's the traditional way for them to represent their club. Another observation we made was that at white-collar events the focus is entertaining the audience whereas at amateur's the aims are to celebrate the preparation of the boxers and promote friendliness among clubs.

This difference in thinking was evident in how the organisers didn't tolerate any rude behaviour from the crowd and escorted them out when they had to. There were also no performances like singers or cheerleaders which are more common at white-collar events. This, as well as having seating provided all helped make it feel more professional which was refreshing.

Some information:

The event was a massive success thanks to the Boxing Society Committee- particularly Competition Secretary Victor Griffiths who played a crucial role in organising the event and Sam Noble(President of UoB Boxing for 2025/26) who worked hard to put on a good show as MC. Catching up with members of the audience at the end, there was an agreement that everything was extremely well organised and that they had really enjoyed themselves.

Sam Noble(right) giving it his all. Image courtesy of Agathe Seiler

These were the weight classes:

Heavyweight- 92kg

Cruiserweight- 86kg

Light Heavyweight- 80kg

Middleweight- 75kg

Light Middleweight- 71kg

Welterweight- 67kg

The results were as follows:

Light Middleweight: Russell Yates (Downend ABC) | Adam Umar (Brunel University) - Yates by Unanimous Decision (UD)
Welterweight: Matt Hills (UoB) | Luke Harper (Spartan Taunton ABS) - Harper by UD
Cruiserweight: Emmet Murphy (Trinity College Dublin) | Mitchel Chukwuemeka (Imperial College London) - Chukwuemeka by UD
Light Welterweight: Ife Isaacs (UoB) | Morgan Horn (UWE) - Horn by Decision
Heavyweight: Cormac Morgan (UoB) | Jermaine Ehigiator (Imperial College London) - Ehigiator by Referee Stoppage
Middleweight: Srosh Akbari (UoB) | Benji Katambwa (Brunel University) - Katambwa by Referee Stoppage
Light Middleweight: William Watson (UoB) | Sebastian Lo (Imperial College London) - Watson by UD
Light Heavyweight: Jakub Mazur (UoB) | Danny Wilson (Welsh Warriors ABC) - Wilson by Split Decision

—30 minute interval—

Welterweight: Isaac Rincon (UoB) | John Moore (Trinity College Dublin) - Rincon by UD
Cruiserweight: Felix Clarke (UoB) | Kyle Webb (Synwell ABC) - Clarke by Referee Stoppage
Light Heavyweight: Joseph Muckle (UoB) | Jordan Kevern (Wells ABC) - Muckle by Referee Stoppage
Middleweight: Vibishan Lingarajah (UoB) | Eoghan Kavanagh (Trinity College Dublin) - Kavanagh by Split Decision
Light Heavyweight: Judah Kavanagh (UoB) | Joshua Simpson (Alive ABC) - Simpson by Disqualification
Welterweight: Juwayn Keane (Downend ABC) | Bolton Fernandes (Walcot ABC) - Keane by Split Decision

Prefight Interviews

Will Watson(8-0, current President of UoB Boxing)- Reminiscent of Butch from Pulp Fiction, Will enjoys a short nap before his fights. He snoozed before his fights at BUCS and in Dublin. Talking to Will I wondered if he was in his best condition given the fact that he hadn't napped by then, looking back, I had nothing to wonder about.

He had lots of interesting things to say about his prefight prep such as that he despite it being fight day he still ate what he normally eats in order not "to disrupt the normal processes". He also listens to really mellow songs like Summertime Sadness" and "RIP to my youth". Apparently listening to really depressing breakup songs is supposed to keep his energy at the optimal level, getting too energised beyond what he already was would risk making him over-nervous: "My job is to keep a lid on it until it needs to come out"

Will was going to fight the weekend before too but the guy pulled out last minute

"He saw my adorable face and was like 'no way, too intimidating'" Will joked.

Brief Summaries

Russell Yates (UWE) | Adam Umar (Brunel University)

A strong start to the night with an explosive and energetic first round. Umar came out with a lot of energy at first, but as he tired in later rounds Yates strengthened his advantage. Umar found his legs in the third round it seemed, hitting smooth combinations and striking Yates with a blow strong enough to prompt a standing eight count, but the first two rounds seemed strongly in Yates’ favour, and so he took the win.

Matt Hills (UoB) | Luke Harper (Spartan Taunton ABS)

Hills was notably agile and full of vigour, helping him close the gap between him and his opponent who had a range advantage. His quick footwork helped him in this regard, but Harper used his reach and height to keep Hills at a distance, and land consistent punishing blows. The other two rounds followed the same course, and by unanimous decision Harper took the win.

Emmet Murphy (Trinity College Dublin) | Mitchel Chukwuemeka (Imperial College London)

From the onset of the bout, it was clear Chukwuemeka fought with intensity and devastating strength, earning him the nickname "Mini Mike Tyson" from some of the crowd members. Murphy was strong at keeping Chukwuemeka at range when on the defence, but as soon as he tried to engage Chukwuemeka would often use the opportunity to close the gap, to terrible consequences for Murphy. Chukwuemeka’s dominant performance throughout the match was met with gasps from the audience as his blows struck his opponent, earning him a unanimous decision from the judges.

Ife Isaacs (UoB) | Morgon Horn (UWE)

This was a tense and hard-fought match, with both fighters possessing great speed and techniques. Exchanges were lightning quick and evenly matched, leaving the audience watching in apprehension as to what could happen next. In the end, Horn won by split decision.

Cormac Morgan (UoB) | Jermaine Ehigiator (Imperial College London)

Straight from the start it would be clear this was a match of interest. Two imposing, powerful fighters faced off in this match, with Morgan and Ehigiator trading potent blows with each other in intense exchanges, much to the crowd’s excitement. Round two saw the end of the bout however, in a decisive blow struck by Ehigator square on Morgan’s face that saw injuries great enough for the referee to stop the fight.

Srosh Akbari(UoB) | Benji Katambwa(Brunel University)

Akbari proved himself to be a very tough boxer. Katambwa put the pressure on throughout their fight, landing a clean 1-2 to Srosh's face. However, Srosh managed to continue boxing after getting a count in Round 1 and another in Round 2. Members of the audience were very impressed by this. Unfortunately, the contest was stopped by the referee in Round 3, who probably thought it had gone on for too long.

William Watson (UoB) | Sebastian Lo (Imperial College London)

Lo had bested Vibishan Lingarajah, UoB's current Captain, a year previously. Because of this Will was able to learn a lot about his opponent, a benefit he doesn't normally enjoy.

As promised Will walks out while "Pompeii" plays and gives a count to his opponent 30s into the first round. Though Lo kept going, Watson frustrated him with his jab. His ability to throw punches while dodging them is fantastic and before the round ends the audience can see the spit that has been smacked out of blue shining against the spotlights.

In the second round Will displayed some more sound boxing, first shooting up then down then back up again. Props have to be given to Lo for being able to keep up.

In round 3, Will gives Sebastian another count. By the end it wasn't at all surprising that Will achieved a UD win.

By the time it was over Patrick had deemed Will's performance nothing short of "mystical". It looks like once again young Patrick has been inspired to follow in the footsteps of his elders...

Jakub Mazur (UoB) | Danny Wilson (Welsh Warriors ABC)

Discussing the fight with some of the boys afterwards one of them said:

"It was like a scrap."

This bout was, from the beginning, one with strong opinions in the audience, as Mazur was embraced by Bristol supporters, and Wilson’s swaggering entrance cheered on by his own entourage. The fight itself was tense and at times hard to watch, with Wilson’s aggressive fighting style involving pushing Mazur into corners of the ring, suppressing him, and punishing him with thudding blows to the abdomen, or wherever Wilson could strike. This was much to the ire of the referee, having to stop the match frequently to ensure rules were still being followed. Mazur fought valiantly, his quick footwork and seamless combinations had Wilson staggering at times. Regardless, Wilson won the match by decision, to mixed reception from the audience.

Isaac Rincon (UoB) | John Moore (Trinity College Dublin)

This fight was a satisfying change of pace from the last one, both fighters were respectful and fought with skill. Rincon is a first-year student, and so his impressive performance was all the more amazing to watch. He landed precise jabs and maintained strong control over the fight with solid positioning and footwork.

Felix Clarke (Vice-Captain of UoB Boxing for 2025/26) | Kyle Webb (Synwell ABC)

Both fighters burst into action as the bell rang, trading potent blows to the head as the match went on, an absolute slugfest. This was an intense watch; each blow seemed more powerful than the last, and both Webb and Clarke barraged each other with lethal blows. As this continued though, it became clear Webb was losing composure from these consecutive strikes, and when the referee noticed he was failing to keep his guard up, he was forced to end the match, in Clarke’s favour.

Joseph Muckle (Captain of UoB for 2025/26) | Jordan Kevern (Wells ABC)

Two strong and energetic competitors faced off in this bout, and Muckle was notable for his exceptional agility, making it difficult for Kevern to land any blows to his opponent. Muckle delivered destructive blows after Kevern’s unsuccessful engagements, and Kevern eventually sustained enough injuries for the referee to stop the match in Muckle’s favour in the third round.

Vibishan Lingarajah (UoB) | Eoghan Kavanagh (Trinity College Dublin)

Lingarajah, Bristol Boxing’s captain, was very popular with the audience as he stepped out and entered the ring to the roar of the crowd. This same support was not extended to Kavanagh unfortunately, who appeared tense when facing his opponent in the ring. In combat, Lingarajah’s discipline to his craft was clear- he used a combination of powerful hooks and straights to Kavanagh’s head to knock him clean off his feet, prompting a mandatory eight count to the adoration of the crowd. His footwork was impressive, and his dexterity incredible. Kavanagh however seemed to be more consistent, with strong defence and powerful punishments for failed attacks from Lingarajah. This seemed to give him the edge, as Kavanagh won by decision in a major upset to observers.

Judah Kavanagh (UoB) | Joshua Simpson (Alive ABC)

This match was unfortunately rather anticlimactic, as Kavanagh was disqualified by the referee early into the fight.

Juwayn Keane (Downend ABC) | Bolton Fernandes (Walcot ABC)

A bout between two very skilled opponents to end the night off with; both fighters were evenly matched, with clean hits being rare throughout the fight. The win was given to Keane by Unanimous Decision, and it was notable for the strong conduct and sportsmanship between the two fighters.

Post-fight Interviews

Will Watson- "It was so much tougher than I thought(it'd be)." Will did end up giving props to his opponent for "coming out swinging" after he gave him a standing count in Round 1. Lo even managed to catch Will with a nasty body shot which Will felt despite all of the adrenaline.

"I was waiting for the bell to go and that doesn't happen often" knowing Will, him saying that suggests this was his toughest challenge yet. Something that he was asking for when we last spoke. While talking to a crowd member he remarks that he "dominated the first", "scraped by" in the second and had to give it all in the third round.

How did Will manage to push through? He stayed calm. He knew that Lo being shorter would benefit from him psyching himself up and choosing to slug it out. Instead, he played it safe and simply outpaced his opponent.

Felix Clarke- Now 1 and 0! Remarked that his opponent was "small", lacked confidence and "hadn't trained as much" Felix told us he started boxing a year and a half ago because he had nothing to do and it "gave him a sense of purpose".

Felix Clarke. Image courtesy of Mihai Roșca

Tadhg Kelly-Morgan(Ex Captain)- Tadhg provided a good analysis of the UoB fights. Specifically, he thought Vib had battled his heart out and deserved the decision, but that he made it closer than it needed to be. Overall, he expressed that everyone who got into the ring "looked like boxers" whatever the result was and that he was massively proud of them all.

Ife Isaacs- "It wasn't too bad, I was happy" He plans to keep sparring and "take it how it goes"

Joseph Muckle- Joe made light work of his opponent but describes himself as a pacifist, someone who doesn't believe in violence. Joe said his opponent "looked strong" which scared him slightly but fortunately, Joe was able to exploit his weaknesses with check hooks. He plans to have a little break because though he "loves boxing to bits" it causes him a lot of stress, fair enough mate. That doesn't mean he won't be training though, he's looking forward to having a few more bouts next year!

Joseph Muckle, Image courtesy of Mihai Roșca

Speaking to Craig, the head Coach at Downend, he had this to say about the event:

"I'm over the moon with the performances that the boys showed... you don't lose, you learn and that's enough. The guys showed us skill and determination and if they take that into the workplace they'll be very successful."

This comment from Craig, who used to be a police officer, exhibits his interpretation of boxing as a discipline. While it may be great to win bouts, Craig's aim is to help his fighters, many of whom are students, become well-rounded individuals that can grow from facing adversity, not just in the ring but in all spheres of their life. Therefore, contrary to popular opinion training, is a lot more than just getting physically stronger, it's also a way to nurture qualities like ambition and passion- which will be useful in the students' later life stages.

Overall, this fight night was a thrill to watch, with many tense moments and exciting fights that brought satisfaction to all watchers. This truly was an excellent display of talent from all fighters present, and they all should be proud of their achievements here. We also wish the new committee good luck and look forward to seeing what they have planned for us next year!

Vic, Tadhg and Craig. Image courtesy of Mihai Roșca

Thank you to everyone who assisted us in covering the event. Especially to the main organisers Victor and Will and to Agathe Seiler of Dublin Boxing Club at Trinity College Dublin who provided the photos(@jacquessseiler and @duboxingclub on Instagram).

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